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FBI Director Kash Patel pushed back sharply at Sen. Chris Van Hollen during a Senate budget hearing Tuesday, denying allegations that he drinks excessively while on the job and describing the claims as false. The exchange began after Van Hollen confronted Patel about a recent article in The Atlantic that Patel said painted an unflattering portrait of his leadership.
Patel told Van Hollen that the allegations he drinks excessively and is unreachable to his staff at times are “unequivocally, categorically false,” and he added, “I will not be tarnished by baseless allegations and fraudulent statements from the media.” Patel said he would not be put on the defensive over the Atlantic profile as the hearing became more contentious.
In his response to Van Hollen, Patel accused the senator of privately drinking at public expense, saying Van Hollen was the one “slinging margaritas on the taxpayer dime” during a trip last year to Kilmar Abrego Garcia while the man was jailed in El Salvador. Patel’s comments referenced Van Hollen’s encounter with Abrego Garcia after Abrego Garcia had been mistakenly deported to El Salvador, and Patel argued the senator’s actions contradicted the drinking allegations being directed at him.
When Van Hollen responded that the claims were serious and asked Patel about taking a test intended to measure whether someone has a drinking problem, Patel replied, “I’ll take any test you’re willing to take.” Van Hollen also called Patel’s claims about the senator’s conduct “provably false,” according to the hearing exchange described by the Associated Press.
The hearing unfolded as part of an annual Senate subcommittee budget appearance that included Patel and other senior law enforcement leaders, with Patel using the forum to highlight what he described as major crime-fighting achievements since taking the position. The exchange drew a contrast between Republican lawmakers who praised Patel’s leadership and Democrats who focused on allegations and line-item scrutiny of his role.
Other Democrats pressed Patel on travel and staffing decisions. Sen. Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat, asked Patel about his trip to the Winter Olympics in Italy and inquired about what the trip cost and how it helped the director carry out his mission. Patel said the FBI was responsible for security at the Olympics and asserted that his trip facilitated the transfer of a Chinese cybercriminal to U.S. custody after Italian authorities had detained the individual.
Patel’s denials and the wider line of questioning came amid ongoing legal and political dispute over the Atlantic profile. Patel has filed a $250 million lawsuit over the magazine’s reporting, while the Atlantic has said it stands by its reporting and would vigorously defend against the “meritless lawsuit.” MSI previously covered Patel’s lawsuit over the drinking allegations. Patel sues Atlantic for $250M over drinking allegations