Senate Republicans face pressure from ex-GOP officials to oppose Kash Patel

Senate Republicans are under growing pressure from prominent former Republican officials to reject President Trump’s pick to head the FBI, Kash Patel, setting the stage for another bruising confirmation later this week.

Patel has drawn strong opposition from former Republican national security and law enforcement leaders, such as former Trump national security adviser John Bolton, former Trump Attorney General William Barr and former Trump Defense Secretary Mike Esper, who have questioned Patel’s fitness for the job.

Bolton compared Patel to a “climbing weed” who “doesn’t show respect for the limits” and called new allegations that Patel broke protocol during a hostage rescue operation “stunning.”

Barr recalled in his memoir that he adamantly opposed a push to promote Patel to serve as deputy FBI director during Trump’s first term and told then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows it would happen “over my dead body.”

Esper, who headed the Pentagon from 2019-20, said Patel almost compromised a special forces operation to rescue an American hostage in West Africa by leading his superiors to falsely believe American forces had airspace clearance to conduct the operation.

A spokesperson for Patel denied that claim last month and asserted Patel excelled as a terrorism prosecutor for the Department of Justice.

More than 20 Republican former law enforcement officials sent a letter to Republican senators Tuesday urging them to oppose Patel.

They warned that Patel lacks the “record and temperament for FBI leadership” and argued he “is motivated by revenge” by repeatedly vowing to go after individuals perceived to be Trump’s enemies.

It was signed by Trump’s former special counsel, Ty Cobb; former Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-Va.), who served as director of public affairs at the Department of Justice during former President George W. Bush's administration; Peter Keisler, who served as acting U.S. attorney general under Bush; Marc Racicot, Montana’s former attorney general and former Republican National Committee chair; and former Govs. Christine Todd Whitman (R) of New Jersey and William Weld (R) of Massachusetts, among others.

Patel is likely to sail through the Senate Judiciary Committee, one of the most partisan panels in the Senate, but his confirmation could run into opposition from the same Republicans who almost defeated Trump’s controversial pick for the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, last week.

Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) say they haven’t made a decision on whether to support Patel’s nomination, which is coming under sharp criticism from Democrats.

“I’m going to wait until his hearing before making a decision on him,” Collins said Tuesday.

Murkowski said she was aware of Barr’s concerns about Patel.

“I factor everything out there in” making a decision about a nominee, she said.

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) fired off a warning shot Friday evening on Trump’s most controversial nominees by casting a surprise vote against Hegseth. McConnell argued that Hegseth was not ready for the job.

He remains a wild card ahead of the Senate’s consideration of Patel. His office did not say how he would vote on the nominee.

Patel and Trump’s other nominees can afford to lose only three Republican votes and still win confirmation if Vice President Vance is on hand to break a tie, as he was for Hegseth.

Crucially, Patel has the support of Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, who said he was influenced by former Rep. Trey Gowdy’s (R-S.C.) support of the nominee.

“I was persuaded by Trey Gowdy, who I have a lot of respect for, and he said his experience working with Kash Patel is very good. That was very influential,” Cornyn said when asked about the opposition of Bolton, Barr, Esper and Republican former officials to the nominee.

In another hopeful development for Patel, he will be introduced to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a member of the panel who was a key vote in the confirmation of Hegseth.

“I’ve been talking with Kash for going on almost three months about his nomination and the objections raised against him,” Tillis told The Hill.

“I’ve tracked down every one of these concerns, and they have more to do with a feeling than they do a fact. And I’m driven by facts. That’s why I’m going to introduce him, and that’s why I’m going to endorse him in the strongest way,” he said.

Tillis predicted that Republicans will vote Patel favorably out of the Judiciary Committee, where Republicans have a 12-10 majority.

“I think that we look good. He’ll get reported out of committee,” he said. “I think most of the members are probably positively predisposed … and I think he’ll have the votes on the floor.

“If I wasn’t convinced of that, I wouldn’t have convinced him to come before the committee,” he said.

Days ahead of Patel’s hearing, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the Judiciary Committee’s ranking member, has revealed he has received “highly credible information” that Patel “broke protocol” by publicly commenting without authorization about a retrieval mission for two Americans held captive in Yemen while it was in progress.

Durbin’s office said The Wall Street Journal published comments from Patel about a hostage swap several hours before the hostages were confirmed to be in U.S. custody.

Durbin has sent a letter to the FBI, the Department of Defense, the State Department and the Treasury Department demanding they produce all relevant materials related to the alleged misconduct.

“This is the second known instance of Mr. Patel breaking hostage recovery protocol to inappropriately insert himself in a sensitive or high-profile recovery mission,” Durbin wrote.

“An official who puts missions and the lives of Americans in jeopardy for public notoriety and personal gain is unfit to lead the country’s primary federal law enforcement and investigation agency,” he said.

Topics

Watch live: Kash Patel faces senators at confirmation hearing

Kash Patel, President Trump's controversial nominee to head the FBI, will face senators Thursday morning during a confirmation hearing. Patel, who is testifying before the Senate Judiciary ...
The Hill - 1h
Kash Patel, Trump's controversial pick for FBI director, set to face Senate grilling

Trump ally Kash Patel, the president's pick for FBI director, is likely to be questioned about his fitness to lead Thursday during his Senate confirmation hearing.
ABC News - 2h
Kash Patel Senate confirmation hearing to be FBI director

Watch live coverage as Kash Patel, President Donald Trump's pick to be FBI director, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
NBC News - Jan. 21
Kash Patel hearing live updates: Staunch Trump supporter to face confirmation

Kash Patel, President Trump's pick for FBI director, faces members of the Senate Judiciary Committee in his confirmation hearing Thursday.
ABC News - 4h
The conservative ex-FBI agents who have Kash Patel's ear

When Donald Trump announced he wanted Kash Patel to be the next director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, one of Patel’s first moves was reaching out to three conservative former special ...
NBC News - 7h
Republican former government officials urge Senate to reject Patel nomination

A group of Republican former government officials is urging senators to reject Kash Patel’s nomination to lead the FBI, saying his confirmation would be “a grievous mistake.” “Confirming Patel ...
The Hill - 1d
Senate confirmation hearings for RFK Jr., Kash Patel and Tulsi Gabbard this week

Some of President Trump's most high-profile Cabinet picks are set to go before the Senate this week for their confirmation hearings. CBS News congressional correspondent Caitlin Huey-Burns has a ...
CBS News - 3d
Trump 'surprised' about Republican senators who oppose Pete Hegseth

Trump told reporters he was "surprised" Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins planned to vote against former Fox News host Pete Hegseth's nomination to lead the Defense Department.
NBC News - 6d
Trump's Jan. 6 pardons face pushback from some Republican senators

Some Republican senators pushed back against President Donald Trump’s decision to issue pardons and commute the sentences of Jan. 6 defendants.
NBC News - Jan. 21