Running the FBI? Kash Patel believes his job is getting attention [View all]

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Running the FBI? Kash Patel believes his job is getting attention
He's "more focused on social media clout" than on "fighting crime," as Sen. Chris Coons said

By Amanda Marcotte
Senior Writer
Published September 17, 2025 6:45AM (EDT)


(Salon) If there was one word to describe most of FBI Director Kash Patel‘s public appearances since Charlie Kirk‘s tragic assassination on Sept. 10, it would be “giddy.” Despite claiming the deceased right-wing influencer as a friend, Patel’s affect has been that of a reality TV game show host excitedly hyping this week’s big reveal.

“The screwdriver that was found on top of the roof. And the towel on which the firearm was found. The ravine that I walked myself, along with the rooftop. I said we cannot waste a second on this DNA analysis,” Patel breathlessly declared Monday night on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show. “And we announce today on Fox that the DNA was a positive match for the suspect in question.”

One almost expected him to pull back a curtain to display a surprise guest.

....(snip)....

Carnival barker — that’s how the FBI director appears to see his job. After all, the former far-right podcaster was appointed by President Donald Trump not because of his (threadbare) crime-fighting experience, but seemingly to appease the conspiracy theorist constituency of the president’s MAGA base. Patel’s Fox appearance would be tasteless camera-hogging for a top law enforcement official at any time. But it was especially disturbing given the FBI director’s alleged friendship with Kirk and the level of seriousness with which Patel claimed the bureau led the manhunt for Kirk’s assassin.

From the moment Kirk died, Patel’s approach to the case has been characterized more by his boundless need for attention than by concerns about getting justice for Kirk. The director’s rush to post on X about the case led him to falsely declare that “the subject” had been arrested on the day of the shooting, just before Patel dashed off to dinner at a fancy Manhattan restaurant. Ninety minutes later, he sheepishly retracted the statement. And even though Robinson was only caught because his father turned him in, Patel nevertheless took credit on Fox News for the suspect’s capture. “I made the executive decision” to release photos of the suspect before the arrest, he declared, as if that’s not common FBI practice. ..................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/09/17/running-the-fbi-kash-patel-believes-his-job-is-getting-attention/