“I never listen to the fake news mafia,” Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Kash Patel told reporters Tuesday. Patel then lashed out at a journalist and apparently contradicted his own lawsuit in the process.
Let’s backtrack a bit before we get into Patel’s breakdown. First, we’ll backtrack to a different lawsuit, one Patel filed against former FBI director Frank Figliuzzi for comments Figliuzzi made on the MS Now program “Morning Joe”.
Last May, Figliuzzi said on the program that Patel had “been visible at nightclubs far more than he has been on the seventh floor of the Hoover building,” the FBI’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., per CNBC. This Wednesday, the outlet reported that a Houston federal court judge dismissed Patel’s defamation lawsuit against the former FBI director.
“The Court finds that Figliuzzi’s statement is rhetorical hyperbole that cannot constitute defamation,” U.S. District Court Judge George Hanks Jr. wrote in his decision, as cited by CNBC. “Accordingly, Dir. Patel has failed to state a claim against Figliuzzi, and his lawsuit must be dismissed.”
Another report about Patel’s drinking came from NBC News this February. Citing “a person familiar with the matter,” the outlet said that President Donald Trump was “disappointed” in Patel after a video of the FBI director chugging beer in a locker-room celebration with the U.S. men’s hockey team after its win against Canada in the Olympics was posted by ProPublica.
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson touted “President’s law and order agenda which is being successfully implemented by his law and order team, including FBI Director Kash Patel,” in a statement cited by NBC News. She also said “the President has full confidence in his Administration.”
Yet another report referencing Patel’s drinking was published last Friday in The Atlantic. According to that report, Patel has “alarmed colleagues with episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences.”
It also included an account of an incident that reportedly occurred on April 10. Per The Atlantic, Patel “was preparing to leave work for the weekend, he struggled to log on to an internal computer system,” and “quickly became convinced that he had been locked out, and he panicked, frantically calling aides and allies to announce that he had been fired by the White House, according to nine people familiar with his outreach.”
Two of the people cited by The Atlantic described his behavior as a “freak-out,” and the issue was found to be a technical glitch, the article noted. However, an unnamed FBI official also told the outlet that: “We’re all just waiting for the word” that Patel is officially out of his job leading the FBI.
“Kash Patel appears to be a raging alcoholic,” said Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) this week in a call for Patel to step down. “He should not be FBI director, he should go seek help and treatment.”
Patel filed a $250 million lawsuit against The Atlantic Monday over its article. According to The New Republic, the lawsuit alleged that: “Director Patel had a routine technical problem logging into a government system, which was quickly fixed.”
Now, we’ll get back to Patel’s spat with the media this Tuesday. In a video shared by C-SPAN, Patel started off addressing some of the allegations that have been reported on in the media, including reports of his drinking, and this new lawsuit.
“I’ve never been intoxicated on the job, and that is why we filed a $251 million defamation lawsuit, and any of you who wants to participate, bring it on, I’ll see you in court,” Patel said.
A reporter also tried to ask about the computer login issue The Atlantic mentioned and Patel lashed out.
“The problem with you and your baseless reporting is that is an absolute lie,” the FBI director said. “It was never said, it never happened, and I will serve in this administration as long as the president and the attorney general want me to do so.”
“It’s a simple… straightforward question,” said the reporter, and Patel again accused them of lying.
“The simple answer to your question is you are lying,” Patel said.
Then, Patel said “I was never locked out of my systems,” and that “anyone who says the opposite is lying.”
“Your lawsuit says the opposite,” the reporter noted. Soon after, Patel appeared to stop answering questions.
