“He can’t do the job. He won’t protect the public. He will misuse the resources of the bureau. He will weaponize it against the president’s political opponents, rather than protecting the public safety of the American people.”
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), along with Senate Judiciary Committee colleagues, spoke outside of the FBI headquarters blasting Kash Patel’s unfitness and loyalty to President Donald Trump ahead of the Senate’s vote on confirmation of Patel for FBI Director.
Watch Schiff’s full remarks HERE.
Key Excerpt:
On Patel’s inability to uphold the duties of FBI Director:
[…] On January 6, a violent mob attacked the Capitol, beat police officers, bear-sprayed them, gouged them, in the service of an even bigger crime, which was stopping the peaceful transfer of power. Not only were these agents who are being purged assigned those cases and did their assignments, but they did so in a righteous prosecution against those involved in attacking police and attacking the peaceful transfer of power. But they’re being purged.
And the man that they would have head the agency, the man that Donald Trump would have head this agency is someone who made common cause with those violent attackers. This is someone who joined them in song, helped produce music by these people who beat and gouged and bear sprayed law enforcement officers. This tells you something about the character of Kash Patel, or rather his lack of character. This is someone who said he wants to close down this building and open it up as a museum of the deep state. This is someone who when I asked him whether he was aware of any firings within the bureau or potential firings within the bureau, said he didn’t recall. Said he didn’t recall when whistleblowers have said he was deeply involved in those firings of top FBI personnel. This is someone we cannot trust. This is someone who lacks the character to do this job. Someone who lacks the integrity to do this job.
We know that, our Republican colleagues know that. The only qualification Kash Patel has to be FBI director is that when everyone else in the first Trump administration said, “No, I won’t do that. That crosses moral, ethical and legal lines.” Kash Patel said, “Sign me up.” In the first Trump administration, as we are seeing in the second, you rise to the level of your sycophancy, and no one is a bigger or more dangerous sycophant than Kash Patel. This political hack does not deserve to be in this building. He can’t do the job. He won’t protect the public. He will misuse the resources of the bureau. He will weaponize it against the president’s political opponents, rather than protecting the public safety of the American people. We will vote no.
Read the transcript of his remarks as delivered below:
More than 30 years ago I served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles for almost six years. There wasn’t a finer law enforcement agency that I worked for at that time, nor have I witnessed in the 30 years since, then the FBI. But inside that building right now, there is a purge going on. Inside that building, FBI agents who have dedicated their careers to protecting the public are being purged from their offices. Thousands of FBI agents have been sent questionnaires asking them about their work on the January 6th investigations.
And let’s just take a moment to understand what that’s all about. On January 6th, a violent mob attacked the Capitol, beat police officers, bear-sprayed them, gouged them, in the service of an even bigger crime, which was stopping the peaceful transfer of power. Not only were these agents who are being purged assigned those cases and did their assignments, but they did so in a righteous prosecution against those involved in attacking police and attacking the peaceful transfer of power. But they’re being purged.
And the man that they would have head the agency, the man that Donald Trump would have head this agency is someone who made common cause with those violent attackers. This is someone who joined them in song, helped produce music by these people who beat and gouged and bear sprayed law enforcement officers. This tells you something about the character of Kash Patel, or rather his lack of character. This is someone who said he wants to close down this building and open it up as a museum of the deep state. This is someone who when I asked him whether he was aware of any firings within the bureau or potential firings within the bureau, said he didn’t recall. Said he didn’t recall when whistleblowers have said he was deeply involved in those firings of top FBI personnel. This is someone we cannot trust. This is someone who lacks the character to do this job. Someone who lacks the integrity to do this job.
We know that, our Republican colleagues know that. The only qualification Kash Patel has to be FBI director is that when everyone else in the first Trump administration said, “No, I won’t do that. That crosses moral, ethical and legal lines.” Kash Patel said, “Sign me up.” In the first Trump administration, as we are seeing in the second, you rise to the level of your sycophancy, and no one is a bigger or more dangerous sycophant than Kash Patel. This political hack does not deserve to be in this building. He can’t do the job. He won’t protect the public. He will misuse the resources of the bureau. He will weaponize it against the president’s political opponents, rather than protecting the public safety of the American people.
We will vote no. Our Republican colleagues, intimidated by this President and threats of primary challenges from MAGA world, may vote to confirm him. But as my colleagues have said, they will have to live with that vote, be accountable for that vote, and be accountable for all the destruction that Patel does to this premier law enforcement agency. We stand —we us Democratic members of this Judiciary Committee — stand shoulder to shoulder with the professionals in the FBI, with law enforcement everywhere, and we wish our colleagues would do the same.
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