Patel gets in shouting match with reporter as he defends job performance

FBI Director Kash Patel got into a shouting match with a reporter amid questions over his job performance following an explosive article from The Atlantic alleging excessive alcohol use by the director.

The outlet reported that while in charge of the bureau, Patel has consumed alcohol “to the point of obvious intoxication” in front of White House officials and other Trump administration staff. On multiple occasions within the past year, the article said, members of his security detail have also “had difficulty waking Patel because he was seemingly intoxicated.”

Patel fielded a number of questions about the article in his first appearance before the Justice Department press corps since its publication.

“I can say unequivocally that I never listen to the fake news mafia, and as when they get louder, it just means I’m doing my job,” he said.

When asked about video showing Patel partying and drinking with the U.S. Men’s Olympic Hockey Team, he said, “I’m on the job. I’m the first one in. I’m the last one out. I’m like an everyday American who loves his country, loves the sport of hockey, and champions my friends when they raise a gold medal and invite me in to celebrate. I’ve never been intoxicated on the job, and that is why we filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit. And any one of you that wants to participate, bring it on, I’ll see you in court.”

Patel then erupted at a reporter who narrowed in on a specific detail of the story mentioning that at one point the director was unable to log into FBI systems. The Atlantic reported that Patel “panicked, frantically” as he believed his job to be in jeopardy.

Patel claimed Tuesday that the detail was untrue, though his $250 million defamation suit against The Atlantic confirms he had “had a routine technical problem logging into a government system.”

Patel was asked by NBC’s Ryan Reilly what he was thinking on the day he was unable to log in to his government computer. 

“The problem with you and your baseless reporting is that is an absolute lie. 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,” Patel said, telling Reilly, “you are off topic.”

“The answer to your question is you are lying … I’ve answered your question. It’s simply as follows, I was never locked out of my systems,” Patel said.

Reilly then pointed out that Patel’s own lawsuit acknowledges he was at one point locked out of his computer.

“Your lawsuit says the opposite,” Reilly said. “The lawsuit you filed says that.”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche then intervened, saying the reporter was being “extraordinarily rude” and needed to let Patel respond.

Blanche was also asked directly about the article as well as whether it was appropriate for Patel to drink alongside the U.S. Men’s Hockey Team.

“I have a lot of concerns, and my concerns are completely around the anonymous reporting that comes forth constantly. Reporters have an obligation to report, and they have due diligence that they’re supposed to do. And when an entire article is based on anonymous sources, and there’s things in the article suggesting, for example, apparently, that senior DOJ personnel were informed of something. That’s me. I wasn’t informed. No one called me about that,” he said.

He then said reporters’ interest in The Atlantic story aided what he deemed a “hit piece.”

“There’s complete hit pieces. And you guys are in this business, and you know what they look like, and the fact that you’re asking repeated questions about them, almost is an admission of such,” Blanche said.

The Atlantic has defended the story.

“We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit,” a spokesperson for the outlet said in a Monday statement.

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