Is Trump likely to fire Kash Patel? The controversies of the FBI director, explained

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel has come under scrutiny following a string of controversies. As the negative spotlight surrounds the 45-year-old, a report surfaced that the United States President Donald Trump was mulling sacking the FBI chief.

However, the Trump administration has denied the claims, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt calling the story “completely made up”. Patel has been making headlines since his first nine months on the job, facing backlash for his use of taxpayer-funded resources.

We take a look.

White House denies firing Kash Patel

The White House has rejected MS NOW’s report that claimed Trump was considering replacing FBI Director Kash Patel with his co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey.

The report said that the US president and “his top aides have grown increasingly frustrated by the unflattering headlines Patel has recently generated.”

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This comes amid concerns over Patel’s social media posts during high-profile investigations and using a government jet to visit his girlfriend.

“This story is completely made up,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded on X.

This story is completely made up.

In fact, when this Fake News published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI Director Kash Patel.

I read the headline to the President and he laughed. He said: “What? That’s… https://t.co/qbsy0nW2Bg pic.twitter.com/aNL5Qw9MA8

— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) November 25, 2025

As per Bloomberg, Bailey, the former Missouri attorney general, has long been viewed as a possible replacement for both Patel and his other deputy, Dan Bongino.

Later, Trump also came to Patel’s defence. “He is doing a great job I think,” the US president told reporters aboard Air Force One when asked about the MS NOW report, as per Reuters.

Kash Patel irks Maga base

FBI Director Patel has annoyed many Americans, including Trump’s Maga base, for what is being seen as a waste of government resources.

After reports recently emerged that he deployed a Swat team for the protection of his girlfriend, Alexis Wilkins, an aspiring country singer, all hell broke loose.

Two Swat agents were deployed at the National Rifle Association’s annual convention in Atlanta in the spring, where Wilkins performed, reported The New York Times (NYT) over the weekend.

Patel has his own security detail, which protects Wilkins if the two travel together. However, current and former FBI officials told the American newspaper that the use of Swat agents to protect the FBI director’s girlfriend was “highly unusual”.

Government security protection for Wilkins, who Patel believes is under threat, to attend events or performances has received a lot of flak, including from right-wing online accounts that cheered the FBI director’s shake-up of the bureau.

“Is she considered Kash’s spouse?” Grace Chong, an influencer who works for a Trump ally, Stephen K Bannon, asked on X recently about Wilkins’s use of bureau resources. “Is that why she’s getting protection because if not then why are we paying for this?”

Amid growing criticism, Patel was spotted in a pink Lego Cadillac, along with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix last week.

“How does this serve America?” a person wrote. Another commented, “They are the biggest fans of private jet use.”

It was unclear how these senior Trump officials travelled to the event in Las Vegas, where Patel maintains a home.

The FBI director earlier made headlines for using a government jet for recreational purposes, including hockey games, casino jaunts to Las Vegas and visits to his girlfriend in Nashville.

MS Now reported earlier this month that Wilkins enjoys the protection of an FBI security detail, comprising elite agents usually assigned to a Swat team. These resources have been diverted to protect the country music performer on several occasions, including in Nashville, where she lives.

In late August, Patel flew on a government jet from the Washington area to Scotland for a getaway to a private golf resort with friends, including former Navy SEALs, reported NYT.

Patel’s use of these resources has been condemned by many, including some former agents.  Christopher O’Leary, a former Marine, told NYT, “His abusive and excessive use of the GV Jet for his personal adventures and the assignment of Swat-qualified special agents to guard his girlfriend are indicative of his lack of leadership experience, judgment and humility.”

The FBI director is needed to use a government jet for travel, but they have to reimburse the feds for personal use.

Patel has defended his use of the jet to attend his girlfriend’s performance in Pennsylvania and came to her defence, saying she had “done more for this nation than most will in ten lifetimes.”

“I’ve always said — criticise me all you want. But going after the people doing great work, my personal life, or those around me is a total disgrace,” he wrote on X. “The disgustingly baseless attacks against Alexis — a true patriot and the woman I’m proud to call my partner in life — are beyond pathetic.

“She is a rock-solid conservative and a country music sensation who has done more for this nation than most will in ten lifetimes,” he continued. “I’m so blessed she’s in my life.

“Attacking her isn’t just wrong — it’s cowardly and jeopardises our safety. My love of family will always be my cornerstone, and you will never tear that down or keep me from them.”

Kash Patel’s other controversies

Kash Patel, a Trump loyalist, has been stirring controversies even before he was confirmed by the US Senate to lead the law enforcement agency in February this year.

Media reports say the FBI director is not only implementing the US president’s agenda at the bureau but also seeking retribution for its past investigations of the Republican leader.

In his confirmation hearings, Patel had denied keeping a list of “deep state” enemies. He also played down his past controversial remarks where he referred to law enforcement officials who investigated Trump as “criminal gangsters”.

At the time, Democrats had strongly opposed Patel’s confirmation. Ranking Member Senator Dick Durbin said the Senate is “inviting a political disaster if we put Kash Patel into this job.”

Earlier, he said in a letter to the US Justice Department’s internal watchdog that he “received highly credible information from multiple sources” that Patel had been “personally directing the ongoing purge of career civil servants” at the FBI, as per NYT.

As per Washington Post, Durbin also accused Patel of lying under oath during his confirmation hearing by claiming he was “not aware of” any such plans.

Patel also previously exempted his deputy FBI director, Bongino, and two other new senior FBI officials from passing polygraph tests.

As per NYT report, under him, the FBI is highly relying on polygraphs to identify potential leakers, even for issues not concerning classified information or open cases.

Sources told the newspaper that executives are being polygraphed “at a rapid rate.” In May,  a senior official was forced out partly due to a political act by his spouse.

Despite these concerns, Patel reportedly asserted that the FBI is stable: “We’ve been able to retain significant levels of senior leadership both in Washington and throughout the country”.

With inputs from agencies