Trump announces he will nominate Kash Patel as director of the FBI. Here's what happens next

WASHINGTON (AP) President-elect Donald Trump's stunning announcement that he will nominate Kash Patel as FBI director sets the stage for a new round of turmoil at a law enforcement agency charged with protecting the homeland and to investigate federal crimes.

Patel, a steadfast Trump ally who plans to shake up the office, is a study in contrasts compared to the current low-key director, Christopher Wray, who preaches a mantra of staying calm and tackling the tough guy.

By selecting Patel on Saturday night over more conventional candidates, the new Republican president is once again testing the loyalty of Senate Republicans and their willingness to challenge him.

Here's a look at what happens next:

What is happening to the current FBI director?

FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies at the Capitol in Washington, September 24, 2020. (Tom Williams/Pool via AP, File)

FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies at the Capitol in Washington, September 24, 2020. (Tom Williams/Pool via AP, File)

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Wray was appointed director by Trump in 2017 and technically has three years remaining on his 10-year term.

This period of time is intended to ensure that the directors of the nation's most important federal law enforcement agencies can operate free from political influence or pressure. Presidents have typically, but not always, retained the director who was in place when they took office, as Democratic President Joe Biden did with Wray.

But it is also true that all FBI directors serve at the pleasure of the president; indeed, Wray was appointed after Trump fired James Comey, the FBI chief he inherited during his first term.

Biden national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Sunday that the Biden administration is adhering to the long-standing norm that FBI directors serve their full terms because the FBI director is a single player in the American government system.

Noting that Trump appointed Wray to the position, Sullivan told NBC's Meet the Press that Joe Biden did not fire him. He counted on him to fulfill his responsibilities as director of the FBI and allowed him to complete his entire mandate. … So that's the way we've approached it and we want to ensure that the FBI remains an independent institution, insulated from politics.

Trump's announcement means Wray can either resign from his position, in accordance with Trump's apparent wishes, or wait to be fired once Trump takes office in January. Either way, the choice of a successor makes it clear that Wray's days are numbered.

The bureau, in a statement Saturday evening, said: “Every day, the men and women of the FBI continue to work to protect Americans from a growing array of threats. Director Wray's focus is always on the men and women of the FBI, the people we work with and the people we work for.

Can Patel be confirmed by the Senate?

The Republicans may have taken control of the Senate, but his confirmation is not assured.

There is no doubt that there are lawmakers who support Trump's desire for a radically overhauled FBI, particularly in the wake of federal investigations that resulted in two separate indictments against the president-elect, and who share his sense that the forces Federal law enforcement has been used as a weapon against conservatives.

Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, vying to become chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee when Republicans take control in January, said in an article on X that Wray had failed in his basic duties and that it was time to chart a new path. at the FBI.

But, he added, Patel must prove to Congress that he will reform and restore public trust in the FBI.

FILE – Pam Bondi, former Florida attorney general, speaks to reporters outside a volunteer training on election integrity, June 18, 2024, in Newtown, Pa. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton, File)

FILE – Pam Bondi, former Florida attorney general, speaks to reporters outside a volunteer training on election integrity, June 18, 2024, in Newtown, Pa. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton, File)

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Patel will likely face deep skepticism during his confirmation hearings over his stated plans to rid the government of conspirators against Trump and his claims that he would close the FBI headquarters on Pennsylvania Avenue in the nation's capital and send the thousands employees who work there. to track down criminals across the country.

And while Trump may have wanted a loyalist willing to take revenge on his perceived adversaries, the prospect is likely to give pause to senators who believe the FBI and Justice Department should operate without political influence and not be tasked with carry out a personal mission of the president. agenda.

Foreshadowing the potentially bruising confirmation fight to come, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, who is expected to become the ranking Democrat next year on the Judiciary Committee, called Patel a die-hard loyalist and said in a statement that the Senate should reject this unprecedented effort to militarize power. FBI for the campaign of retaliation promised by Donald Trump.

Trump also raised the possibility of using recess appointments to get his nominees through the Senate.

If Patel is confirmed, can he actually do what he said he would do?

Patel has made a series of bold assertions about his plans for the federal government, but most of these proposals would require support and buy-in from other officials and would almost certainly encounter significant resistance.

His desire, for example, to shrink the FBI's footprint and reduce its authority contrasts with the approach traditionally taken by the bureau's leaders, who invariably say they want more resources, not fewer.

He plans to rid the government of conspirators against Trump and go after people in the media who lied about American citizens helping Joe Biden rig the presidential election, whether criminally or civilly.

Under the FBI's own guidelines, criminal investigations cannot be based on arbitrary or baseless speculation, but rather must have the authorized purpose of detecting or interrupting criminal activity. And while the FBI conducts investigations, the responsibility for filing federal charges or filing a lawsuit on behalf of the federal government falls to the Department of Justice. Trump said earlier this month that he intended to nominate former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as attorney general.

Patel's proposal to crack down on leaks of information from government officials to the media is an indication that he would like the Justice Department to reverse its current policy generally prohibiting the seizure of journalists' phone records in investigations on leaks. The policy was implemented by Attorney General Merrick Garland following the outcry over the revelation that federal prosecutors had secretly obtained subpoenas for journalists' phone records.

Patel also talked about decoupling the FBI's intelligence-gathering activities, now a core function of the bureau's mandate, from the rest of its law enforcement operations. It's unclear whether he intends to keep that pledge or how it will be received at a time when the United States faces what officials see as an increased terrorist threat.

And he said he thinks the FBI's headquarters on Pennsylvania Avenue should be closed and the employees who work there sent across the country to fight crime. It is unclear whether this is a hyperbolic claim simply reflecting a disdain for the deep state or something it would actually try to implement.

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