Kash Patel, the former Miami AFPD, will be nominated to lead the FBI under President Trump. Here's the CNN article:
President-elect Donald Trump
plans to nominate firebrand loyalist Kash Patel to serve as FBI
director, an extraordinary move that would put a self-described enemy of
the so-called “deep state” as the head of the nation’s top law
enforcement agency — a role that would give Patel power to carry out
Trump’s threats to go after his political opponents.
Trump’s interest in Patel speaks to his urge to fill top law
enforcement and intelligence positions with supporters who may be open
to carrying out his demands for specific investigations as well as
inoculating the president against possible future probes.
“I am proud to announce that Kashyap ‘Kash’ Patel will serve
as the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Kash is a
brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter who has
spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting
the American People,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday evening.
Even among Trump loyalists, Patel is widely viewed as a
controversial figure and relentless self-promoter whose value to the
president-elect largely derives from a shared disdain for established
power in Washington. Putting him in charge of the FBI would require
forcing out current director Christopher Wray, who was appointed by
Trump, before his term expires – prompting bipartisan criticism.
Former Trump national security adviser John Bolton compared
Patel to Soviet leader Joseph Stalin’s leader of secret police, the
NKVD, telling CNN: “The Senate should reject this nomination 100-0.”
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan
cautioned Sunday that the FBI director should not be subject to the
“whims” of politics, but declined to weigh in directly on Patel.
“What makes the FBI director different from most other
nominees is they’re not just appointed for one term of a president,
they’re appointed for enough time to last past two terms of a president,
because they’re supposed to be insulated from politics,” Sullivan told
CNN’s Kasie Hunt on “State of the Union.”
Incoming Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley heavily
criticized Wray, the current FBI director, saying in a social media post
that he “failed” during his tenure. But Grassley added that Kash Patel
“must prove to Congress” that he will do better than Wray.The Patel pick almost certainly sets up another potentially
explosive confirmation battle in the Senate, where members are already bracing
for how they’ll navigate a slew of unorthodox Trump picks. One of those
picks, fellow Trump loyalist and Justice Department critic Matt Gaetz, dropped out of the fight
to become attorney general as it became clear the former Florida
congressman would not have the GOP support necessary for confirmation.
It’s unclear whether Patel could face a similar uphill battle through the confirmation process.