Kash Patel denies excessive drinking allegations as ‘total farce’ in Senate hearing
FBI director also dismisses allegations of unexplained absences as Democrats challenge him over Atlantic report
TL;DR
- FBI Director Kash Patel denied allegations of excessive drinking and unexplained absences under oath.
- He dismissed the reports, first published by The Atlantic, as "baseless" and a "total farce".
- Patel has filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic and the author of the story.
- Democrats, including Senator Chris Van Hollen, questioned the "extremely alarming" reports, suggesting they constitute a "gross dereliction of duty".
- Patel challenged Senator Van Hollen to take a drinking test alongside him if the senator was concerned.
- The Atlantic reported concerns across the government regarding Patel's alcohol consumption, citing interviews with over two dozen sources.
- The report included allegations of Patel appearing intoxicated and his security detail struggling to rouse him.
- Patel denied personally ordering polygraph tests to identify press leaks.
- He also stated that no FBI resources were used to investigate negative press about him.
- Patel previously faced criticism for a video showing him drinking beer with the USA men's hockey team.