Republican President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday picks former National Security official and loyalist Kash Patel to lead the FBI
Republican President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday picks former National Security official and loyalist Kash Patel to lead the FBI, signaling an intent to drive out the bureau's current director, Christopher Wray.
Patel, who during Trump's first term advised both the Director of National Intelligence and the Secretary of Defense, has previously called for stripping the FBI of its intelligence-gathering role and purging its ranks of any employee who refuses to support Trump's agenda.
With the nomination of Patel, Trump is signaling that he is preparing to carry out his threat to oust Wray, a Republican first appointed by Trump, whose 10-year term at the FBI does not expire until 2027.
FBI directors by law are appointed to 10-year terms, as a means of insulating the bureau from politics.
During Wray's tenure, the FBI carried out a court-approved search at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate to look for classified documents and he has also faced criticism for his oversight role of a directive by Attorney General Merrick Garland aimed at working to protect local school boards from violent threats and harassment.
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