[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 69 (Monday, April 20, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S1834]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               KASH PATEL

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, on Kash Patel, the American people expect 
competence from the President's Cabinet, not the unmitigated and 
continuing chaos we see every day.
  Over the weekend, more damning reports about FBI Director Kash 
Patel's disorderly, drunken, and deranged behavior came to light. The 
Atlantic's reporting only confirmed what Senate Democrats have said 
from the start: Kash Patel is not simply unqualified, he is a grave 
risk to the rule of law and to American national security.
  I have called on Acting Attorney General Blanche to preserve all 
records, all communications, and other evidence regarding Kash Patel's 
dangerous behavior before the Trump administration tries to brush it 
under the rug again.
  We are asking--we are calling on Acting Attorney General Blanche to 
preserve all records, communications, and other evidence regarding Kash 
Patel's dangerous behavior before the Trump administration tries to 
brush it under the rug.
  The Atlantic interviewed dozens of people who have observed Patel's 
erratic behavior, his excessive drinking. Apparently, Patel frequently 
misses key briefings and meetings because he is too hungover to attend. 
Patel's security detail often struggles to wake him up after his nights 
of partying and once even had to ask for breaching equipment because 
Patel was unresponsive behind a locked door.
  All of this is made even worse by the reports of Kash Patel's 
constant jet-setting on the taxpayers' dime, his illegal crusade 
against Trump's political enemies, and his purge of countless 
counterintelligence officers focused on Iran just days before Trump 
launched this reckless war.
  Americans deserve steady, sober leadership from their FBI Director, 
and they are not getting it--it seems--in any way.
  Kash Patel's job is to protect the American people and our 
Constitution, not to party on the job. Patel must resign immediately. 
Every day he remains in office subjects America to serious and 
unnecessary risks.

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