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By Daniel Orton and Kate Plummer
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President Donald Trump denied a recent report that he was looking to replace FBI Director Kash Patel, as the nation's top federal investigator faces mounting criticism and negative press coverage.
"No, he's doing a good job," the president said in response to question from a reporter aboard Air Force One on Tuesday. "Kash Patel? No, he's doing a great job, I think."
The FBI declined to comment.
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It follows White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt's denial of the report in a post on X earlier Tuesday. "This story is completely made up," she wrote. "In fact, when this Fake News published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI Director Kash Patel."
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Why It Matters
Though the White House has signaled that this is unlikely, if Patel was fired it would raise questions about the Trump administration's political judgement and create an upheaval in the department.
What To Know
MS NOW first reported on rumors that Trump was considering firing Patel, citing three anonymous sources. The network reported that Patel might be replaced by senior FBI official Andrew Bailey, who was made co-deputy director of the bureau in September, joining Dan Bongino. MS Now said it stood by its reporting.
It comes amid mounting criticism of Patel's leadership of the FBI. In September, the agency was criticized over the time it took to find a suspect following the assassination of 31-year-old right-wing activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
Patel also took to social media to announce that a suspect was in custody, hours after the shooting. That claim turned out to be false. Local authorities clarified that individual had been questioned and released.
Also in September, three former FBI officials filed a federal lawsuit accusing Patel of orchestrating a purge of bureau leadership and overseeing a rampant politicization of the bureau. The plaintiffs, former FBI acting director Brian Driscoll, former assistant director Steven Jensen and former special agent Spencer Evans claimed they were fired because they had worked on past investigations involving Trump or resisted pressure to retaliate against former colleagues.
Patel has also attracted scrutiny for using a government aircraft and security details to protect his girlfriend, Alexis Wilkins. The agency said Wilkins had faced hundreds of death threats.
What People Are Saying
FBI Director Kash Patel, speaking to reporter Catherine Herridge on Monday, said: "Look at the work of this FBI to date. In the nine months that I've been in this job, we've arrested 30,000 people, 25,000 of which have been violent felons. That is a double increase from year to date from the same time period last year. We have taken on our priorities and counterespionage work to an increase of 35 percent more arrests year to date alone.
"On the drug front, we've seized 1,900 kilograms of fentanyl. That is a 35 percent increase from year to date last year. That's just the work of this FBI. We found 5,400 and identified 5,400 children, missing children. That is a 17 percent increase from this time, same time period last year. These are just a few examples of how committed we are to working the criminal cases for the American people so everyone gets treated the same."
What Happens Next
Speaking to Newsweek, Scott Lucas who teaches international politics at University College Dublin said Patel would only be fired "if he loses the support of Trump and key players in Trump's inner circle." However, he added that "he's made some enemies" because of his loyalty to Trump and his use of government resources.
If Patel were to leave the director role, either Bongino or Bailey could step up as acting director until a new permanent nominee was confirmed by the Senate.
Update, 11/26/2025, 7:39 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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