Kash Patel denies drinking claims in Senate hearing
Kash Patel denied under oath that he drank excessively or missed work without explanation during a Senate hearing on the reports first published in mid-April. He called the allegations baseless and said he would not be tarnished by them.
Chris Van Hollen opened by saying the reports were extremely alarming if true and would amount to a gross dereliction of duty and a betrayal of public trust. Patel answered, “It’s a total farce. I don’t even know where you get this stuff.”
Van Hollen presses Patel
Van Hollen, the ranking member of the Senate appropriations subcommittee, tied the reports to Patel’s ability to do the job. He said, “What we are learning about what’s happening at the FBI is anything but normal. When your private actions make it impossible for you to perform your public duties, we have a big problem … these reports about your conduct, including reports you’re being so drunk and hungover that your staff had to force entry into your home are extremely alarming, if true, they demonstrate a gross dereliction of your duty and a betrayal of public trust.”
The exchange centered on claims that Patel’s drinking and unexplained absences had become a concern inside the government. The Atlantic said it reached that account through interviews with more than two dozen people, including current and former FBI officials.
Patel answers with his own accusation
When Van Hollen asked whether Patel would take a test to determine if he had a drinking problem, Patel said he would if the senator took one alongside him. He then accused Van Hollen of being caught on camera drinking margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar.
Patel also said documents from Van Hollen’s office showed a $7,000 bar tab in Washington, D.C., at the Lobby Bar. A Van Hollen spokesperson said that claim distorted publicly available information and said the payment was a catering charge at a local restaurant for an after-hours holiday reception for more than 50 members of the senator’s team.
Atlantic report and lawsuit
Patel filed a defamation lawsuit in U.S. district court for the District of Columbia against The Atlantic and the author of a story it published. The suit seeks $250 million in damages, adding a legal fight to the same allegations he faced in the hearing.
Patel’s testimony put the burden back on the lawmakers pressing him to prove the reports. For now, the hearing leaves the public record with two sharply different accounts: Patel’s denial under oath and a report built on interviews with more than two dozen people.
