FBI Director Kash Patel testifies before Senate panel as Democrats blast his record, FBI touts crime stats

 Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, pressed Patel to explain how he has tried to eliminate the so-called "weaponization" by the FBI. She claimed the Biden-era DOJ wrongfully targeted Americans for their political beliefs, citing a 2021 memo from former Attorney General Merrick Garland that directed law enforcement officials to investigate threats against school board officials. 

Patel touted that he has fired employees whom he accused, without evidence, of engaging in weaponized investigations.

"If you participated in that sort of conduct, we removed you, and we'll continue to do that," Patel said. "And in terms of criminal investigations that sprout from that… There are a number of ongoing investigations regarding this illegal conduct."

When pressed by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse on the Trump administration's handling of its review of the Epstein files, Patel defended bureau investigators who worked on the 3.5-million page release and said the bureau has complied with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the congressional bill that forced the release of the files last year.

"We have complied with the statute and the court orders and produced three and a half million pages of documents for the first time ever," Patel said. "We've also repeatedly stated if there's new information, we want everyone to come forward so that we can analyze that information as to what is and isn't remaining."

Survivors of Epstein's systematic abuse have continued to criticize the Trump administration, including Patel and Attorney General Todd Blanche, for publishing unredacted personal information of theirs in the released files and the lack of prosecutions resulting from the renewed review.

Patel for the first time responded to a CBS News report about an internal memo issued in June that removed certain automatic disqualifiers for people applying to the FBI. Previously, the FBI automatically disqualified people who acknowledged engaging in acts of bestiality. Now, if those acts took place before the age of 18, it is no longer an automatic disqualifier to being hired.

"Thank you for bringing this up, so we can get to the truth of the matter," Patel told Durbin. "What we did was, we did not want to punish victims of bestiality, victims who were trafficked. We did not want to make it an automatic disqualification for the FBI to consider you if you are a victim of these awful, heinous acts. They still have to go to the same rigorous standards and application process."

He added: "At this FBI, we are not going to criminalize and prevent victims from serving the United States of America and the premier law enforcement agency in the world. They did that before. I eliminated the bureaucracy that prevented these great Americans from serving, or at least being considered from serving."

Louisiana Senator John Kennedy, a Republican, also pushed Patel on the hiring standards change.

"Why would you even get into bestiality?" Kennedy asked Patel.

Patel responded that he was advised to change the hiring practices and signed off on them.

"I say this with respect," Kennedy said. "The person who recommended it, why didn't you just say, "What planet did you parachute in from?"

"That was my initial response, Senator," Patel said. "But they then explained to me and showed me cases in which people were forced into it and had applied to the FBI, and so I thought they should be considered. It's not an automatic disqualification."

Sen. Durbin pushed Patel on whether the FBI has properly investigated the federal officer-involved shootings in Illinois, accusing the bureau of not investigating multiple shootings during the Trump administration's federal law enforcement surge in the state last year.

"Director Patel, why has the FBI refused to investigate either of these shootings?" Durbin said, referring to the shooting of Marimar Martinez by a border patrol agent and the killing of Silverio Villegas Gonzalez by an ICE agent last year. 

Patel defended the bureau, saying there are investigations that are "ongoing" and he could not comment on them.

"We are not the only agency involved, since it involves multiple federal agencies," Patel said. "So we have to work with our federal and state and local partners to collect the information and allow the Department of Justice to make whatever decision they deem appropriate."

Patel announced the FBI captured an individual he described as "a thug down in Venezuela who was on our most wanted list and on the run for years." 

"He has been captured, apprehended and is on his way back to the United States of America," Patel added. Patel said the individual represented the tenth individual on the list of the FBI's most wanted individuals.

"That's 10 of 10," Patel said. "Nobody in the FBI's history has done that."

In his opening statement, Patel touted the FBI's work under his leadership, calling it "the most prolific run of crime reduction in United States history." He pointed to figures on the arrests of violent criminals and gang members and the removal of more than 3,000 kilograms of fentanyl, among other statistics. 

"This FBI is making America safe," Patel said. 

Patel also touted the U.S. murder rate falling to a 20-year low, calling it "no easy effort." And he said "the success means that this FBI's made America safer than it's ever been."

Patel cited changes at the FBI, including adding task force officers and building a strategic information center to modernize the Bureau. And he nodded to his confirmation hearing in 2025, saying at the time, he told the committee "that the FBI needed to be faster, more efficient, eliminate bureaucracy and reduce the weaponization of law enforcement completely, embrace technological advancements, and engage with our partners, and most importantly, let good cops be cops."

"Under President Trump's leadership, I'm proud to say we've not only accelerated that mission, we have delivered," he said. 

Sen. Dick Durbin, the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, criticized Patel's credentials in his opening statement, calling him the "least qualified and most partisan FBI director in our nation's history."

The Illinois Democrat criticized Patel's involvement in the ongoing Justice Department "grand conspiracy" investigation, investigation into Obama and Biden-era officials who President Trump has accused, so far without evidence, of attempting to keep him out of political office.

"Director Patel has been the central figure pushing the so-called 'grand conspiracy,' diverting FBI resources to inane, debunked conspiracy theories that the quote deep state has been targeting President Trump since his first campaign," Durbin said. Durbin also criticized Patel for continuing to investigate 2020 the election results in states like Georgia, where former President Biden beat Mr. Trump to secure the presidency.

Durbin also said that Patel has "gutted" hiring standards, citing CBS News' recent reporting that the standards have been relaxed for FBI applicants who had stolen from previous employers, or engaged in sex solicitation.

Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, gaveled in the hearing shortly after 9 a.m., and touted the FBI's track record under Patel's leadership in the face of "many challenges, both internal and external."

"It's not an easy task, managing both internal and external forces while at the same time, repairing the damage done by your predecessors," Grassley said. "You'll hear Democrats criticizing you today for dreamed up failures. They're going to criticize you for firing many personnel and supposedly weakening the agency. But the numbers on crime show that you've gotten the job done."

Grassley cited data provided to the committee that he said showed criminal arrests were up 80% in the last 18 months, while violent crime arrests were up 90% and gang and criminal enterprise arrests were up 30%. He also touted work to ensure safety for kids, saying the FBI has helped to locate and identify over 11,000 children in the last 18 months who were the victims of crime. Grassley said the FBI has also been involved in the arrest of over 5,000 child predators and human traffickers. 

"These data points show solid work by the men and women of the FBI under your leadership," Grassley said. 

Grassley also encouraged Patel to "foster an environment where true and legitimate whistleblowers are rewarded and not punished for blowing the whistle."

Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate Judiciary Committee's ranking member, criticized Patel's handling of the FBI ahead of the hearing, pledging that Democrats will hold him accountable.

"Today, we find ourselves in a position where the FBI is expending immense resources to protect President Trump and deliver retribution to his enemies — but is diverting resources away from protecting the safety, security, and rights of ordinary Americans and their families," Durbin said in a statement. "During the Judiciary Committee's oversight hearing, Senate Democrats will hold Director Patel accountable for his failed leadership."

At the hearing, Democrats are expected to question Patel about a range of recent controversies at the FBI — including the departures of hundreds of staff from the bureau, the Justice Department's investigations into President Trump's political foes, the administration's immigration policies, the Epstein files and Patel's own use of FBI resources.

The FBI announced last month that violent crime in the U.S. dropped in 2025 at the fastest rate on record, with the nation's murder rate falling 18.1% to a decades-long low.

The Trump administration has touted those figures, linking them to the administration's hardline strategy on crime. In an event on Long Island to announce the results of the FBI's crime report last month, President Trump called them the "best numbers anybody's ever seen on crime."

Some experts note that crime rates are on a multi-year slide since spiking during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the reasons for the current decline are tough to pin down — especially since they have appeared in a range of cities with different political leadership and different approaches to law enforcement.

During his time at the FBI's helm, Patel has emphasized tackling violent crime and assisting with the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. The agency has traditionally had a broad remit, including violent and organized crime as well as national security and white-collar investigations.

The FBI has lost hundreds of employees through firings, retirements and resignations since the start of the Trump administration. Amid those departures, the FBI has adjusted some of the standards it uses when it conducts background checks on would-be federal agents and other bureau personnel.

Last month, CBS News reported the bureau has shifted hiring standards for job applicants who have in some cases admitted to hiring sex workers or stolen from an employer, as well as instances of animal cruelty and bestiality prior to the applicant turning 18. An FBI spokesperson told CBS News the changes are limited to a narrow set of circumstances.

The bureau has also relaxed its college degree requirements for certain agents with prior law enforcement experience.

The decisions by Patel and top FBI leadership follow the departure of over 1,100 FBI special agents in 2025 alone, according to Justice Connection, a nonprofit advocacy group that supports former Justice Department and FBI personnel who resigned or were forced out of their roles. 

This year, the FBI has fired analysts who raised concerns about the ongoing Georgia 2020 election investigation, agents who worked in counterintelligence on cases involving Iran and staffers who worked on the since-shuttered Mar-a-Lago classified documents case against President Trump.  

Ahead of Tuesday's hearing, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Patel pushing for an explanation on the decision to adjust the hiring standards.

"These are not minor technical adjustments. They represent a considered decision to open the Bureau's ranks to individuals who engaged in conduct that the FBI previously treated as disqualifying," the Democrats wrote. "Having dangerously thinned the FBI's experienced workforce for reasons that had nothing to do with performance, you are now asking the American people to accept, without explanation, that the resulting shortfall justifies admitting applicants with histories of employee theft, paying for sex, or bestiality."

Patel is likely to face questions from Democrats regarding his alleged behavior as FBI director, following scrutiny over his use of an FBI jet and his presence at the Winter Olympics, along with allegations regarding his drinking. 

Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the top Democrat on the committee, wrote a letter to Patel in July seeking information, citing a "growing number" of reports alleging "misuse and mismanagement "of FBI resources. 

Durbin said that the committee's chairman, GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, had written a private letter to Patel in May that "raised serious concerns" and requested information about the alleged spending. Durbin said Grassley had requested information about Patel's jet use and purchase of BMWs, and whether Patel has reimbursed taxpayers for his travels.

Patel has drawn questions from congressional Democrats for more than a year for allegedly using a government plane for personal travel. He also drew attention earlier this year for flying on a Justice Department jet to Italy, where he celebrated with members of the U.S. men's hockey team after they won gold in the Winter Olympics. The FBI has defended Patel, saying FBI directors are required to travel on government aircraft for security reasons and calling his flight to Italy a work-related trip.

Meanwhile, Patel filed a defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic in April for a story about his alleged frequent drinking and absences, saying it included "false and obviously fabricated" claims. The magazine's story included allegations that Patel often drinks to excess, and that his "irregular presence at FBI headquarters and in field offices" has delayed "time-sensitive decisions" that require the director's input.