Donald Trump is said to be fuming behind the scenes at FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, whose revolt over the Jeffrey Epstein memo has caused chaos for the administration.
Trump has been “very angry” with Bongino, and to a lesser extent, FBI chief Kash Patel, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins reported Monday night on AC360.
Bongino reportedly skipped work on Friday and threatened to resign following a heated confrontation with Attorney General Pam Bondi at the White House days earlier over the administration’s handling of the Epstein case. Trump has stood by Bondi, who caught the brunt of furious MAGA backlash after declining to release any additional files related to the disgraced financier’s case.
Bongino did show up to work on Monday, but his future remains unclear, according to Collins.
White House officials “were texting each other and texting me this morning, asking whether or not they had figured out if he had shown up to work today,” Collins reported. “Because it was still an open question in Washington this morning if he was going to be back at the FBI today.”
While the former podcaster is continuing on in his FBI role for now, Collins said, his relationship with the White House has “deteriorated so much” that he hasn’t spoken to certain White House officials in days. He’s also been out of touch with Justice Department leadership—a relationship central to his role—since Wednesday, she added.
“So yes, Dan Bongino may still in the job for right now… but there is a real question over the future of that relationship,” Collins said.
The White House did not immediately return a request for comment.
Trump was upbeat and noncommittal when asked on Sunday if Bongino is still in his role.
“I think so,” he said, adding that he had spoken to him earlier.
“Very good guy. I’ve known him a long time. I’ve done his show many, many times. And he sounded terrific actually. No, I think he’s in good shape,” he said.
According to Collins, Trump’s anger led Patel to put out a statement over the weekend reiterating his loyalty to the president.
“The conspiracy theories just aren’t true, never have been. It’s an honor to serve the President of the United States,” Patel wrote on X. “And I’ll continue to do so for as long as he calls on me.”
Bongino has been quiet publicly, but he was “out of control furious” about the situation, a source told NBC News last week. “This destroyed his career. He’s threatening to quit and torch Pam unless she’s fired,” the source said.
Describing Bongino as a “mentor,” MAGA podcaster Benny Johnson claimed on a Monday episode that “I just did some phone calls, and I found out that Dan Bongino not only is back working at the FBI, but cooler heads have prevailed here, [and] Dan is actually working on something very very important.”
Another source told him that “there are some big things happening that we may not be able to see right now,” Johnson claimed, adding that pushback from supporters on social media had “worked.”
Patel and Bongino represent a faction of Trump’s base that had long held that there was more to the Epstein case than what the government disclosed. The convicted sex offender’s 2019 death in federal custody was ruled a suicide, but some in that faction suggested he was murdered. They’ve also demanded the release of an alleged client list implicating powerful Epstein associates.
Both men leaned into those theories prior to their appointments at the FBI. But since then, both have publicly affirmed that Epstein died by suicide, angering some MAGA supporters.
The memo that ignited the latest firestorm, a joint message from the DOJ and FBI, was shared on July 7. It stated there was no evidence Epstein kept a “client list” and that an investigation concluded he died by suicide.
“While we have labored to provide the public with maximum information regarding Epstein and ensured examination of any evidence in the government’s possession, it is the determination of the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted,” the memo said.
Trump and Bondi had both previously indicated that they would release more materials. The reversal has created a major rift in Trump’s base.
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