Yelling broke out between FBI Director Kash Patel and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) during a congressional hearing on Tuesday in Washington, D.C.
Van Hollen was questioning Patel during the Senate Appropriations Committee when the line of questioning grew heated.
“Multiple reports, including reporting by The Atlantic, have alleged excessive episodes of drinking, unexplained absences and behavior that concerned current and former FBI DOJ officials,” Van Hollen said.
Van Hollen asked Patel, who has publicly denied the accusations and filed a defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic following the report, if he would testify before Congress about whether the allegations are categorically false.
“Unequivocally, categorically false,” Patel responded.
“So there have been no occasions during your tenure when FBI personnel were unable to promptly reach you?” Van Hollen asked.
Patel denied the allegations and said he maintains constant communication with the agency, White House and federal and state law enforcement officials.
“So there have been no occasions when your security detail had difficulty waking or locating you?” Van Hollen pressed.
“Nope, it’s a total farce. I don’t even know where you get this stuff, but it doesn’t make it credible because you say so,” Patel said.
“It’s been written and documented,” Van Hollen said, pushing back on Patel’s claims.
Patel and Van Hollen started arguing when the back-and-forth fired up, with Patel snapping at the Democratic lawmaker.
Patel went on offense, lobbing a pair of unverified personal attacks at Van Hollen. He claimed the senator had been “slinging margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar” during Van Hollen’s trip to meet with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man wrongly deported by the Trump administration. Van Hollen has denied that claim, saying a Salvadoran government official placed the drinks on the table and that neither he nor Abrego Garcia touched them.
Patel also alleged, without evidence, that Van Hollen had run up a $7,000 bar tab at a Washington, D.C. establishment. Raw Story could not independently verify the claim, and no corroborating reporting exists.
“FBI Director Patel, come on,” Van Hollen said.
WOW — Patel snaps at Van Hollen and attacks him with debunked smears, saying, “the only person that was slinging margaritas in El Salvador with taxpayer dollars with a convicted gang-banging rapist was you” pic.twitter.com/CFNpGOU7YU — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 12, 2026
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