FBI Director Kash Patel has lashed out at The New York Times over a damaging report suggesting that the top two Department of Justice officials bonded over their shared hatred of him.
Patel, who has faced intense criticism during his tenure at the FBI, accused the “NYTrash” of being the “journalistic equivalent of crash test dummies” on X after the paper published a series of bombshell claims involving Attorney General Pam Bondi and her deputy, Todd Blanche.
Bondi and Blanche, Donald Trump’s former personal defense lawyer, are said to have had a frosty relationship, in part because Blanche made it clear he wanted the top job at the DOJ. However, the pair reportedly became allies after Blanche defended Bondi over her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files saga, as well as their “mutual disdain” for Patel.
Both Bondi and Blanche view the former MAGA podcaster as unqualified to lead the FBI and more interested in grandstanding on social media than doing his actual job, the Times reported, citing unnamed sources.
Bondi and Blanche were also said to be frustrated with Patel after he failed to reshare a social media post in which Blanche declared that the FBI and DOJ had jointly signed off on a July memo stating the agencies would not release any more Epstein files. The memo also denied the existence of a so-called Epstein “client list” implicating the late pedophile’s high-profile friends and acquaintances, sparking an ongoing fallout and fueling calls of a cover-up.
Patel was among several MAGA figures who had demanded the full release of the Epstein files before Trump appointed him to lead the FBI. Patel ultimately did not reshare Blanche’s post, which stated that he had “worked closely” with the FBI director and the bureau’s deputy director, Dan Bongino, on the memo regarding the Epstein files.
The post, which Blanche wanted all leading FBI and DOJ officials to reshare, was meant to dispel rumors that the federal agencies were at odds over the Epstein files.
Blanche denied reports of tension between him and Patel on X, writing: “Hey Kash Patel—the failing New York Times says we don’t like each other. Guess we’ll have to stop hanging out after work? Those dummies. Virtually every part of their ‘reporting’ is exaggerated or fabricated, per usual. If it wasn’t for Wordle, nobody would subscribe.”
The NYTimesCommunications account defended the paper’s reporting in a reply to Blanche. “The Times’s article is based on conversations with seven current and former administration officials with direct knowledge of the working relationships inside the Justice Department,” the account wrote. “We are confident in our reporting.”
Bongino, another former MAGA podcaster who had furiously called for the full release of the Epstein files, also dismissed the Times report as “trash.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the DOJ and the FBI for further comment.
The post Keystone Kash Lashes Out Over Report About His Colleagues Hating Him appeared first on The Daily Beast.
