White House source says FBI Director Kash Patel ‘could’ be fired: ‘It’s just a matter of time’

FBI Director Kash Patel could be the next top official to leave the Trump administration, Politico reports in a new report, citing White House sources. The document noted growing frustration within federal agencies.Politico’s Dash Burns reports that pressure is growing around Patel’s job, with an unnamed official suggesting he may be term-limited. Burns wrote onConcerns within the government include negative publicity surrounding Patel, which they say is tarnishing the senior official’s image, the same sources said.Burns added: “There are a number of reasons, but not the least of them, the official said, is that the amount of negative coverage surrounding Patel ‘doesn’t look good to a Cabinet secretary,’ and that Trump is tired of the level of distraction.”The White House has not publicly confirmed any moves involving Patel.The report comes as Patel already faces legal and media scrutiny. He filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic after reporter Sarah Fitzpatrick reported the story. The article stated that Patel used to drink heavily, making colleagues in the office uncomfortable and often missing important meetings. In one case, Patel had trouble accessing his FBI computer system and mistakenly believed he had been fired by President Donald Trump.The Atlantic rejected the allegations, saying: “We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this baseless lawsuit.”Separate reporting by The Intercept also drew attention to Patel’s past, citing a 2005 disclosure letter filed with the Florida Bar. The filing mentions two previous arrests, one for public intoxication when he was an underage college student and another for urinating in public while he was studying law in New York.In his letter, Patel said the incident at the university occurred after he was removed from a basketball game and subsequently arrested by police. The second incident occurred during a night out with friends and ended in what he described as a “serious departure from appropriate behaviour”, culminating in a fine for urinating in public.He said: “We went to a couple of local pubs and had some alcoholic drinks. At the end of the night we decided to walk home. We attempted to relieve ourselves while walking home which was a serious departure from appropriate behaviour.”The re-publication of these revelations comes with renewed scrutiny of Patel’s conduct in office. Earlier this year, he was photographed drinking beers with the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team after they won gold in Milan, which he defended as a show of national pride.