Republican Sen. John Cornyn said Monday that he intends to support President-elect Donald Trump’s pick of FBI Director Kash Patel after the two “discussed restoring the FBI’s reputation as a bipartisan agency.” ” stated.
“I believe Mr. Patel will be confirmed as the next FBI director. We have discussed the importance of restoring the FBI’s reputation as a bipartisan law enforcement investigation agency,” Cornyn of Texas said. spoke.
“I’m certainly willing to support him, barring some unforeseen circumstances,” Cornyn said after the meeting.
To put Patel in charge of the FBI, the current director, Christopher Wray, who was appointed by Trump, would have to be fired before his term ends. Mr. Cornyn said he did not know what Mr. Wray’s plan was, but he expected it to be approved by Mr. Patel. He stressed the importance of telling the president the truth if Patel’s confirmation is granted.
According to a person familiar with the meeting, Mr. Trump’s decision to choose FBI director was conveyed to Mr. Cornyn in a serious manner during the meeting.
Republican Sen. Joni Ernst shared a photo of X from her meeting with Patel earlier Monday, saying Patel would “create much-needed transparency in the FBI.”
“He shares my passion for reforming our federal agencies, reducing the bureaucracy in Washington, D.C., and putting our public servants to work for the American people,” the Iowa Republican wrote.
“The meeting was great,” Patel said after speaking in Ernst’s office on Monday.
Meanwhile, incoming Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley said he agreed with Patel’s criticism of the FBI and its current director. Earlier, the Iowa Republican sent a letter to Wray saying he had “no confidence” in his ability to lead the FBI. Mr. Grassley accused Mr. Wray and the FBI leadership of “failing to answer our questions and letters and failing to appear before the committees that they were called upon to appear.”
Asked whether Patel and Trump had discussed whether members of the Jan. 6 committee should go to jail, Grassley said other than that they had discussed that “congressional oversight should be respected.” , did not disclose details of the discussions. Grassley’s aides said Patel never said he would close the FBI building in Washington, D.C.
This post has been updated with additional responses to the meeting.