Kashyap “Kash” Patel, the Indian-American nominated by US President-elect Donald Trump to head the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), on Sunday joined social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Hello, X,” he said in his first post, which has received more than 7 million views and more than 24,000 comments.
Hello @X
— Kash Patel (@Kash_Patel) December 1, 2024
Billionaire and X owner Elon Musk, who was nominated by the incoming US administration to be the Trump administration’s chief government efficiency officer, also congratulated Patel on her nomination as FBI director.
Congratulations on being named to run the @FBI!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 1, 2024
Kash Patel, a former Republican House staffer and fierce critic of the FBI, was followed by more than 300,000 people within hours of joining the social media platform.
He was born in New York in 1980 to Gujarati parents who immigrated from East Africa. After completing his undergraduate studies at the University of Richmond, Patel returned to New York and earned a law degree and a certificate in international law from the University College London School of Law in the United Kingdom.
After earning his law degree, the 44-year-old worked as a public defender in Florida, representing clients in state and federal court. He then joined the Department of Justice as a prosecutor and was responsible for high-profile international terrorism cases in East Africa and the United States.
He frequently appeared on the campaign trail to drum up support for Donald Trump, who is running for president against Democrat Kamala Harris.
During President Trump’s first term, he advised both the Director of National Intelligence and the Secretary of Defense.
