FBI Director Kash Patel ripped allegations from the Atlantic that claimed he had a drinking problem, telling reporters in a press conference on Tuesday evening, “Any one of you that wants to participate, bring it on, I’ll see you in court.”
Patel filed a lawsuit against the Atlantic and its reporter Sarah Fitzpatrick on Monday after the publication wrote an article that included anonymous claims alleging Patel has had “conspicuous inebriation and unexplained absences.” Answering questions from reporters on Tuesday about the claims, Patel blasted the allegations.
“I’ve never been intoxicated on the job, and that is why we filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit, Patel said, claiming that he has worked “twice as many days” as every previous FBI director.
Patel referenced a video of him celebrating the USA men’s hockey team after their overtime gold-medal win against Canada in the Milan Olympics, in which Patel and the team were seen chugging and spraying beer in celebration.
“I’m on the job,” Patel said. “I’m the first one in, I’m the last one out. I’m like an everyday American who loves his country, loves his sport of hockey, and champions my friends when they raise a gold medal and invite me in to celebrate.”
He spoke to his work ethic on Tuesday, telling the room that he has “taken half as many days off as those before me” and that, under his leadership, the FBI, with the Department of Justice, has “dropped the murder rate 20 points.”
“I can say unequivocally that I never listen to the fake news mafia, and when they get louder, it just means I’m doing my job,” Patel said.
The Atlantic article was first titled “Kash Patel’s Erratic Behavior Could Cost Him His Job,” then changed to “The FBI Director Is MIA” online. The subheadline of the piece reads “Kash Patel has alarmed colleagues with episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences.” The article’s anonymous sources allege Patel has had “alcohol-fueled nights” that have led to the cancellation of early meetings the next day.
Patel swiftly denied the allegations in the article, telling the publication on X, “See you and your entire entourage of false reporting in court.”
KASH PATEL FILES $250 MILLION DEFAMATION LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATLANTIC OVER DRINKING ALLEGATIONS
On Tuesday, the leftist group Democracy Forward filed a Freedom of Information Act request in the wake of the Atlantic article, asking the FBI to submit documentation of terms such as “alcohol,” “drunk,” “drinking,” “hungover,” and “inebriated.”
Patel’s lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was assigned to Clinton-appointed Judge Emmet G. Sullivan.