Commentary

Watching the likes of former FBI Director Andrew McCabe and others on the left, squirm over President Elect Trump’s selection of Kash Patel to serve as FBI director is so satisfying.

Six months ago, I recall McCabe’s concern over the possibility of Trump winning.  Appearing on CNN, where he is laughingly a senior law enforcement analyst, he was asked if he worried about what Trump might do, he said he worried that Trump would have him and other agents “thrown in jail.”

I especially had to laugh when he feared being in Trump’s “crosshairs,” because it was Trump who spent nine years in the crosshairs of the Deep State, most recently a target of DOJ lawfare, never showing any worry as he pressed ahead with his campaign.

A brief look back

In a misconduct report by the Inspector General’s Office of the Department of Defense, published in February 2018, then Deputy Director McCabe was found to be “lacking candor,” including under oath, on multiple occasions in connection with a disclosure to the Wall Street Journal, and that this conduct violated FBI Offense Codes 2.5 and 2.6, constituting misconduct. 

McCabe’s disclosure of certain law enforcement sensitive information to reporter Devlin Barrett was published by the WSJ on-line October 30, 2016.

McCabe also came under fire when he signed an application seeking FISA authority to spy on Carter Page during the Russian dossier fabrication, but it was the fireable offense of lack of candor under oath that led Attorney General Jeff Sessions to fire McCabe on March 16, 2018.

After a legal battle over his not being given the standard 30-day notice of his dismissal, McCabe won back his pension and other benefits in a 2021 settlement.

Of course, McCabe was one of the first “has been’s” to criticize the nomination, saying he “is profoundly unqualified for this job,” adding that its “not even like it’s a matter of debate.”

Other Views

“Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter, who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending justice and protecting the American people.” – President Elect Trump

“Kash Patel is a consummate professional who knows how to restore the FBI back to true law and order,” wrote Katie Miller @katierosemiller.  “I’m deeply impressed by his intellect and passion on national and homeland security matters.  I can’t wait to see Kash as our nation’s FBI Director.”  (Miller served as press secretary and communications director for Vice President Pence after a stint as press secretary for Homeland Security.)

As expected, the leftist New York Times did a hit job in a piece by Elizabeth Williamson, “Five Things to Know About Kash Patel, Trump’s Pick to Lead the F.B.I.”

After stating, “former colleagues question his fitness for the job,” in the subhead, “former colleagues question his qualifications” as a paragraph head, writer Williamson again uses the plural “colleagues,” but named just one, a former associate in the Southern District of Florida office, critical of Patel’s filing of motions.  The Times is known for quoting anonymous sources.

Known as a bombastic national security operative and an “enforcer,” Patel is likely to face scrutiny during confirmation over his past comments of corruption in the FBI.

Republicans, with a few exceptions, will likely vote to confirm Patel, believing the president elect should have the people he wants on his team.

Out the Door

The current FBI director, the feckless Christopher Wray, will not be missed.

While he told the Senate Judiciary Committee he has “never seen a time during his decades-long career when so many threats against the US were all elevated as they are now.  He warned senators he sees ‘blinking lights everywhere,” referring to the signs missed after 9/11, but has he warned the President of terrorists crossing the border and to close it.  Probably not.

Wray revealed that the Chinese government poses a ‘broad and unrelenting’ threat to U.S. critical infrastructure, but what advice did he give the president when a Chinese balloon traversed across the U.S.?  Who knows?

While FBI directors are selected to serve 10 years, Wray would normally not have to step down until 2017.  Pay him off.

Although President Elect Trump has a clear mandate to disrupt, dismantle and generally change things in Washington, we can expect the status quo, establishment leftists to block nominees. 

May God continue to bless the United States of America.