Senate Advances President Trump’s FBI Pick Kash Patel

In a significant move, the U.S. Senate has advanced President Donald Trump’s nominee for FBI Director, Kash Patel.

The vote came down to 48-45.

This sets the stage for a final confirmation vote later this week.

Patel, 44, previously served as a prosecutor and national security aide during Trump’s first term.

His nomination has been criticized by Democrats for his past actions and statements.

If confirmed, Patel will embark on a 10-year term as the nation’s top law enforcement official.

BREAKING: Senate votes to advance the confirmation of Kash Patel as FBI Director. pic.twitter.com/OS6CMnC8Ca

— Leading Report (@LeadingReport) February 18, 2025

Politico reports:

Kash Patel, the controversial nominee to lead the FBI, cleared another key procedural hurdle Tuesday.

The Senate voted 48-45 to move forward with Patel’s nomination, setting up his confirmation vote in the coming days to helm the agency for a 10-year term.

Patel, if confirmed, is set to be a central figure in President Donald Trump’s efforts to leverage his powers against perceived enemies. A former House staffer who worked to discredit the congressional inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 election, Patel has promised to go after Trump’s adversaries and shut down the FBI’s Washington headquarters on Day 1 of his tenure to create “a museum” of the “deep state.”

Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats have argued that Patel would put fealty to the president ahead of his duties as FBI director and accused the nominee of helping from outside the federal government to orchestrate the agency’s recent leadership shakeup. They asked for a second hearing to question Patel on that matter and others — a request swiftly denied by Chair Chuck Grassley, who argued the request amounted to an attempt to undermine the 2024 election results giving Trump the prerogative to staff his own administration.

Patel is coming to the FBI and there’s no stopping him!

Reuters adds:

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday voted to advance the nomination of Kash Patel to be the director of the FBI, putting a staunch ally of President Donald Trump and a critic of the bureau on track to run the most prominent U.S. law enforcement agency.

The Senate voted 48-45 along party lines on a procedural measure setting the stage for a final confirmation vote on one of Trump’s most controversial nominees later this week.

Patel, a former intelligence and Defense Department official in Trump’s first term, has called for a radical reshaping of the FBI, pledging to expand its role on illegal immigration and violent crime, core Trump priorities.

Patel has been among the most vocal critics of FBI investigations into Trump on issues ranging from Russian interference in the 2016 election, Trump’s retention of classified documents at his Florida club and his attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

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An update on Senate procedure—

~5:30pm ET, the Senate will vote on a motion to proceed to executive session for @Kash_Patel. Then we'll file cloture to put him on the clock. Procedure aside — he’s set to be confirmed by Thursday.

Let’s get it DONE!@howardlutnick is next. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/wuAghyXaL5

— Markwayne Mullin (@SenMullin) February 18, 2025