Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland called for the immediate removal of FBI Director Patel during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday morning, citing allegations of incapacitation due to alcohol use and the retaliatory firing of federal agents.
Speaking with moderator Kristen Welker, Van Hollen stated bluntly that he does not believe the bureau can operate effectively under its current leadership. The senator pointed to ongoing reports regarding Patel’s personal conduct as a primary concern, while emphasizing that his objections extend to the director’s official actions.
“Oh, I don’t,” Van Hollen said when asked if the FBI could function under Patel. “But it’s not simply because of this issue, the fact that there are so many reports that indicate that his drinking has meant that he’s incapacitated at many times. As I said, Kristen, I really don’t care what he does on his free time so long as he’s not putting the public at risk, so long as he’s not compromising his important mission as Director of the FBI.”
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Beyond personal conduct, Van Hollen accused Patel of purging FBI staff who were involved in high-profile investigations linked to former President Donald Trump. Specifically, the senator alleged that Patel targeted agents who investigated the January 6th Capitol riot and the mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.
“But beyond this, we also have the fact that he has completely weaponized the FBI,” Van Hollen said. “He went after agents who helped to investigate the January 6th rioters. More recently, he went after agents who were a part of the investigation of Trump’s taking classified materials to Mar-a-Lago. They didn’t decide to do that. They were following their orders.”
Van Hollen further noted that some of the terminated personnel were vital to national security operations overseas. “And by the way, many of them were part of the counter-espionage unit with respect to Iran. So he fired them at the very moment we need them most when we have this conflict with Iran. So I think he needs to go for a whole host of reasons,” he added.
The interview also addressed a public challenge Van Hollen previously issued, in which he took an alcohol use disorder identification test and called on the FBI director to do the same. Welker questioned whether Patel would actually follow through or if the challenge was merely political theater.
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Van Hollen noted that Patel is legally bound by his previous statements to lawmakers. “Well, he said in public testimony that he would do it. He’s also under oath automatically in the sense that lying to Congress is a crime. So he said he’s going to do it,” Van Hollen said.
However, the Maryland senator expressed skepticism regarding the validity of any future test results, accusing the director of dishonesty during his congressional testimony.
“My sense from Patel’s conduct overall is he may or may not do it, but I unfortunately won’t be able to believe the results,” Van Hollen concluded. “Because in that hearing, he did lie several times.”
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