Patel accuses Dem lawmakers of 'false accusations' and 'mischaracterizations'

Fireworks erupted between FBI Director nominee Kash Patel and Sen. Amy Klobuchar when he testified Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“You said that Donald Trump has every right to tell the world that [the 2020 election] was rigged by our government. … Did you say that?” Ms. Klobuchar, Minnesota Democrat, asked.

Mr. Patel responded, “I don’t have that statement in front of me.”

She continued reading quotes: “January 6, never an insurrection. Cowards in uniforms exposed. They broke the chain of command.”

“I believe you’re referencing a post that was shown in part earlier. I don’t have it in front of me,” Mr. Patel said.

He also shot back that the quotes she read were partial in nature or paraphrased out of context.

“If the best attacks on me are going to be false accusations and grotesque mischaracterizations, the only thing this body is doing is defeating the credibility of the men and women at the FBI,” Mr. Patel said.

“I stood with them here in this country, in every theater of war we have. I was on the ground in service of this nation, and any accusations leveled against me that I would somehow put political bias before the Constitution are grotesquely unfair.”

He added, “I will have you reminded that I have been endorsed by over 300,000 law enforcement officers to become the next director of the FBI. Let’s ask them.”

The “cowards in uniforms exposed” line was previously batted down by Judiciary Chairman Charles E. Grassley, Iowa Republican, when the top Democrat on the panel, Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, brought up the same quote.

“It’s a mischaracterization of what he actually said. So I’m going to invite you to listen to the interview Mr. Patel gave that linked to his post to hear what he actually said when he said ’cowards in uniform,’” Mr. Grassley said.

“He was talking about senior Pentagon leadership failing to mobilize the National Guard to protect the Capitol. His comments had nothing to do with police. Mr. Patel made his comments while discussing an article in The New York Times exposing grave miscommunication between the Department of Defense and the D.C. National Guard.”