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Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a record-breaking defense budget, setting aside a staggering third of the government’s total spending as the war in Ukraine drains resources from both sides nearly three years on.

The budget for 2025, which was published Sunday, allocates about $126 billion (13.5 trillion rubles) to national defense – amounting to 32.5% of government spending.

The defense budget is about $28 billion (three trillion rubles) higher than the previous record set this year.

The new three-year budget forecasts a slight reduction in military spending for 2026 and 2027. Lawmakers in both houses of the Russian parliament approved the budget.

Russia’s war in Ukraine is the biggest conflict in Europe since World War II. Moscow is currently making gains at key spots along the frontlines and fighting a counteroffensive in Kursk region – the site of Kyiv’s only major military success this year.

But the slow, grinding war – often called a war of attrition, where both sides are trying to wear down the other – has drained both countries’ resources.

Ukraine has always been on the back foot when it comes to both material and manpower, though it has received billions of dollars in help from its Western allies. How much aid will continue to come from the United States once President-elect Donald Trump takes office remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, Russia has more weapons, more ammunition and more people – but the strain on its economy and population is growing.

Russia has massively increased its military spending over the past two years and its economy is now showing signs of overheating: inflation is running high, and companies are facing labor shortages. Trying to control the situation, the Russian Central Bank has raised interest rates to 21% in October, the highest in decades.

And while Russia has many more people than Ukraine, it is suffering significant battlefield losses and recruitment of new troops is already a problem – the last time the Russian military introduced a partial mobilization, hundreds of thousands of men fled the country.

North Korea recently sent an influx of soldiers to help Russia fight on the frontlines – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in November that about 11,000 North Korean soldiers were in Kursk.

The North Korean troops may help Russia’s efforts for some time – but the material losses could be harder to make up for.

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A crowd crush at a football match in Guinea has caused multiple casualties, the country’s prime minister has confirmed, with one social media video showing fans scrambling to get out of a packed stadium.

“The government deplores the incidents that marred the football match between the Labé and Nzérékoré teams this afternoon in Nzérékoré,” Prime Minister Bah Oury said in a statement.

“Victims were recorded during the crowd crush” he added.

“The government is monitoring the development of the situation and reiterates its call for calm so that hospital services are not hindered in providing first aid to the injured,” Oury said, with city authorities ordered to restore “social tranquality.”

Oury’s statement did not give an account of what happened inside the stadium, but he said a more detailed report would follow.

It is not currently clear how many casualties there are.

Local outlet Mediaguinee said there were “several deaths, including minors.” The AFP news agency cited an anonymous local doctor who said there were dozens of deaths.

Mediaguinee said clashes between fans and security began over a series of refereeing decisions followed by a stampede as crowds tried to escape the stadium.

Local media outlet Avenirguinee reported that the match was part of a tournament organized by Guinea’s ruling military junta to support the candidacy of Mamady Doumbouya.

Doumbouya, who seized power in a 2021 coup and has installed himself as president, is eyeing a potential presidential run in elections expected to be held in 2025.

Doumbouya is one of several figures who have seized power in the volatile region since 2020.

West and Central Africa have seen at least eight successful coups since 2020, as political upheavals exacerbate concerns of a slide towards military rule in a resource-rich but poverty-stricken region.

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A bear that ran amok in a supermarket in northern Japan has been caught two days after it attacked a worker, the latest in a surge of encounters between bears and people in the country.

The bear wandered into the store in Akita City on Saturday and attacked a 47-year-old employee, who sustained a minor head injury, police said.

It was two more days before authorities were able to trap the animal – and in that time it ransacked the meat section and damaged some shelves, police said, citing the store manager.

Bear attacks are becoming a growing headache for the country, especially in northern Japan, where mountain ranges and lush bush provide an ideal habitat.

But climate change is interfering with flowering and pollination schedules, disrupting bears’ traditional sources of food, forcing them to venture out to urban areas in search of sustenance, some experts have suggested.

The bear, believed to be 1-meter (3 feet) long, remained in the store after attacking the worker, so authorities sent a drone inside on Sunday to find it, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Outside, police officers in protective gear and holding shields entered the supermarket from an entrance covered by a piece of plastic, according to local media footage.

The bear was later found in the storage area, so workers set up a box trap, with honey and apples to attract the interloper. The bear was caught on Monday.

The number of bear attacks in the prefecture was higher than usual this year after hitting a record last year, the spokesperson said.

Japan also recorded the highest number of injuries or property damage as a result of bear attacks in the fiscal year that ended in March, according to NHK.

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Australian police seized the country’s largest haul of cocaine aboard a fishing boat that had broken down near the coast of Queensland, arresting 13 people alleged to be part of a drug-smuggling syndicate.

Authorities tracked a recreational fishing boat as it traveled out to sea where it allegedly met a mothership in international waters to fetch the cocaine – some 2.34 metric tons with a street value of nearly half a billion dollars.

The boat suffered a suspected mechanical breakdown, leaving the alleged traffickers stranded 18 kilometers (11 miles) off the northeastern tip of K’gari island, formerly known as Fraser Island, on Saturday.

Police seized their chance to board the boat, arresting two men at sea in a joint investigation between federal and local forces. Another 11 were arrested on shore, including two juveniles.

The arrests include the Brisbane vice president of the Comanchero Outlaw Motorcycle Gang, which is accused of engaging in violence, extortion and trafficking, police said.

All the suspects are accused of being part of a criminal syndicate and have been charged with conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of drugs. The maximum penalty is life imprisonment.

Police said the haul was the equivalent to 11.7 million individual street deals.

“We know that criminals go to extreme lengths, and often risk their own lives, to smuggle drugs into Australia with no regard to the harm they cause to Australian communities,” Commander Stephen Jay said.

“This alleged attempt to collect more than 2 tons of cocaine from the ocean shows that criminals will do anything for their own greed and profit.”

The police operation began in November following a tip-off that the Comanchero biker gang was allegedly planning to bring the drugs into the country.

Australian police have warned in recent years that international drugs cartels are increasingly targeting the country, where a surge in cocaine use combined with some of the highest street prices in the world has fueled a lucrative illicit market.

Last week, six so-called “narco subs” stuffed with cocaine were captured in a Colombian-led international anti-drug operation. Among the haul was 225 metric tons of cocaine, 5 tons of which was found aboard a semi-submersible vessel plying a marine trafficking route from Colombia to Australia, according to the Colombian Navy.

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Days of protests have rocked Georgia following the government’s controversial decision to delay the former Soviet country’s bid to join the European Union.

Tensions have been brewing for months in the South Caucasus nation of 3.7 million people, where critics accuse the ruling Georgian Dream party of following increasingly authoritarian, pro-Russia policies in a turn away from the West that has tempered hopes for Georgia’s long-promised path to EU membership.

The protests have been met with a violent police crackdown as the ruling party and thousands of protesters become locked in a deepening battle over the country’s future and whether Georgia should forge closer ties with Russia or Europe.

Here’s what you need to know.

What sparked the protests?

Tensions intensified in late October when Georgian Dream claimed victory in a contested election that was widely seen as a referendum on joining the EU.

Georgia, which gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, has for years pursued EU membership, with the goal of joining the bloc written into its constitution.

Most Georgians support the policy, polls consistently show, and it appeared to be on track last year when the country gained EU candidate status.

But on November 28, the government signaled a pivot away from Europe in a move which sparked widespread anger.

Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said Georgia would suspend EU accession talks for four years after the European Parliament rejected the country’s election results, citing alleged irregularities.

The Georgian Dream governing bloc accused the EU of using the prospect of accession talks to “blackmail” Georgia, and to “organize a revolution in the country.”

“We have decided not to put the issue of opening negotiations with the European Union on the agenda until the end of 2028,” it said. “Also, we refuse any budgetary grant from the European Union until the end of 2028.”

What’s happening at the protests?

The government’s move brought thousands of pro-European Georgians to the streets of the capital Tbilisi, where they have rallied for consecutive nights despite a violent police backlash.

Reuters videos show protesters waving Georgian and EU flags and chanting “Russian slaves” at police officers guarding the parliament building. Police fired water cannons and tear gas at protesters, while men wearing balaclavas were seen running into the crowds and beating individuals.

The protests have spread beyond the capital, with Georgian media reporting demonstrations in at least eight cities and towns, according to Reuters.

Opposition TV channel Formula showed people in the central town of Khashuri throwing eggs at the local Georgian Dream office and tearing down the party’s flag. Demonstrators also blocked an access road to the country’s main commercial port in the Black Sea city of Poti, according to Georgian news agency Interpress.

More than 100 people have been arrested, according to Georgian officials, who claimed protesters threw stones and glass bottles at law enforcement. Dozens of people have also been hospitalized.

Residents have remarked on the forcefulness of the police response, which has been widely condemned internationally.

Salome Zourabichvili, the country’s pro-Western president whose powers are mostly ceremonial, claimed that police “targeted journalists and political leaders.”

She lambasted what she called “brutal and disproportionate attacks on the Georgian people and media, reminiscent of Russian-style repression” at the protests.

How did Georgia get here?

Nearly 80% of Georgians support European integration, according to a poll in December last year by the US non-profit National Democratic Institute.

Many Georgians also feel a deep hostility towards Russia, which invaded Georgia in 2008 and today occupies about 20% of its internationally recognized territories.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, thousands of Russians – especially men of service age – have fled to Georgia to avoid conscription, tearing at the country’s social fabric as many Georgians express fears of creeping Russification.

Georgian Dream, founded by a billionaire who made his fortune in Russia, has taken a sharp authoritarian turn in recent years. Earlier this year, it pushed through a new Russian-style “foreign agent” law that allows the government to clamp down on watchdogs, alarming the EU, the US, and its political opponents within Georgia.

Experts have warned the suspension of EU talks is another sign the country is going down an undemocratic path under Georgian Dream.

She said she fears Georgia is “becoming a state that is non-democratic, unfree, where liberties are not respected.”

How have the EU and US reacted?

The United States and the EU have criticized what they see as growing authoritarianism in Georgia and the aggressive response to protesters by police.

The US State Department condemned “the excessive use of force by police against Georgians” and said it was suspending the US-Georgia Strategic Partnership due to “anti-democratic actions” by the ruling party.

“We reiterate our call to the Georgian government to return to its Euro-Atlantic path, transparently investigate all parliamentary election irregularities, and repeal anti-democratic laws that limit freedoms of assembly and expression,” spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc stands “with the Georgian people and their choice for a European future,” in a post on social media.

“We condemn the violence against protesters & regret signals from ruling party not to pursue Georgia’s path to EU and democratic backsliding of the country,” she said. “This will have direct consequences from EU side.”

How has Georgia responded?

Prime Minister Kobakhidze dismissed the US criticism and said police had “successfully protected the state from another attempt to violate the constitutional order,” according to Reuters.

Georgian Dream has also denied it is linked to Russia.

Kobakhidze has insisted the party remains committed to Georgia’s EU bid and is only pushing back on “blackmail and manipulation” by EU politicians.

But the West has become skeptical of the party’s intentions.

So too have hundreds of Georgian diplomats and civil servants, who have signed open letters calling the delay of EU talks unlawful.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is yet to comment on the situation in Georgia.

But Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president prone to hyperbole who currently sits on the Security Council of Russia, described events in Georgia as an attempted revolution warning on Telegram that the country was “moving rapidly along the Ukrainian path, into the dark abyss. Usually this sort of thing ends very badly.”

This post appeared first on cnn.com

The Pentagon is in the process of fitting the first-ever shipborn hypersonic missile system to a U.S. stealth destroyer once considered to be defunct.

The USS Zumwalt is stationed at a Mississippi shipyard as it undergoes the retrofit. The U.S. Navy is installing missile tubes towards the vessel’s bow, where two inactive gun turrets were once positioned. The turrets had never been activated due to cost.

‘It was a costly blunder. But the Navy could take victory from the jaws of defeat here, and get some utility out of them by making them into a hypersonic platform,’ Bryan Clark, a defense analyst at the Hudson Institute, said of the Zumwalt’s retrofit.

The development comes as the U.S. competes with Russia and China to develop and implement new hypersonic weapons technologies. 

Hypersonic missiles hold a key advantage in contemporary warfare because they travel at such high speed that missile defense systems cannot reliably shoot them down.

Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to target Ukrainian government buildings in Kyiv with hypersonic missiles last week. Such missiles are also believed to be capable of reaching the U.S. West Coast.

Putin’s announcement came after President Biden approved Ukraine to use U.S.-made ATACMs missiles on targets in Russian territory.

‘Of course, we will respond to the ongoing strikes on Russian territory with long-range Western-made missiles, as has already been said, including by possibly continuing to test the Oreshnik in combat conditions, as was done on November 21,’ Putin told a meeting of a security alliance of ex-Soviet countries in Kazakhstan.

‘At present, the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff are selecting targets to hit on Ukrainian territory. These could be military facilities, defense and industrial enterprises, or decision-making centers in Kyiv,’ he said.

Putin claims Russia’s production of advanced missile systems exceeds that of the NATO military alliance by 10 times, and that Moscow planned to ramp up production further.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Biden administration national security adviser Jake Sullivan dodged answering whether he’s concerned over President-elect Trump naming Kash Patel as his pick to lead the FBI after Patel listed Sullivan as a member of the ‘deep state’ in a book published last year. 

‘Kash Patel also published a book where he listed people who are part of the deep state. Your name is on that list. Would it concern you to have him have all the powers of federal investigations. And would you fear personal retribution?’ CNN’s Kasie Hunt asked Sullivan Sunday during an interview on ‘State of the Union.’ 

Sullivan brushed off being listed in Patel’s book, ‘Government Gangsters,’ and instead said he’s focused on his final days in office before Trump is sworn in as president on Jan. 20. 

‘Look, I wake up every day to try to defend this country and protect the national interest. I got 50 days left. I’m going to stay totally focused on every single one of those days to make sure that we have a smooth handoff to the next team, and we put them in the best strategic position possible. And I can’t spend my time worrying about other things at this point,’ Sullivan said. 

Patel published ‘Government Gangsters: The Deep State, the Truth, and the Battle for Our Democracy’ last year, which Trump lauded as a ‘roadmap’ to exposing bad actors in the government and a ‘blueprint to help us take back the White House and remove these Gangsters from all of Government.’

‘Things are bad. There’s no denying it. The FBI has gravely abused its power, threatening not only the rule of law, but the very foundations of self-government at the root of our democracy. But this isn’t the end of the story. Change is possible at the FBI and desperately needed,’ Patel wrote in the book, detailing the state of the FBI. 

Within the book, Patel provided an alphabetical list of alleged ‘deep state’ members who are either currently or formerly employed in the executive branch. Sullivan is included on the long list, as are other Biden officials such as Attorney General Merrick Garland, Vice President Kamala Harris and FBI Director Christopher Wray. Wray served under both the Trump and Biden administrations. 

Trump named Patel as his pick for FBI chief on Saturday. Hunt asked Sullivan for his reaction the following morning while noting that Patel is a ‘fierce Trump loyalist’ who has vowed to target the deep states. Sullivan brushed off the question by focusing on Wray’s work as FBI chief. 

‘I’m not going to speak to President-elect Trump’s nominees. I’ll let him speak for his own rationale. What I will say is how the Biden administration has approached the position of FBI director. We inherited Director Chris Wray, who has done a very good job in the role, from President-elect Trump, who appointed him to a 10-year term. And what makes the FBI director different from most other nominees, is they’re not just appointed for one term of a president,’ he said. 

‘They’re appointed for enough time to last past two terms of a president, because they’re supposed to be insulated from politics. President Biden scrupulously adhered to that long-standing bipartisan tradition and for a good reason, because the FBI director should not be subject to the whims of the tos and fros of politics,’ he continued. 

Wray would need to resign or be fired from the FBI in order for Patel to actually assume the position. The Senate would also need to confirm Patel before he could move into the new role. 

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President-elect Trump tapped his daughter Tiffany Trump’s father-in-law, Lebanese-American businessman Dr. Massad Boulos, to join his Cabinet as senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs.  

‘I am proud to announce that Massad Boulos will serve as Senior Advisor to the President on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs,’ the president-elect wrote on TRUTHSocial. ‘Massad is an accomplished lawyer and a highly respected leader in the business world, with extensive experience on the International scene. He has been a longtime proponent of Republican and Conservative values, an asset to my Campaign, and was instrumental in building tremendous new coalitions with the Arab American Community. Massad is a dealmaker, and an unwavering supporter of PEACE in the Middle East. He will be a strong advocate for the United States, and its interests, and I am pleased to have him on our team!’ 

Boulos led efforts to engage the Arab American community, organizing dozens of meetings across Michigan and other areas with large Arab populations. 

Some sessions also featured Richard Grenell, former acting director of national intelligence, who was well-regarded by those who met with him.

Trump campaign officials and supporters told Reuters that Boulos helped flip some of the 300,000 Arab Americans and Muslims in Michigan who largely backed Biden in 2020 but later grew frustrated with Biden’s policies in Israel, Gaza and Lebanon. 

Boulos’ son, Michael, and Tiffany Trump were married in November 2022 at Mar-a-Lago. Trump revealed during a speech to the Detroit Economic Club in October that Tiffany is pregnant. 

Boulos is a billionaire with extensive business connections to Nigeria. He was born in Lebanon but moved to Texas as a teenager. He attended the University of Houston and later became a U.S. citizen. 

According to Reuters, Boulos’ father and grandfather were involved in Lebanese politics, and his father-in-law backed the Free Patriotic Movement, a Christian party affiliated with Hezbollah. 

Three sources told Reuters that Boulos’ appeal centers on his ability to engage with different factions within Lebanese politics, as he’s even maintained relations with Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim party and terrorist group that largely controls the parliament. Boulos is friends with Suleiman Frangieh, a Christian politician backed by Hezbollah for the presidency, and has been in communication with the Lebanese Forces Party, a Christian faction that staunchly opposes Hezbollah. 

This is a developing story. Check back for updates. The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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President-elect Trump reacted to President Biden’s surprise decision to pardon his son Hunter on Sunday.

Biden’s move to pardon – a decision he previously claimed he would not make – turned heads across the country. In a Truth Social post on Sunday night, Trump suggested that Biden should have pardoned Jan. 6 protesters.

‘Does the Pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years?’ Trump wrote. ‘Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!’

The Trump transition team also reacted to the pardon for Hunter Biden.

‘The failed witch hunts against President Trump have proven that the Democrat-controlled DOJ and other radical prosecutors are guilty of weaponizing the justice system,’ Trump’s incoming White House communications chief Steven Cheung said in a statement to Fox News.

‘That system of justice must be fixed and due process must be restored for all Americans, which is exactly what President Trump will do as he returns to the White House with an overwhelming mandate from the American people.’

Earlier on Sunday, Biden accused Republicans of unfair treatment and claimed Hunter was ‘treated differently’ by prosecutors. Hunter Biden was convicted of three felony firearm offenses in a Delaware trial earlier this year, and then pleaded guilty to multiple felony tax offenses in September. 

‘From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,’ the president’s statement read.

‘Without aggravating factors like use in a crime, multiple purchases, or buying a weapon as a straw purchaser, people are almost never brought to trial on felony charges solely for how they filled out a gun form,’ he continued. ‘Those who were late paying their taxes because of serious addictions, but paid them back subsequently with interest and penalties, are typically given non-criminal resolutions.’

Biden also evoked Hunter’s battle with substance abuse and asked Americans to ‘understand why a father and a President would come to this decision.’

‘There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution,’ the president continued. ‘In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough.’

Biden had previously denied any intent to pardon his son after Hunter was convicted earlier this year.

‘I am not going to do anything,’ Biden said after the conviction. ‘I will abide by the jury’s decision.’

Trump previously told Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin that, if elected, he ‘wouldn’t do anything that would be overt’ regarding Hunter Biden’s cases, calling the first son’s legal woes ‘a sad situation.’

‘I’ll bet you the father probably pardons him,’ the Republican remarked. ‘Let’s see what happens. But he’s a bad boy.’

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President-elect Trump tapped longtime ally and crusader against the ‘deep state,’ Kashyap ‘Kash’ Patel to lead the FBI, where he will work to snuff out America’s ‘crime epidemic,’ bust up migrant gangs, and stymie drug and human trafficking, the upcoming president declared in his announcement. 

‘Kash did an incredible job during my First Term, where he served as Chief of Staff at the Department of Defense, Deputy Director of National Intelligence, and Senior Director for Counterterrorism at the National Security Council. Kash has also tried over 60 jury trials,’ Trump posted to Truth Social on Sunday evening. 

‘This FBI will end the growing crime epidemic in America, dismantle the migrant criminal gangs, and stop the evil scourge of human and drug trafficking across the Border. Kash will work under our great Attorney General, Pam Bondi, to bring back Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity to the FBI.’

Following Trump’s massive win over Vice President Kamala Harris at the ballot boxes last month, speculation mounted that Patel was a top contender to serve as the FBI chief – an agency Trump and conservatives have repeatedly slammed as ‘weaponized’ against Republicans. 

Patel, 44, is a New York native who grew up on Long Island in Garden City, and was raised by Indian immigrant parents. He earned his law degree in 2005 from Pace University, before serving as a public defender in Florida’s Miami-Dade area, where he tried ‘scores of complex cases ranging from murder, to narco-trafficking, to complex financial crimes in jury trials in state and federal courts,’ according to his Defense Department biography. 

Patel hit the national radar during Trump’s first administration, including when he worked as the national security adviser and senior counsel for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence under the leadership of then-Committee Chair Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif.

‘Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting the American People. He played a pivotal role in uncovering the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, standing as an advocate for truth, accountability, and the Constitution,’ Trump continued in his announcement of Patel as FBI chief. 

Patel’s name spread across news reports as he became known as the man behind the ‘Nunes Memo,’ a four-page document released in 2018 that revealed improper use of surveillance by the FBI and the Justice Department in the Russia investigation into Trump. 

‘If they had gotten it right in the first place, when Devin and I and so many others were actually putting out the truth, instead of serving as a disinformation machine for the left-wing agenda, there would be no reassessment,’ Patel told Fox News Digital of the memo last year. ‘They could not have done their work in the deep state without their partners in the mainstream media, who are part of that deep state.’

Patel’s role in the investigation and memo elevated his career status in the Trump orbit, and he was named senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council in 2019 under the first Trump administration. In that role, he assisted the White House in eliminating foreign terrorist leadership, such as ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdad in 2019 and al-Qaeda militant Qasim al-Raymi in 2020, according to his biography. 

In November 2020, as Trump squared off against Joe Biden at the ballot boxes, the 45th president named Patel chief of staff to acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller. The administration shake-up followed Trump firing Secretary of Defense Mark Esper after the Cabinet member said he did not support invoking the Insurrection Act in order to send the U.S. military to quell violent protests that rocked cities nationwide in 2020. 

Patel has been a staunch Trump ally, including joining the 45th president during his trial in Manhattan in the spring, and echoing that the United States’ security and law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, need to be overhauled. Patel published a book last year called ‘Government Gangsters,’ where he railed against the ‘deep state,’ the weaponization of the federal government and the Russia investigation into Trump. 

Trump called the book a ‘roadmap’ to exposing bad actors in the federal government and said it is a ‘blueprint to help us take back the White House and remove these Gangsters from all of Government.’’

In his book, Patel explicitly called for the revamp of the FBI in a chapter dubbed ‘Overhauling the FBI,’ where he did not mince words about the state of the law enforcement agency.

‘Things are bad. There’s no denying it. The FBI has gravely abused its power, threatening not only the rule of law, but the very foundations of self-government at the root of our democracy. But this isn’t the end of the story. Change is possible at the FBI and desperately needed,’ he wrote. 

‘The fact is we need a federal agency that investigates federal crimes, and that agency will always be at risk of having its powers abused,’ he continued, advocating the firing of ‘corrupt actors,’ ‘aggressive’ congressional oversight over the agency, complete overhauls to special counsels, and moving the FBI out of Washington, D.C., 

‘Most importantly, we need to get the FBI the hell out of Washington, D.C. There is no reason for the nation’s law enforcement agency to be centralized in the swamp. Keeping the FBI in its behemoth Washington HQ building only allows for institutional capture and incentivizes senior leadership in the FBI to lose focus on their mission and learn how to play political games instead, currying favor with politicians and cultivating relationships with the press to advance their career.’

Following the 2020 election, Patel has spoken out against a number of high-profile investigations and issues he sees within the DOJ, potentially previewing what voters could expect from him as FBI director. He slammed the Justice Department, for example, for allegedly burying evidence related to the identity of a suspect who allegedly planted pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican parties in Washington, D.C., a day ahead of Jan. 6, 2021.

Patel has also said Trump could release both the Jeffrey Epstein client list and Diddy party attendee lists, which could expose elites allegedly involved in sex and human trafficking crimes. 

‘I look forward to working with Kash Patel as FBI Director to release Epstein’s flight logs and black book,’ Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn posted to X following Patel’s nomination.  ‘Under the Trump administration, the American people are going to get answers.’

Similar to Blackburn, other conservatives have celebrated Trump tapping Patel for FBI chief, remarking that the FBI’s alleged targeting of Catholics in the U.S. – which was underscored when the FBI arrested a Pennsylvania dad in 2022 who frequently prayed outside of abortion clinics – would likely end under Patel’s leadership, and that he would likely put a focus on prosecuting crimes, as opposed to policing thoughts or beliefs. 

‘Patel is somebody with a fresh set of eyes who has a chance to identify and cure the abuses of an FBI that has become too often an enemy, not a friend of liberty and freedom. For example, Patel would be taking over an FBI that has targeted Catholics. The FBI has decided that traditional Catholics need to be watched carefully because we might be adjacent to extremism,’ columnist David Marcus wrote in an op-ed for Fox Digital this weekend. 

Former Trump administration national security adviser Robert O’Brien added on X that Patel ‘handled some of the nation’s most sensitive issues with care and discretion. From assisting President Trump in the take-down of ISIS and bringing justice to Kayla Mueller’s murderer – al Baghdadi – to risking his life in Syria for hostage Austin Tice, Kash Patel fought for America. I have no doubt that Kash Patel will inspire our line FBI agents who want to fight crime, destroy the cartels, capture spies, and jail mobsters, thugs, fraudsters and traffickers.’

Democrats and liberal members of the media have slammed Trump’s choice of Patel as FBI chief, calling him as a ‘danger’ to the U.S. and ‘unqualified’ for the role. 

‘It’s a terrible development for the men and women of the FBI and also for the nation that depends on a highly functioning, professional, independent Federal Bureau of Investigation. The fact that Kash Patel is profoundly unqualified for this job is not even, like, a matter for debate,’ former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe said on CNN this weekend. ‘The installation, or the nomination, I guess we should say at this point, of Kash Patel as FBI director can only possibly be a plan to disrupt, to dismantle, to distract the FBI, and to possibly use it as a tool for the president’s political agenda.’​​

The criticisms of Patel follow him outlining in his book that Democrats should ‘be very afraid’ as a battle between ‘the people and the corrupt ruling class’ plays out on the national stage. 

‘While Democrats might enjoy watching the Deep State do battle against President Trump and the America First movement, they – and all Americans – should be very afraid. The shocking and terrible details of what the Deep State has already done to increase its power fill this book. Suffice to say, there are no depths to which the Deep State will not descend, crimes they will not commit, or lives they will not destroy to get their way,’ he wrote in his book. 

‘But that doesn’t mean they are invincible.’ 

Patel currently sits on the board of Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., the parent company of Truth Social, and founded the nonprofit The Kash Foundation, which works to ‘support educational and legal efforts needed to facilitate government transparency,’ according to its website. 

Patel faces a couple of hurdles before he can become FBI director, including not only the Senate confirming his nomination, but also the removal of the current FBI director. FBI Director Christopher Wray, whom Trump nominated in 2017, is in the midst of a 10-year appointment that does not end until 2027. Wray would need to resign or be fired in order for Patel to take the position. 

Firing Wray has earned support from conservatives and elected Republican officials, including Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who could reclaim his position as chair of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee next year. 

‘Chris Wray has failed at fundamental duties of FBI Dir He’s showed disdain for cong oversight & hasn’t lived up to his promises It’s time 2 chart a new course 4 TRANSPARENCY +ACCOUNTABILITY at FBI,’ Grassley posted on X. ‘Kash Patel must prove to Congress he will reform &restore public trust in FBI.’ 

The FBI released a statement Saturday evening following Trump’s announcement, stating: ‘Every day, the men and women of the FBI continue to work to protect Americans from a growing array of threats. Director Wray’s focus remains on the men and women of the FBI, the people we do the work with, and the people we do the work for.’

For Patel, he vowed to restore integrity to the FBI if he is confirmed. 

‘It is the honor of a lifetime to be nominated by President Trump to serve as Director of the FBI,’ Patel said in a statement. ‘Together, we will restore integrity, accountability, and equal justice to our justice system and return the FBI to its rightful mission: protecting the American people.’ 

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