Kash Patel
Role at the time: FBI Director, testifying at the Senate Judiciary Committee's FBI oversight hearing
Response to this claim
The fired employees exercised poor judgment and a lack of impartiality in carrying out their duties, leading to the political weaponization of the government.
“for the simple fact of working on those investigations? No. If they weaponize law enforcement, yes.”
PBS NewsHour video of Sen. Adam Schiff questioning FBI Director Kash Patel about the agents who worked on the Mar-a-Lago and January 6 investigations, at the Senate Judiciary Committee's FBI oversight hearing on September 15, 2026.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Why we used this label
The reference point is the FBI's February 2026 firing of employees who worked on the investigation of Donald Trump's retention of classified documents. Patel says no agent was fired for the simple fact of working on the Trump investigations and that those who weaponized law enforcement were, which defends the firings as a response to misconduct.