Kash Patel Is Using Taxpayer Money for His Girlfriend, Jet-Setting
FBI Director Kash Patel has come under fire for using taxpayer-funded resources like government planes and SWAT protection for personal reasons.
When his girlfriend, country singer Alexis Wilkins, performed at an NRA convention, she had an FBI SWAT team as her bodyguards. The agents were members of a special unit trained to rescue hostages and penetrate barricaded buildings, according to The New York Times. Once the team had secured the convention center, they departed. But Patel didn’t like that.
He reportedly lambasted the team’s commander for leaving Wilkins without protection while she chatted with fans on the convention floor.
It’s only the latest incidence of Patel using taxpayer-funded resources for his own personal activities. He’s been treating specialized FBI agents like his and his girlfriend’s private security detail, as well as jet-setting across the globe on government planes, according to the Times.
Former FBI agent Christopher O’Leary criticized Patel’s actions, telling the Times that his use of the private plane and SWAT agents for his girlfriend’s detail “are indicative of his lack of leadership experience, judgment and humility.”
And Patel’s right-wing allies aren’t happy either: “Is she considered Kash’s spouse?” asked Grace Chong, an influencer who works for Steve Bannon, on X. “Is that why she’s getting protection because if not then why are we paying for this?”
Patel claims that Wilkins is getting this level of protection because she’s received death threats. But that doesn’t explain his extensive travel—to see her, and for other personal and business-related reasons.
An FBI spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal earlier this month that Patel had taken nearly a dozen personal trips since becoming FBI director in February, compared to former FBI Director Robert Mueller’s itinerary of 10 personal flights over a four-year period.
