Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham snapped back at CBS host Margaret Brennan on Sunday over his defense of FBI director nominee Kash Patel, telling her she needed to “worry about reporting the news fairly.”
Since President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Patel, Democrats have pushed back against the nominee while Republicans have raised concerns over the FBI’s past leadership. On “Face the Nation,” Brennan asked Graham about former Attorney General Bill Barr’s claim in his memoir that Patel “would never be able to command the respect necessary to run the day-to-day operations of the Bureau.”
While Graham disregarded Barr’s claim, Brennan continued to push her point and highlight other officials who support Patel. However, Graham pushed back, pointing out how the CBS host neglected to ask him about the “Russia hoax” Patel “exposed,” before attempting to pivot to the Israel-Hamas war.
“Lindsey Graham, this is a far cry from the question about Kash Patel,” Brennan said. “You took me all the way to Israel from Kash Patel. Are you committing to vote for him no matter what?”
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“I won’t say no matter what,” Graham responded. “Yes, I am ready to vote for Kash Patel because you will never ask me the role he played in exposing the darkest moment of the FBI since J. Edgar Herbert. That’s why I trust him.”
Brennan hit back one last time, telling the senator to, “Ask him about going after journalists, which he’s also said. I’m interested in the answer to that.”
“Yeah, I’m sure Democratic friends will ask him,” Graham said. “You shouldn’t worry about Kash Patel. You should worry about reporting the news fairly, which you don’t do when it comes to everything Trump.”
During Trump’s first administration, Patel served as chief of staff to the secretary of defense. During his time, he voiced sharp criticism of Robert Mueller’s investigation into alleged “Russian interference” in the 2016 presidential election, which was ultimately found to be a distraction.
While legacy media pundits and other political guests continuously hyped claims that Trump colluded with the Russian government to defeat then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, the Steele Dossier, which was used as evidence, was later discredited and found to have been opposition research funded by Clinton’s campaign.
Patel’s hearing before Senate lawmakers is expected to take place soon, however, no date has been scheduled as of Sunday.
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