Kash Patel is that much closer to being the first Indian American to head the FBI, with a close-up procedural vote in the US Senate pushing his nomination towards final approval.
The Senate, which needs to confirm the nomination, cast a 48-45 party-line vote to open debate on Patel's nomination. The action sets off a 30-hour debate period before Patel is expected to be formally confirmed on Thursday.
Patel, 44, is one of the most contentious nominees put forward by President Donald Trump for top government jobs. His nomination is part of a list of other controversial nominees, such as Director of National Intelligence, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—all of whom were confirmed by strict party-line votes. Patel is expected to be confirmed in the same way.
Republican senators who had originally been critical of some of the nominees have ended up supporting the president, endorsing all of his selections except for Matt Gaetz, Trump's attorney general nominee.
Gaetz was compelled to withdraw from nomination after ongoing media pressure over charges of improper relationships with minors generated opposition within his own party.
Patel, a former public defender, has risen quickly in Washington's political ranks in recent years. He served in powerful roles during Trump's first term, including Chief of Staff at the Department of Defense and Deputy Director of National Intelligence.
Now, Trump has nominated him to head the FBI—an agency that had once investigated the former president for mishandling classified documents upon his departure from office in 2021, and for his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election against President Joe Biden.
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