FBI Director Kash Patel faces 2nd grilling before House lawmakers
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(WASHINGTON) — A day after FBI Director Kash Patel sparred with Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, he is set to answer questions from members of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.
Chair Jim Jordan applauded Patel’s work as the director of the FBI before his appearance.
“The Biden Administration weaponized the FBI. Kash Patel is focused on catching criminals. Such a contrast,” the Ohio Republican wrote on X on Monday.
Ranking member Jamie Raskin said Democrats on the committee will be pushing Patel for answers on the investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein files.
“FBI Director Kash Patel steps before @HouseJudiciary on Wednesday. America wants answers about the ongoing coverup allowing Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and their billionaire pals to thwart justice for trafficking victims and accountability for predators,” Raskin wrote in a post on X.
On Tuesday, Patel appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee, where he feuded with Democratic Sens. Adam Schiff and Cory Booker — at one point calling the California senator a “political buffoon” and an “utter coward.”
In a shouting match with Booker, the New Jersey senator said that Patel was making the country “weaker and less safe.”
Patel fired back that Booker’s comments do “not bring this country together.”
Patel also faced questions about the assassination of conservative activist and influencer Charlie Kirk last week. He said the FBI is investigating if others are involved after the online messaging platform, Discord confirmed reports that before the shooting the alleged shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, posted messages to a small group of friends on the platform that said, “Hey guys, I have bad news for you all … It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this.”
“There are a number of individuals that are currently being investigated and interrogated, and a number yet to be investigated and interrogated, specific to that chat room. So we are very much in our ongoing posture of investigation,” Patel said, adding that other people could be involved.
(WASHINGTON) — More than a year after a Secret Service counter sniper team killed a would-be assassin targeting President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, a report from the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General found the team faces “chronic understaffing.”
“The United States Secret Service’s (Secret Service) Counter Sniper Team (CS) is staffed 73 percent below the level necessary to meet mission requirements,” the inspector general’s report says. “Failure to appropriately staff CS could limit the Secret Service’s ability to properly protect our Nation’s most senior leaders, risking injury or assassination, and subsequent national-level harm to the country’s sense of safety and security.”
The Secret Service does not have an effective process to hire counter snipers, the IG found; all the while, the demand for them increased 151% from 2020 to 2024.
It takes about three years from the time a uniformed Secret Service officer joins the agency to when they can join the counter sniper team, according to the IG.
Counter snipers who missed mandatory weapons training supported 47 of the 426 events (11%) attended by protectees in calendar year 2024, the inspector general found.
Those events included events attended by then-President Joe Biden, including the wake for Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson in Dallas on Jan. 8, 2024, a campaign reception in New York on Feb. 7, 2024, and when he delivered remarks in Manchester, New Hampshire on March 11, 2024.
The United States Secret Service has 344 protectees and supported 5,141 protective visits (4,723 domestic, 337 foreign, and 81 U.S. territorial), and its budget is about $1.2 billion to support protectees, according to the IG.
While the number of total counter snipers was redacted, the IG found that during the 2024 campaign, the Secret Service would sometimes rely on other components’ counter snipers. For example, when the president is visiting a site, a Secret Service counter sniper team would automatically be assigned, but if it was for another protectee, the Secret Service might assign another component’s team or rely on state and local support because of the staffing issues, the IG found.
In an August 2024 letter, the acting deputy director of ICE asked for Homeland Security Investigations Special Response teams to be embedded with the counter sniper teams to better cover residences in Palm Beach, Florida, and Wilmington and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
The Secret Service agreed with the inspector general’s assessment of the counter sniper team and are working on hiring more officers to become counter snipers.
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump underwent vascular testing after he had swelling in his legs, with all results within normal limits, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday.
Leavitt said Trump noted “mild swelling in his lower legs,” which prompted the White House medical team to evaluate him.
“The president underwent a comprehensive examination including diagnostic vascular studies, bilateral lower extremity intravenous doppler ultrasounds were performed and revealed chronic venous insufficiency, a benign and common condition, particularly in individuals over the age of 70,” Leavitt said in the Thursday White House press briefing.
There was no evidence of deep vein thrombosis or arterial disease and an echocardiogram showed normal cardiac structure and function, Leavitt said, adding that all results from testing were “within normal limits.”
Leavitt also address photos circulated online that show minor bruising on the back of the president’s hand, attributing the bruising to “with minor soft tissue irritation from frequent handshaking.”
“The president remains in excellent health,” Leavitt said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — At a confirmation hearing Wednesday, President Donald Trump’s pick for the director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Susan Monarez, faced questions about her stance on vaccines — after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., a vaccine skeptic, has recently made controversial choices around them
Monarez was clear in her support for vaccines.
“I think vaccines save lives. I think that we need to continue to support the promotion of utilization of vaccines,” Monarez said.
Her comments came as she was asked by Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders about a recent decision reported by POLITICO that Kennedy has decided to end U.S. funding for a global vaccine alliance, Gavi.
“I wasn’t involved in that decision making. If I’m confirmed as a CDC director, I will certainly look into it, and I’m happy to follow up with you,” Monarez said.
Kennedy has long held many vaccine-skeptic views, refuted by experts and high-quality studies, long before he joined the administration, but he has insisted he is not “anti-vaccine” and rather “pro-safety.”
Earlier this month, Kennedy removed all 17 sitting members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee and replaced them with new members. The move has been controversial, with some experts saying it makes the U.S. “less prepared for infectious disease threats.”
Monarez also stood apart from Kennedy on her views on autism, and whether there is any link between the neurological disorder and childhood vaccinations — which Kennedy has long raised as a potential reason for rising rates of autism diagnoses.
“I have not seen a causal link between vaccines and autism,” Monarez said, asked by Sanders if she agrees with the American Medical Association’s stance “that there is no scientific proven link between vaccines and autism.”
Kennedy, in his own confirmation hearing, refused to acknowledge that there is not a link between vaccines and autism, causing him to nearly lose the key vote of Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican and a doctor.
Kennedy has since launched a major effort at NIH to look into the causes of rising autism diagnoses.
The myth that vaccines cause autism was born out of a fraudulent 1998 study, hypothesizing that the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine caused intestinal inflammation, which, in turn, led to the development of autism.
The paper has since been discredited by health experts, retracted from the journal in which it was published, and its primary author, Andrew Wakefield, lost his medical license after an investigation found he had acted “dishonestly and irresponsibly” in conducting his research.
More than a dozen high-quality studies have since found no evidence of a link between childhood vaccines and autism.
Monarez outlined her credentials in her opening statements, touting her experience with health technology and public health. She also laid out her goals as the CDC director, which includes restoring public trust, modernizing public health infrastructure and employing evidence-based rapid decision making.
“These priorities support the president’s and the secretary’s vision of a healthier America. To achieve them, I will lead with integrity, transparency and purpose, and work with Congress to maximize health outcomes and protect the American people,” Monarez said in her opening statement.
Trump tapped Monarez to lead the CDC in March after the administration withdrew Trump’s other pick, Dr. David Weldon, to head the agency citing the fact that he did not have the votes needed to be confirmed.
Monarez, if confirmed, will work with Kennedey to “prioritize Accountability, High Standards, and Disease Prevention to finally address the Chronic Disease Epidemic and, MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN!” Trump said in a social media post announcing her nomination.
Monarez has served as the acting CDC director since late January.
She has experience in both the public and private sector — including working in the government under former presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Trump’s first term and Joe Biden. Her work has included strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance, too.
She has also led projects to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve health outcomes.
