Kash Patel grilled on Charlie Kirk investigation during congressional hearing

(WASHINGTON) — FBI Director Kash Patel kicked off two days of questioning on Tuesday from congressional committees about his tenure leading the FBI so far. He’s also facing questions about the assassination of conservative activist and influencer Charlie Kirk last week.

In his appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday, Patel addressed his handling of the Kirk investigation — something he faced criticism for after he shared on social media at one point that a suspect was in custody, but then had to backtrack an hour and a half later.

Ranking Member Dick Durbin, a Democrat, slammed Patel during his opening remarks on Tuesday, saying Patel sparked “mass confusion” in his posts about Kirk’s killing. Patel stood by his performance, touting the fact that Kirk’s suspected shooter was caught in less than 36 hours.

Patel said he directed authorities to release the photo of the suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, in the Kirk shooting. Kirk was killed in Utah on Wednesday and Robinson was apprehended after his father recognized him in photographs released by authorities, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said on Friday. His father told Robinson to turn himself in, with the 22-year-old initially saying no, but later changing his mind, officials said.

Patel contends this only happened because he ordered “against all law enforcement recommendations,” as he said on X on Saturday, the release of video and enhanced photos of the suspect.

“We cannot do our job without the American public and credible reporting in the media,” Patel said. “And that’s why Tyler Robinson is in custody today about to face charges.”

Patel addressed criticism that he has faced for how he handled the investigation on “Fox & Friends” on Monday morning.

“I was telling the world what the FBI was doing as we were doing it. I continue to do it. I challenge anyone out there to find a director who has been more transparent and more willing to work the media with high profile cases or any cases that the FBI [is] handling.”

For his part, President Donald Trump is standing behind Patel. Asked for his thoughts on Patel’s performance Tuesday morning, Trump said he supports Patel and that he has “confidence in everyone in the administration.”

Patel is facing questions on a host of other issues while he has been at the helm of the FBI, including the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

The Trump administration has been dealing with blowback it received from MAGA supporters for its decision to not release more materials related to the investigation into Epstein, the wealthy financier and convicted sex offender who died by suicide in jail in 2019.

Epstein, whose private island estate was in the U.S. Virgin Islands, has long been rumored to have kept a “client list” of celebrities and politicians, which right-wing influencers have baselessly accused authorities of hiding.

The Justice Department and FBI announced in July that they had found no evidence that Epstein kept a client list after several top officials like Patel, before joining the administration, had themselves accused the government of shielding information regarding the case.

Patel squarely blamed former U.S. Attorney and Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, who initially oversaw the Epstein investigation. Acosta resigned amid controversy over his role in a 2008 plea deal with Epstein and defended his decision, saying his goal “was straightforward” and included putting Epstein behind bars.

“I’m here to testify that the original sin in the Epstein case was the way it was initially brought by Mr. Acosta back in 2006. The original case involved a very limited search warrant, or set of search warrants, and didn’t take as much investigatory material it should have seized,” Patel said. “If I were the FBI director, then it wouldn’t have happened.”

Patel testified that Epstein was not an FBI informant as some have claimed.

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(NEW YORK) — Republican Rep. Thomas Massie said Sunday he stands with Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna’s calls to subpoena Jeffrey Epstein’s estate for documents related to his case, including, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, a birthday letter to Epstein allegedly written by President Donald Trump in 2003.

“Well, I think we should get a lot more than just the book. Let’s get the financial records of the estate. Where is it — follow the money, as they say up here,” Massie told ABC News’ “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl. “We should look at the plea bargain. Open that up. See what was the deal? What was the deal that was cut? I think there’s a lot more than just that letter.”

The Wall Street Journal reported on a birthday message Trump allegedly wrote in a book of messages for Epstein’s 50th birthday — the president denies it exists and has sued the Journal for defamation over the report. ABC News has not been able to confirm the existence of the letter.

Massie and Khanna’s joint legislation would force a House vote on the release of the Epstein files. However, Speaker Mike Johnson sent the House on an August recess a day early, effectively skirting the vote. Massie and Khanna are now seeking a discharge petition, which with 218 votes from House members, would bypass Johnson.

Massie said: “It would force a full release of the files. It has the force of law. It’s not a subpoena. It’s not a ‘Pretty please, would you release the files?’ It’s the force of law and, it’s got protections to redact victims’ names and to prevent, you know, release of child pornography.”

Khanna added the Democratic interest in this case is not new, despite claims that the party has latched on to the case as it causes infighting among some of Trump’s MAGA base.

“We have been pushing for transparency during the Biden administration, both in 2021 and 2024 the court ordered release of documents, but Donald Trump raised the stakes and he did it in a way in the campaign that was justified. He said, ‘Look, when I get there, I’m going to release the files,'” Khanna said.

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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump vowed this week to rid Washington, D.C., of homeless encampments, issuing a warning that the “homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY.” Though what those plans will look like, including where people will go, is unclear, sparking concerns among advocacy groups.

While previewing an announcement regarding D.C., Trump told those experiencing homelessness in a social media post on Sunday, “We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital.”

In his remarks the following day, Trump said that the federal government will be “removing homeless encampments from all over our parks” in D.C. as part of an effort to “rescue our nation’s capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse.”

“There are many places that they can go, and we’re going to help them as much as you can help. But they’ll not be allowed to turn our capital into a wasteland for the world to see,” Trump said during a press briefing on Monday while announcing plans for the federal government to take over the D.C. police department and deploy National Guard troops in D.C.

Dismantling homeless encampments is not a new practice in D.C. for either the Trump administration or local government, Dana White, the advocacy director for Miriam’s Kitchen, a nonprofit focused on ending chronic homelessness in D.C., told ABC News.

“What is particularly startling is the vague language about removing them from the district altogether, without any details about where they would go, who would transport them, how that’s funded, what that means for their human and civil rights,” White said of Trump’s recent remarks.

Donald Whitehead Jr., executive director of the D.C.-based National Coalition for the Homeless, said that though Trump mentioned homelessness during Monday’s press conference several times, there was “no concrete information about how to address the issue,” such as resources that would be developed to address the issue in a non-punitive matter, or where people will be moved.

“Our question is, is this the same solution that we’ve seen with the immigration population? Are people just going to be moved to remote destinations?” he said.

“Really, for a homeless advocate, it was really an information-less press conference,” Whitehead said. “It points to it being more of a stunt than an actual conference about solutions to homelessness.”

The two executive orders issued Monday, which were the focus of Trump’s press briefing, did not specifically mention homelessness.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser told reporters Monday that her office has not gotten any more details from the White House but will be following up with Attorney General Pam Bondi.

“We really haven’t gotten any more detail about the plan, about the words that he said,” she said during a press briefing Monday afternoon when asked about Trump’s remarks on homelessness. “It wasn’t referenced in the executive order that came down.”

“I believe he had a previous executive order that also identified Attorney General Bondi as a point of contact as it relates to homelessness and such, so we’ll follow up with her,” Bowser continued.

On any given night in D.C., there are 798 unhoused people on the street, according to the Community Partnership, a nonprofit working to prevent homelessness in D.C.

In March, Trump issued an executive order for the removal of homeless encampments on federal land within D.C. Since then, the U.S. Park Police have removed over 70 homeless camps, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Monday.

Last month, Trump also signed an executive order seeking to make it easier for cities and states to remove homeless people from the streets and into treatment centers by reversing judicial precedents and ending consent decrees. It also looks to redirect federal funds toward programs that tackle substance abuse and targets “housing first” policies, which prioritize permanent housing as the first step in addressing homelessness.

The orders have been met with pushback from homeless advocates, who contend that permanent, affordable housing with supportive services is a proven solution for chronically homeless people, and that dismantling homeless encampments is a counterproductive strategy to resolving homelessness.

“When we clear encampments, we disconnect people from the services they need to survive and to start the process of being housed, and often disconnects them from their belongings and from the communities that they formed in encampments,” White said.

Without affordable housing, people will most likely pop up in a new camp, he and Whitehead said.

“They’re basically moved from one site to another because there’s not enough shelter beds to meet the needs of the population in D.C.,” Whitehead said. “They don’t have a place to go. There isn’t enough shelter. There certainly isn’t enough housing.”

According to D.C.’s most recent census of people experiencing homelessness, released in May, there was an overall 9% decrease in homelessness in 2025 from the previous year, including an 18.1% decrease among families and a 4.5% decrease among single individuals.

White said Miriam’s Kitchen is working to make sure that single adults experiencing chronic homelessness are prioritized in funding and policy.

“It’s certainly a more tense environment, because folks who are unhoused and housing advocates alike don’t really know what to expect from this administration,” he said. “We’re just going to try to continue to provide our services as usual and prepare to respond rapidly as needed.”

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