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Floor Speech
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Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I too rise today to oppose the nomination of Kash Patel to serve as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Now, let me begin by saying to Americans watching at home who may not be completely up to speed as to what is going on, the importance of this specific nomination or wondering, Who is Kash Patel?
You might have been distracted these past few weeks by a rush of headlines coming out of the White House, maybe preoccupied with the cost of groceries rising by the week. You may have--if you got any news--been hearing about how President Trump, the richest President in history, has given Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, unprecedented access to millions of Americans' sensitive private information.
Yes, Elon Musk has access to your personal, private information, from Social Security numbers, to home addresses, to your tax information. There has been a lot going on. All the while, President Trump has also tried to lay the groundwork to pass another massive tax cut for billionaires.
So if you have been busy and struggling to keep up, I understand. So let me try to break it down for you.
Only in the year 2025, when Donald Trump seems to have a headlock on the Republican Party, could a nominee this extreme and this unqualified be considered or confirmed to lead the FBI. No party of Reagan would ever support this big a threat to American freedom and our national security. No party of Lincoln could ever support this big a source of division among Americans. Yet here we are, pretending as if a man who promised to shut down the FBI headquarters on day one and turn it into a museum for the deep state is now fit to lead the FBI.
You see time and again, Kash Patel has shown that his loyalty lies not with the rule of law but with Donald Trump. Why? Because he knows that Donald Trump is his cash cow. Trump is Kash Patel's ticket to selling more books. It is his calling card to try to book the next podcast interview and certainly key to landing his next job.
Frankly, it is a pattern we have seen from all too many of the nominees that Donald Trump has picked for his second administration. These are people whose sole qualification is allegiance to Trump. This should disqualify any nominee, but it is particularly concerning for a nominee slated to lead the Nation's premier law enforcement Agency.
When it comes to protecting the security of our Nation, there is no room to choose between patriotism and patronage. The American people need and deserve a public servant who is 100 percent committed to the around- the-clock safety of the American people.
Unfortunately, through his actions over the course of the last several years and his conduct this past month before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Kash Patel has demonstrated a dangerous lack of judgment, lack of preparation, and lack of independence. He has shown that he is either unwilling or incapable of putting politics aside in order to ``protect the American people and uphold the Constitution'' should he be confirmed to lead the FBI.
Throughout his career, he has shown a clear pattern of loyalty to Trump and of self-dealings at the expense of the American people. That includes undermining the FBI's work in order to protect Trump from investigation; profiting off of conspiracies about a ``Deep State'' and promoting an ``enemies list'' targeting public servants; selling picture books to spread conspiracy theories to children about the 2016 election; endangering the lives of American servicemembers after inserting himself into a hostage rescue operation; refusing to commit in his confirmation hearing to enforcing existing gun laws that protect lives and have saved lives; holding millions of dollars in unvested stock in a foreign company tied to forced and child labor; and even producing a song and financially supporting the families of insurrectionists who violently beat Capitol Police officers on January 6.
Now it appears that this list includes potentially having lied under oath in his confirmation hearing about the role he played in firing career FBI employees based on their perceived loyalties. After we heard him swear in committee that he played no role in the firings, whistleblowers are coming forward to tell us otherwise. At the very least, this charge is so serious that it warrants further investigation.
Colleagues, stretching the truth or potentially outright lying may score him points with President Trump, but as Director of the FBI, it will only put American lives at risk.
Think about it. To all the Americans who might be watching from home, you wouldn't put an arsonist in charge of a fire department, would you? But with Kash Patel atop the FBI, that is exactly what we get. Career law enforcement will continue to be purged, the FBI will be weaponized for political gain, and our communities will be less safe.
I want to make one final point to our Republican colleagues. Throughout this body's history, the Senate has had not just the opportunity but the responsibility to serve as a check on Executive overreach.
Senators of both parties over history have exercised our constitutional duty to advise and consent to the President's nominations, and in the past, the Senate has rejected extreme nominations. To stay quiet when a nominee so obviously unfit comes before us--that sets a dangerous precedent. Think about the damage you will be doing not just to the institution of the FBI or to the Senate but to the trust that millions of Americans deserve to have in our law enforcement.
But more important than that, today, consider this: Someday in the future, possibly the near future, when a loyalist FBI Director abuses the position and fails to protect the American people, it won't just be Kash Patel that will be held accountable, it won't just be President Trump we will try to hold accountable, it will be every Member of this body who supported his nomination that will also be held accountable.
So I invite you, I encourage you to have the courage to say no to Trump because lives are on the line. Have the courage to stand up and protect your constituents, protect the American people. Stand up, do the right thing, and vote no on this nominee.
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