WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Senate Majority Whip, today spoke on the Senate Floor ahead of voting to confirm Kash Patel, President Donald J. Trump’s nominee to be the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Senator Barrasso also discussed how quickly Senate Republicans are confirming President Trump’s nominees. The Republican-led Senate has now confirmed 18 of President Trump’s nominees. That is faster than the pace of confirmations under President Barack Obama in 2009 and President Joe Biden in 2021.
Click HERE to watch Senator Barrasso’s remarks.
Sen. Barrasso’s remarks as prepared:
“President Trump’s cabinet picks are strong. Senate Republicans are confirming them quickly.
“By the end of today, we will have confirmed 18 of President Trump’s nominees. These nominees are bold and well-qualified.
“That is more nominees than President Obama had in 2009. It is more than President Biden had in 2021. More than twice as many.
“Americans voted for a bold, new direction in Washington. Senate Republicans are delivering it.
“Yesterday, the Senate confirmed Howard Lutnick to be the Secretary of Commerce. He will kickstart the Golden Age of American Manufacturing.
“The Senate is also on track to confirm Kelly Loeffler to be the Administrator of the Small Business Administration. Kelly is our former colleague in the Senate. She will be a voice for Main Street America.
“The Senate will soon vote on the confirmation of Kash Patel. Mr. Patel is the nominee to be the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“The United States is seeing increased threats from terrorism.
“The previous FBI Director told the Senate one year ago, ‘I see blinking lights everywhere.’
“On New Year’s Day, 14 Americans were killed in a terrorist attack in New Orleans, Louisiana.
“That is why the Senate must confirm Mr. Patel with speed and urgency.
“Once confirmed, Mr. Patel will begin working to restore trust in one of America’s premier law enforcement agencies.
“Today, regrettably, only 2 in 5 Americans say they hold a favorable view of the FBI. This must change.
“Kash Patel will refocus the FBI on its core mission of fighting crime. He will reshape the Bureau so it is no longer a tool for political attacks. He will rededicate the Bureau to keeping Americans safe.
“This is a uniquely qualified nominee.
“Mr. Patel began his career as a public defender in Florida. He defended the constitutional rights of some of the most dangerous people in the country.
“He later joined the Obama Department of Justice as a counterterrorism prosecutor. He investigated and prosecuted cases that protected our country from the most serious threats.
“He received several awards for excellence for bringing terrorists to justice.
“Mr. Patel saw the power of the FBI to keep Americans safe.
“He also saw how the power of the FBI could be abused.
“In Congress, Mr. Patel lead the investigation that exposed that the FBI was spying unlawfully on President Trump’s 2016 campaign.
“Special Counsel John Durham’s investigation later backed up Mr. Patel’s side of the story. Durham found, ‘The FBI failed to uphold their mission of strict fidelity to the law.’
“This abuse of power was a breach of Americans’ trust in the FBI.
“Kash Patel will restore trust by returning the FBI to its core mission of investigating and fighting crime.
“At his confirmation hearing, he said he will work to cut in half the number of rapes, drug overdoses, and homicides in our country.
“This is something that every law-abiding American should welcome.
“For Democrats, however, this is apparently unacceptable. They claim Mr. Patel wants to weaponize government. That is blatantly false.
“It was Democrats who turned the FBI into a political attack dog against their political opponents.
“The FBI pressured social media companies to censor the Hunter Biden Laptop story.
“It partnered with Joe Biden’s Department of Justice in the targeting of concerned parents who protested woke school board meetings.
“It targeted Catholics as domestic terrorists and spied on them at church.
“It put politics and personal gain over service to the country.
“Mr. Patel will end the weaponization and restore transparency.
“He believes that crime is bad, that two tiers of justice is unacceptable, and that equal justice under the law is good.
“To Democrats, that’s taboo. To the rest of the country, it’s common sense.
“Americans want the FBI to fight crime. Kash Patel is the man to do it.
“If you want to defend our constitutional rights, confirm Kash Patel.
“If you want justice and accountability, confirm Kash Patel. If you want to keep our communities safe, confirm Kash Patel.
“Mr. Patel is a man of integrity and fidelity to the rule of law. I look forward to confirming him.”
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