Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday that the bureau is already “very functional” and that Democrats are reluctant to hire President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel. He said he did not believe that delaying the process would jeopardize operational safety.
In the wake of the New Year’s Day terrorist attack in New Orleans, Senate Republicans are seeking confirmation of Patel and other Trump administration officials involved in national security. On “State of the Union,” Tapper asked Democrats about their response to the pressure and emphasized that she has already expressed opposition to Patel’s nomination.
“Right now we have a very functional FBI that’s investigating New Orleans and Las Vegas and coming out and telling the public exactly what’s going on,” Klobuchar said. “So, I don’t believe that’s the case. We believe in our work — we just took an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, Jake, we are the United States. We took an oath to support and defend the Constitution, and we have a duty to advise and consent. [and] Many of his Republican colleagues in the Senate agree. ”
“That’s why we have to have Kash Patel and other candidates for these very important security jobs vetted by the FBI. We have to know their backgrounds. We need to look at their financial disclosure forms,” Klobuchar added.
Lawmakers and experts have long questioned the FBI’s leadership, and the agency has faced significant backlash following the first assassination attempt on President Trump on July 13, 2024. But just one day into the new year, the FBI has already reversed multiple policies. Claims about terrorist attack in New Orleans that killed at least 14 people and injured dozens. (Related article: ‘Americans are not safe’: ‘The Five’ guests demand ‘consequences’ after New Orleans attack, blame Fed government’s ‘failure’)
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At a press conference the day after the incident, FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Aretha Duncan told reporters that the attack was “not a terrorist incident.” But less than five minutes after Duncan’s remarks, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell confirmed to reporters that the incident was a terrorist attack.
The agency also reversed itself Thursday, saying the identified suspect, Shamsuddin Jabbar, had committed the crime alone, despite previous reports about possible accomplices. issued a statement.
Klobuchar went on to say there could be potential problems with President Trump’s nominees, adding that Democrats need to stand their ground to hold Republicans accountable.
“The president-elect has put a lot of billionaires into these jobs that can cause all sorts of conflicts,” Klobuchar continued. “We have to be able to understand that, but we also have to stand our ground and abide by our constitutional oath, while also finding common ground wherever possible. You say you want to do something, so let’s work on it.”
“But if their plan is to simply move forward and give tax cuts to a lot of billionaires, as I’ve heard, that’s what’s coming out of the Republican caucus, and they wants to move into that immediately,” Klobuchar said. “We’re going to stand our ground and hold them accountable for saying they want to help average people in this country.”
Lawmakers created a bipartisan task force to investigate security lapses in both the FBI and the Secret Service after 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate President Trump. During a Congressional hearing on the first attack, FBI Director Christopher Wray told lawmakers there were “some questions” about President Trump’s ear injury, and some in the corporate media also said the injury was “a bullet. They questioned whether the accident was caused by “debris.”
Trump suffered a second assassination attempt on September 15, 2024, at the Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach, and authorities arrested 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh. In December 2024, a bipartisan task force’s final report to lawmakers said President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI had provided “limited cooperation” to the House, and that the FBI It added that it resisted and failed to provide digital analysis.
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