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Why Kash Patel broadcast his alleged drinking issues to the world, despite denials, by suing the Atlantic
Kash Patel’s lawsuit against the Atlantic has already backfired, big time.
Had the FBI director just put out a statement denouncing the magazine’s piece on him, the controversy would have vanished in two days.
But by filing the $250-million suit against what he calls a “defamatory hit piece,” he turned it into a top story on cable news, especially MS NOW, with constant coverage all day Monday, most of it unfavorable.
In other words, Patel shined a white-hot spotlight on accusations of excessive drinking and disappearances to a vastly larger audience than would have heard about them.
FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL FILES $250 MILLION LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATLANTIC OVER ‘DEFAMATORY HIT PIECE’
“We will vigorously defend the Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit,” a magazine spokeswoman said.
While Patel is free to sue anyone he wants, there are two main reasons this is a seriously bad idea.
As a public figure, he would have to prove that the Atlantic acted with malice – that is, either knowingly publishing something false, or showing reckless disregard for whether or not it’s true. The Atlantic is a liberal magazine, but has serious reporting chops.
KASH PATEL DOUBLES DOWN ON LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATLANTIC, SLAMS OUTLET AS ‘FAKE NEWS MAFIA’
Beyond that, Patel would open himself up to discovery, meaning the defendants could have access to all kinds of emails, texts and documents, some of which surely be unflattering. He could be deposed under oath. He would have the same rights.
The malice question for public figures has been the legal standard since a 1964 Supreme Court ruling. Now I suppose this conservative court could overturn that. But I don’t think this lawsuit will even make it to trial.
The Atlantic reporter, Sarah Fitzpatrick, pointed to “more than two dozen people I interviewed about Patel’s conduct, including current and former FBI officials, staff at law-enforcement and intelligence agencies, hospitality-industry workers, members of Congress, political operatives, lobbyists, and former advisers,” all on an anonymous basis.
Patel’s suit says that despite his denials, he was given just two hours to respond to the magazine’s list of questions.
He provided a statement, which the article included, and the denials were repeated by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said “Director Patel remains a critical player on the administration’s law and order team.”
In the article, Patel is described as having a “freak-out” when he couldn’t sign on to the internal computer system, telling staff members he had been fired. It turned out to be a glitch.
FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL VOWS TO TAKE THE ATLANTIC TO COURT OVER ‘DEFAMATORY’ REPORT
Among the allegations in the Fitzpatrick piece:
“Several officials told me that Patel’s drinking has been a recurring source of concern across the government. They said that he is known to drink to the point of obvious intoxication…Early in his tenure, meetings and briefings had to be rescheduled for later in the day as a result of his alcohol-fueled nights, six current and former officials and others familiar with Patel’s schedule told me.
“On multiple occasions in the past year, members of his security detail had difficulty waking Patel because he was seemingly intoxicated, according to information supplied to Justice Department and White House officials.”
The Atlantic described Patel’s drinking as “no secret. While on official travel to Italy in February, he was filmed chugging beer with the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team following their gold-medal victory. The incident prompted the president—who does not drink and whose brother died following a long struggle with alcoholism—to call the FBI director to convey his unhappiness, according to two officials familiar with the call.”
What’s more, the piece says, “Patel has led a purge of people who he believes are anti-Trump ‘conspirators’ or ‘enemies’ within the FBI. This has included firing people, opening internal investigations, and pressuring agents to quit when they pushed back—or were perceived to have pushed back—against Patel’s demands or questioned their legality.”
Patel, a onetime congressional aide, is a lawyer and ontime public defender who held various posts during Trump’s first term, and in 2022 became a director of the Trump Media & Technology Group.
In his lawsuit, the FBI chief said the article is “replete with false and obviously fabricated allegations designed to destroy Director Patel’s reputation and drive him from office…Director Patel does not drink to excess.”
HOW DONALD TRUMP TRIED TO COURT THE ATLANTIC – AND WHY THE LIBERAL MAGAZINE LANDED AN INTERVIEW
Under Editor Jeffrey Goldberg, the Atlantic won its first Pulitzer Prize and three straight National Magazine Awards for general excellence. Adweek named him Editor of the Year and last year he won the John Chancellor Award for Excellence in Journalism.
It was Goldberg, you’ll recall, who was accidentally copied on a Signal chat in which War Secretary Pete Hegseth shared classified war information. But he cooperated with the administration on what could fairly be published.
Although Trump attacked Goldberg last year as a “sleazebag,” he later invited him and two reporters to an Oval Office interview.
The president, who was trying to get a favorable cover story, had posted that he was meeting with Goldberg “of all people.”
“It was “my way of explaining to people that you’re up here, because most people would say, ‘Why are you doing that?’ I’m doing that because there is a certain respect,” he told Goldberg.
The president, of course, has sued numerous news organizations, winning settlements of at least $16 million apiece from CBS and ABC.
In that vein, Patel’s lawsuit may not necessarily be about winning.
The FBI director may simply be going to court as a way of forcing the magazine to hire lawyers and as part of the Trump campaign to intimidate the media and perhaps soften or sink highly critical stories. (And yet the president talks to journalists virtually every day, increasingly takes their calls, and is going to his first White House Correspondents Dinner.)
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The Atlantic is owned by a company founded by Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs’ widow, who is the lead investor and chair of the magazine. She has spent about $5 billion, roughly half her inherited fortune, on such matters as environmental and social justice causes. Deep pockets don’t seem to be a problem.
Kash Patel has broadcast serious questions about his conduct, even as he denies them, by going the lawsuit route. All he’s accomplished so far is putting the allegations on a huge national stage.
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Mississippi middle schoolers stop runaway bus after driver loses consciousness from asthma attack
A group of Mississippi middle school students jumped into action this week to stop a school bus after the driver lost consciousness on a highway, preventing a potential crash.
About 40 students from Hancock Middle School were on board when their driver, Leah Taylor, 46, suffered an asthma attack shortly after leaving campus, according to The Associated Press.
Taylor attempted to grab her medication but passed out before she could reach it.
Without hesitation, the students sprang into action to keep the bus from crashing.
Sixth grader Jackson Casnave, 12, who was sitting behind the driver, noticed the bus begin to swerve. He rushed forward to grab the wheel and called for help.
“I didn’t have time to process my emotions,” Casnave said. “I just wanted to make sure that nobody got hurt.”
Darrius Clark, who is also 12, then hit the brakes, and the students steered the bus to a median and brought it to a stop.
Clark’s sister, Kayleigh, 13, called 911, later saying she struggled to hear the operator over the screams from classmates.
“I was scared, but also I had to help,” Kayleigh said.
Eighth grader Destiny Cornelius, 15, saw the driver holding a nebulizer and helped administer the medication, while 13-year-old McKenzy Finch assisted.
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Finch also noticed the driver’s phone ringing and alerted the district’s transportation team about what had happened.
Taylor, who has since made a full recovery, praised the students for their actions.
“I’m grateful for my students,” Taylor said. “They’re the ones that saved my life and everybody else’s on that bus.”
The students were honored at a school pep rally Friday and are set to receive a celebratory lunch next week, The AP reported.
“What they did took courage,” the school’s principal, Dr. Melissa Saucier, said. “They didn’t wait for somebody to step in, they stepped up themselves, and that says a lot about their character.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A shooting near President Donald Trump and several Cabinet members Saturday night is putting a spotlight on the Secret Service’s funding shortfall amid an ongoing standoff in Congress.
A gunman opened fire outside the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C., where celebrities, members of the press and administration officials had gathered, prompting a swift security response. The suspect is in custody and has not been identified. One Secret Service agent was reportedly shot in their protective vest but is uninjured.
The incident unfolded near a security screening area, prompting a rapid response from Secret Service agents and law enforcement.
The shooting comes amid a more than 60-day funding stalemate in Congress over the Department of Homeland Security — a lapse driven by Democrats blocking funding bills and rejecting multiple GOP-backed proposals to reopen the department.
TRUMP RUSHED AWAY FROM WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS’ DINNER AS SHOTS FIRED
The funding standoff centers on disputes over immigration enforcement policy and has raised concerns about resources for agencies including the Secret Service, FEMA and the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting the president, vice president, their families and other senior U.S. officials, along with visiting heads of state, has faced growing demands in recent years.
The incident adds to a growing list of threats against Trump, including two confirmed assassination attempts and a recent incident involving an armed intruder at Mar-a-Lago.
DHS SHUTDOWN LOOMS OVER MAR-A-LAGO SHOOTING AS SECRET SERVICE AGENTS NEUTRALIZE ARMED SUSPECT
Senate Democrats declined to fund DHS through regular appropriations earlier this year following a deadly January incident involving immigration officers, triggering a funding lapse that has now stretched beyond 60 days. Negotiations remain stalled. Democrats are seeking changes to DHS operations, while Republicans are relying on alternative funding to continue enforcement.
Republicans are also considering funding the department for the remainder of Trump’s term through budget reconciliation, the same process used for immigration funding last year.
The shooting also comes as the Secret Service faces increasing pressure during a high-threat election cycle.
Last week, Secret Service Director Sean Curran warned lawmakers the agency is not adequately staffed to handle the demands of the upcoming FIFA World Cup, the 2028 Olympics and the 2028 presidential cycle, underscoring mounting concerns about staffing and resources.
As more details emerge from the investigation into this latest shooting, questions continue to mount over whether the Secret Service has the resources needed to handle an increasingly complex threat environment.
President Donald Trump gave rare praise to the press in the aftermath of shots fired at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner Saturday night that led to the evening’s rescheduling.
“This was an event dedicated to freedom of speech that was supposed to bring together members of both parties with members of the press, and in a certain way it did, because the fact that they just unified,” Trump said at a White House press briefing. “I saw a room that was just totally unified. It was, in one way, very beautiful, a very beautiful thing to see.”
Trump’s comments came after he confirmed that the dinner would be canceled in accordance with security protocol despite how he “fought like hell” to have it continue. He reiterated his intention to have the event rescheduled within the next month.
An assailant rushed security at the Washington Hilton Saturday night, shooting a Secret Service officer, who was hit in his bulletproof vest and survived. The suspect was apprehended and has been charged with multiple felonies. The gunfire led to Trump and the Cabinet at the dinner being evacuated, and the dinner will be rescheduled.
WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS’ ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT ANNOUNCES EVENT BEING RESCHEDULED AFTER SHOOTING
Adding to the strangeness of the scene at the White House, Trump and many of the White House figures and reporters in the room were still wearing tuxedos and dresses after coming from the black tie dinner.
“I think it’s very important that I say, though, and I told the representatives of the evening they did such a beautiful job. It was such a beautiful evening. And again, they’re talking about free speech in our Constitution. That’s what it’s all about, not just White House correspondents. It was really based on free speech in our Constitution. But I said very importantly that we’ll do it again within the next 30 days. And we’ll make it bigger and better and even nicer. So I just want to thank everybody that was involved. I also want to thank the press, the media. You’ve been very responsible in your coverage. I will say I’ve been seeing what’s been out, and you’ve been very responsible,” Trump said.
Trump also took questions from members of the press. The first was from White House Correspondents’ Association president Weijia Jiang, where he took the opportunity to compliment the CBS correspondent for the evening.
TRUMP, FIRST LADY EVACUATED FROM WH CORRESPONDENTS’ DINNER AFTER GUNSHOTS HEARD
“I just want to say you did a fantastic job. What a beautiful evening. And we’re going to reschedule. And after that, it’s very tough for her to ask a killer question, but you have done a fantastic job,” Trump said.
Jiang asked Trump his thoughts in the moment as the chaos unfolded, given his experience with assassination attempts. Trump said it was always a shocking event, no matter when it happened.
Trump also shared an image of the suspect being arrested from his Truth Social account.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE
Trump, first lady Melania Trump and the rest of the president’s Cabinet were rushed from the head table after shots rang out. The site of the Washington Hilton was also the location of the assassination attempt against President Ronald Reagan in 1981.
Trump announced last month that he accepted the invitation to attend this year’s dinner, explaining that the country’s 250th anniversary influenced his decision.
Trump’s attendance marked the first time he had been present at the event as president in either term. Trump previously attended the dinner as a private citizen in 2011, when he was famously roasted by then-President Barack Obama.
Trump faced two assassination attempts in 2024, including one in Pennsylvania when an assailant’s bullet grazed his ear.
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