FBI Director Kash Patel is vowing to take The Atlantic to court over a bombshell report published Friday evening that he says is filled with defamatory claims.

“Print it, all false, I’ll see you in court — bring your checkbook,” Patel told The Atlantic in a statement included in the report.

The story, titled, “The FBI Director is MIA,” outlined several explosive allegations, including instances of “erratic” behavior, “excessive drinking” and “unexplained absences.”

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The first claim alleged Patel had a “freak-out” over a tech issue earlier this month when attempting to log into a computer system, believing he was being fired by President Donald Trump following Attorney General Pam Bondi’s ouster and had to prep an announcement. The Atlantic cited nine unnamed sources familiar with the incident.

“But Patel, according to multiple current officials, as well as former officials who have stayed close to him, is deeply concerned that his job is in jeopardy. He has good reasons to think so — including some having to do with what witnesses described to me as bouts of excessive drinking,” The Atlantic staff writer Sarah Fitzpatrick told readers before citing past reports of rumors that Patel was also on the chopping block.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Atlantic in a statement that Patel “remains a critical player on the Administration’s law and order team.” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche also threw his support behind the FBI Director, telling Fitzpatrick, “Patel has accomplished more in 14 months than the previous administration did in four years. Anonymously sourced hit pieces do not constitute journalism.”

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“The IT-lockout episode is emblematic of Patel’s tumultuous tenure as director of the FBI: He is erratic, suspicious of others, and prone to jumping to conclusions before he has necessary evidence, according to the 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,” Fitzpatrick wrote.

“Speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information and private conversations, they described Patel’s tenure as a management failure and his personal behavior as a national-security vulnerability,” she continued.

The report alleged that Patel has a pattern of “conspicuous inebriation” and that “he is known to drink to the point of obvious intoxication,” which it said often took place at Ned’s private club in Washington, D.C. “in the presence of White House and other administration staff” and the Poodle Room in Las Vegas.

“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,” Fitzpatrick wrote. “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.”

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According to The Atlantic, a request for “breaching equipment” often used by SWAT to gain access to buildings, “was made last year because Patel had been unreachable behind locked doors, according to multiple people familiar with the request.” Unnamed sources also speculated whether Patel’s alcohol consumption played a role in his social media posts that shared inaccurate information about active law-enforcement investigations, including what he had written in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination before suspect Tyler Robinson turned himself in.

“Some of Patel’s colleagues at the FBI worry that his personal behavior has become a threat to public safety,” Fitzpatrick wrote, saying that the unnamed officials fear his ability to handle a domestic terrorist attack, one telling Fitzpatrick, “That’s what keeps me up at night.”

Jesse Binnall, an attorney representing Patel, shared a letter that was sent to The Atlantic ahead of the report being published, calling out the magazine for giving the FBI less than two hours to respond to “defamatory assertions” before its stated deadline and that most of the 19 substantive claims are “false.”

“The vast majority of the claims in the draft article rely solely on vague, unattributed sourcing such as ‘people familiar with the matter’ or ‘some have characterized.’ Any such purported sources could not possibly possess firsthand knowledge, as the allegations are categorically false,” Binnall wrote. “At least one specific claim — allegation #8 regarding the alleged breaching of equipment — has no corroborating public record whatsoever and appears to be either fabricated or drawn from a single hostile and unreliable source.”

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The attorney accused The Atlantic of having “longstanding animus toward Director Patel” and, upon Patel taking “swift legal action,” ordered the magazine to preserve all documents and communications pertaining to his client.

“They were on notice that the claims were categorically false and defamatory. They published anyway. See you in court,” Binnall posted on X.

FBI Assistant Director of Public Affairs Ben Williamson, who initially denied the various claims directly to The Atlantic, reacted “This article is a compilation of pretty much every obviously fake rumor I’ve heard the last 14 months except the Atlantic is the only one dumb enough to actually print it.”

Patel adviser Erica Knight said The Atlantic published what “every real DC reporter chased, couldn’t verify, and passed on,” which she asserted were “fabricated stories.”

“Lawsuit is being filed,” Knight wrote. 

Fitzpatrick stood by her reporting even under legal threat.

“I am a very careful, very diligent, award-winning investigative reporter with a history of award-winning work across multiple organizations,” Fitzpatrick told MS NOW’s Jen Psaki on Friday night. “I stand by every word of this reporting. We have excellent attorneys.”

Patel fired back, telling Fitzpatrick, “see you and your entire entourage of false reporting in court … But do keep at it with the fake news, actual malice standard is now what some would call a legal lay up.”

Patel also shared a screenshot of Williamson’s emailed response to Fitzpatrick, saying “Top to bottom, this is one of the most absurd things I’ve ever read.”

The Atlantic did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital‘s request for comment.

“Remember when ‘SNL’ used to be good?”

That’s a question you’ve probably asked yourself at one point or another — perhaps even now. “Saturday Night Live” has certainly gone through its ups and downs across the decades, miraculously reaching its 50th anniversary last year.

One man is truly responsible for that: the show’s creator and executive producer, Lorne Michaels.

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The 81-year-old Canadian, who has worked on a whopping 46 seasons of the long-running NBC sketch comedy show, rarely gives interviews but approaching the milestone season was talked into being the subject of a documentary by Oscar-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville (“20 Feet from Stardom,” “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”).

Neville was given unprecedented access to Michaels over a two-year period, capturing the behind-the-scenes chaos that goes into every show, seeing him dining at his go-to Italian spot in New York City, even visiting his farm and blueberry field in Maine, a secluded getaway residence a select few have been invited to. The end result is “Lorne.”

What’s remarkable about “Lorne” is how so many people who were interviewed — many of whom have worked with him for decades — don’t really know Michaels. As “SNL” alum Maya Rudolph tells Neville there’s “folklore” that people hear about him in the hallways of Studio 8H. Or Kristen Wiig, who says, “He has this man-behind-the-curtain mystique about him.” Even Tina Fey downplays her coziness with him, and she worked with him on “SNL” and “30 Rock.” Cast members of past and present laugh about how intimidating their mentor can be and his bizarre work habits like kicking off the workday at 4:30 pm since he doesn’t wake up til noon.

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“Lorne” is stacked with A-list interviewees including Adam Sandler, Conan O’Brien, Chris Rock, Lily Tomlin, Martin Short, Paul Simon, Candice Bergen, Alec Baldwin, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Bill Hader, Andy Sandberg, John Mulaney, Bowen Yang, Fred Armisen, Mike Myers and Dana Carvey. And that’s not even counting the various hosts Neville was able to catch working behind the scenes like Timothée Chalamet, Emma Stone, Shane Gillis and Jake Gyllenhaal. We even get to hear from Michaels’ longtime “fish guy.”

The documentary, narrated with humor by “SNL” alum Chris Parnell, packs a lot in 100 minutes. It benefits from a treasure trove of source material as many classic sketches are sprinkled throughout. But it doesn’t hurt to also be interviewing more than two dozen comedians and comedy writers who spend most of the time cracking jokes. It’s difficult to think of a documentary funnier than “Lorne.”

‘PROJECT HAIL MARY’ REVIEW: RYAN GOSLING AND AN ALIEN ATTEMPT TO SAVE THE PLANET IN FUN SPACE ADVENTURE

While the film puts emphasis on the good times, it also revisits the show’s rough patches. But it ultimately persevered time and time again. It reinvents itself.

At the center of this documentary is the question, “Who is Lorne Michaels?” Whether it answers the question is up for debate, but one “SNL” historian had a good theory.

“The show is an X-ray of Lorne,” he said.

Maybe he’s right. There wouldn’t be a “Saturday Night Live” without Lorne. He lives and breathes “SNL.” And the show will truly face uncharted territory once he retires. It is widely believed, even those in his orbit, that NBC will take a chainsaw to the show’s hugely bloated budget, something the network wouldn’t dare touch with Lorne around.

But judging by this film, Lorne doesn’t seem to be slowing down just yet. Conan O’Brien calls him the “ultimate show business survivor, noting, “He’s still here and 100 executives are not.”

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Whether you love or hate “SNL” in its current form, there’s no denying the show’s impact on American culture, so a glimpse of the mastermind behind it all is warranted. “Lorne” is a laugh-out-loud stroll down memory lane for anyone who appreciate Michaels’ contribution to comedy.

“Lorne” is rated R for language and a sexual reference. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes. In theaters now.

It hasn’t been the greatest week in the world for NASCAR. Sure, they’ve had a better week than Dianna Russini, but that’s a low bar. Other than her, though?

Yeah, it’s been a rough go of it for the folks in the big glass building across from Daytona International Speedway.

Of course, that’s because of two major headaches in the racing world: TV ratings, and attendance. Those two things drive folks who make a lot more money than me crazy, and both took a major hit at Bristol last weekend.

Because I’m always ahead of the trends, I already wrote about both. I told you on Monday that the grandstands at Bristol were embarrassing. They were.

I wrote on Wednesday that the TV ratings for Bristol were alarmingly bad. They were. 

And now, former NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield is officially hitting the panic button after what he saw last weekend:

Where has NASCAR jumped the shark the most?
“Check out what the NASCAR grandstands used to look like when I raced at Bristol,” Mayfield wrote in a lengthy Facebook post. “When the biggest story is how many people are staying home to watch a golf tournament in Georgia, the sport is in a coma.

“Ty Gibbs gets his first win in front of 100,000 empty seats. It looked like a COVID era race out there. If the ‘World’s Fastest Half Mile’ can’t out draw a Sunday at Augusta, then NASCAR has officially lost the south.

“Is it the car? Is it the drivers? Or has the “Colosseum” just become a graveyard? Tell me I’m wrong.”

Yikes. Just a brutal takedown from a driver who doesn’t exactly have the greatest relationship with NASCAR. That’s fair. I will admit, you have to take everything Jeremy Mayfield says with a grain of salt because bridges have certainly been burned. 

I don’t want to get into it here, but it all stems from a drug test back in 2009. You can look up the rest if you’d like.

Anyway, back to Bristol … Mayfield is 100% right in this case. The stands were half-empty. FS1 averaged fewer than 2 million viewers for the first time in the history of that channel. It was bad in the stands, and it was equally awful in living rooms across America.

For example, the grandstands certainly look … bare … when you watch this in-car camera from Kyle Busch:

Not great! 

Has NASCAR “officially lost the south,” as Mayfield said? Perhaps. I’ve long said that NASCAR abandoned its fanbase years ago. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out, though. 

They left places like Rockingham and Kentucky for Mexico and downtown Chicago. They spent all of 2020, and beyond, virtue-signaling their tails off. Nobody likes the Next Gen car. Steve Phelps was a disaster for the sport in terms of public image. 

Now, they’ve gotten better in recent years. I will admit that. The series has, somewhat, returned to Rockingham. Chicagoland is back on the schedule. The Clash at Bowman Gray is miles better than Los Angeles. Phelps is out, thankfully. The playoff format is gone. 

Again, they’ve taken steps to improve. You can’t say they’re not trying, because I just gave you 14 examples of how they are. 

But is it too late? Maybe. We’ll see. 

Jeremy Mayfield certainly has his doubts, for whatever that’s worth.