Kash Patel’s press conference on fraud charges against the Southern Poverty Law Center was derailed by a reporter’s question about his alleged “erratic” behavior detailed in a bombshell Atlantic report.
Specifically, the FBI director found himself in a tense exchange with one Washington, D.C. reporter after he was grilled about an alleged meltdown he had over being locked out of his computer.
“Can you explain the computer login issue? Your lawsuit contends that you were not able to log into the system,” a reporter off-camera at the press conference asked Patel. “What did you think after you were unable to log into the system?”
In response, Patel tried to survey the room to see how many believed The Atlantic’s report, prompting the journalist to double down on his question and ask: “Did you communicate with anyone that you thought you were fired after you you were unable to log into [the system]?”
“The problem with you — don’t cut me off,” Patel snapped. “You asked a question.”
While the reporter defended that they asked a “straightforward question,” the Trump loyalist sounded off, “The problem with you and your baseless reporting is that it is an absolute lie. It was never said. It never happened. And I will serve in this administration as long as the president and the attorney general want me to do so. And every time you guys report false lies, every time you guys raise baseless questions, when we are here to talk about the Southern Poverty Law Center’s $3 million decade-long scheme to fraudulently fleece Americans, you are off topic.”
As the reporter once again voiced that he asked a “simple” and “straightforward” question, Patel accused the press of “lying” about him.
“I’ve answered your question” Patel noted. “It’s simply as follows: I was never locked out of my systems.”
However, the reporter refused to back down, hitting back with, “Your lawsuit states the opposite. The lawsuit that you filed says that directly.”
At this point in the heated exchange, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche jumped in and called on the reporter to cool it with his questions.
“Man, stop. You’re being extraordinarily rude,” he said. “And I know maybe that’s part of your profession, but please just stop.” Watch the full exchange below.
Patel sued The Atlantic on Monday for $250 million over their recent report, in which he was described as “erratic, suspicious of others, and prone to jumping to conclusions before he has necessary evidence,” per journalist Sarah Fitzpatrick’s “two dozen” sources.
While Patel slammed the piece as “fake news” and “false reporting,” Fitzpatrick defended on MS NOW Friday: “I am a very careful, very diligent, award-winning investigative reporter with a history of award-winning work across multiple organizations. I stand by every word of this reporting. We have excellent attorneys.”
