Full story
Bourbon Gifts in Focus
FBI Director Kash Patel is at the center of a controversy after The Atlantic reported that he travels with “personalized branded bourbon” and hands out bottles bearing his name and FBI branding.
“personalized branded bourbon”
The Atlantic’s reporting says the bottles are imprinted with the Kentucky distillery Woodford Reserve and engraved with the phrase “Kash Patel FBI Director,” with an FBI shield and the stylization “Ka$h.”
The FBI did not dispute that Patel gives out bottles of whiskey inscribed with his name, but a spokesperson told The Guardian that “the bottles in question are part of a common practice in the FBI that started well over a decade ago.”
The Atlantic also reported that Patel and his team transported the whiskey using a DOJ plane, including when he went to Milan during the Olympics in February, and that one bottle was left behind in a locker room on that trip.
FBI Pushes Back, Critics
Ben Williamson, the FBI’s assistant director, said in a statement to the Guardian that “The Atlantic’s premise is false and misleading,” adding that Patel “followed all applicable ethical guidelines” and pays for any personal gift himself.
The Guardian reported that eight individuals interviewed by The Atlantic, including current and former FBI and Department of Justice officials, said Patel has given out customized whiskey bottles to FBI personnel and civilians he has met through his work.
A senior FBI source told the Guardian that “Director Patel has never consumed the alcohol,” while the Atlantic reported that Patel defended himself after being filmed drinking beer with the gold-medal-winning U.S. men’s hockey team.
The Atlantic also described the FBI’s zero-tolerance approach to unauthorized use of alcohol on the job and for misuse while off duty, and said current and former FBI employees told it Patel’s gifts of personalized bourbon were “unheard-of.”
Legal Fight and Leak Inquiry
Patel has sued The Atlantic and its author Sarah Fitzpatrick, with the Guardian reporting that the lawsuit seeks $250m in damages after the magazine described Patel as travelling with a stock of “personalized branded bourbon.”
“This is completely false. No such investigation like this exists”
The Atlantic reported that Patel denied the allegations and filed a defamation suit, while the FBI spokesperson portrayed the gifts as routine within the FBI and the broader government and declined to clarify which ethical rules Patel was following.
Separately, MS NOW reported that the FBI opened what it described as a highly unusual criminal leak inquiry into Sarah Fitzpatrick, saying it focuses on her receipt and publication of information about Patel’s alleged drinking habits and conduct rather than disclosure of classified information.
MS NOW also quoted FBI spokesperson Ben Williamson saying: “This is completely false. No such investigation like this exists and the reporter you mention is not being investigated at all,” while Jeffrey Goldberg said: “If true, this would be an outrageous, illegal, and dangerous attack on the free press and the First Amendment.”
