FBI Director supports White House budget cuts after pushing for $1B more

FBI Director Kash Patel recently revealed that he supports White House calls to cut the bureau’s funding. This came a day after he told lawmakers he wanted $1 billion more than the administration had requested.

According to Patel’s argument, they would accept this budget as is and modify it to meet the operational requirements of the FBI. Patel added that he was asking for more funding because, as FBI director, he could do more with it.

Lawmakers press FBI for clarity as budget cuts threaten national security and staffing levels

A day earlier, speaking to the House Appropriations Subcommittee, Patel had already alerted that proposed cuts would impede the FBI’s ability to tackle violent crime and terrorism, equating the reduced funding like it would be returning to the 2011 level. He emphasized that an $11.1 billion budget was what it would take to keep the current operations without eliminating positions.

The White House asked Congress for a cut of $163 billion in overall federal spending, with departments and programs trimmed across the board as part of its budget proposal. The FBI’s proposed reductions have prompted bipartisan concern among lawmakers who worry that budget cuts could hinder the country’s national security and law enforcement capabilities.

Furthermore, the size of the proposed cut, according to Republican U.S. Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas, “may force the FBI to eliminate vacant positions and leave positions unfilled.”

Though it mentions diversity policies, “pet projects” of the former Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration, and what it refers to as redundant intelligence operations, the budget proposal, which was made public last week, gave little information about what would be cut at the FBI.

Patel urged lawmakers to ignore Trump’s proposed FBI budget cuts

Earlier, Patel requested lawmakers to disregard Trump’s suggested budget cuts for the FBI. This all began when Patel urged appropriators to reject a proposed cut of more than $500 million in favor of an increased budget, stating that the Trump administration’s budget request would not be enough to fund the agency.

Additionally, he declared the “skinny budget” was a proposal and asserted that he was working through the appropriations process to justify why they required more than what had been proposed.

Patel’s resistance to the proposed cuts first left some scratching their heads. His comments surprised some lawmakers, including Representative Rosa DeLauro, who said she was surprised by his position. She challenged Patel in the hearing to reveal which jobs would be lost in the pared-back budget.

DeLauro asked whether a $500 million or more cut — more than 5% under the current FBI operating budget — would affect enforcement and/or national security-related functions. She prodded the FBI to define what specific positions could be lost, noting, “The agency should know what positions it’s willing to fund or cut,” given that the bureau put together the budget proposal.

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