FBI director Kash Patel fires back at critics of flight to State College on government jet

FBI director Kash Patel is firing back at “internet anarchists and the fake news” for questioning his use of a government jet to see his singer girlfriend perform at a wrestling event at Penn State.

“Let me be clear: we will not be distracted by baseless rumors or the noise from uninformed internet anarchists and the fake news,” Patel said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “I’ve always said — criticize me all you want. But going after the people doing great work, my personal life, or those around me is a total disgrace.”

Patel then defended his girlfriend, country singer Alexis Wilkins, claiming people are attacking her over the incident even though a reader note attached to his post explained that questions did not concern her but his use of government jets for personal trips.

“The disgustingly baseless attacks against Alexis — a true patriot and the woman I’m proud to call my partner in life — are beyond pathetic. She is a rock-solid conservative and a country music sensation who has done more for this nation than most will in ten lifetimes,” he wrote.

“I’m so blessed she’s in my life. Attacking her isn’t just wrong — it’s cowardly and jeopardizes our safety,” Patel said. “My love of family will always be my cornerstone, and you will never tear that down or keep me from them.”

As first reported by TheBulwark.com, a former FBI agent who has frequently chided Patel tracked the jet, which is registered to the FBI, from an airport in Virginia to State College on Oct. 25 while the government remains shutdown.

Wilkins was performing at Real American Freestyle, a wrestling league founded by the late Hulk Hogan. The Bulwark reported that Wilkins posted a photo on X, formerly Twitter, showing her and Patel at the event.

The Independent newspaper reported that the jet later flew from State College to Nashville, where Wilkins lives.

Bloomberg Law reported that Patel was so irate over media coverage of his trip that he fired the 27-year FBI employee who oversaw the critical incident response unit and the bureau’s fleet of jets although the flight information was publicly available.

Steven Palmer was the third head of the unit fired under Patel.

Patel is required to use government transportation as the FBI director. He is also required to reimburse the government for personal trips at the commercial rate, which is far below the actual costs to taxpayers.

The Guardian reported that FBI spokesman Ben Williamson said Patel had “significantly limited” personal trips compared to previous FBI directors.

The Bulwark noted that before he became FBI director, Patel was critical of previous director Chris Wray for using government planes for personal use.

CBS News reported in May that Patel urged the Biden administration to “ground Chris Wray’s private jet that he pays for with taxpayer dollars to hop around the country.”

Also, CBS reported that Patel has come under scrutiny by Senate Democrats for using government jets for private trips to hockey games, his home in Las Vegas and Nashville.