FIRST ON FOX: Now-FBI Director Kash Patel worked hard to get the Senate support necessary for confirmation, studying the lawmakers, sitting for countless meetings and even enlisting the assistance of Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Ted Cruz, R-Texas, to prep for his hearing, Fox News Digital has learned.
Patel met with 61 senators in his bid to take on the role that President Donald Trump nominated him for, a transition official told Fox News Digital.
They noted this is significant for a position that is not even within the president’s Cabinet.
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“He studied what was important to the FBI and everyone in these meetings,” they said, explaining how close to home the question of who directs the bureau hits for each senator.
“You can touch and feel an FBI office in nearly every state.”
Prominent Republicans Lee and Cruz were part of “murder board” sessions to critique and question Patel before his hearing. There were roughly 10 such meetings to prepare him.
“I was happy to assist Director Patel through the confirmation process, because President Trump picked a man of great integrity and dedication to lead the FBI. America will be more free, fair, and safe with him at the Bureau,” Lee told Fox News Digital in a statement.
A source familiar said the sessions consisted of a series of round-robin questions on hot-button issues. He was asked about some of the FBI controversies of recent memory, particularly former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, who infamously exchanged anti-Trump text messages while investigating him for potential collusion with Russia.
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They also took turns grilling Patel over a group of individuals listed in his 2023 book who he considers deep-state actors. Democrats dubbed it an “enemies list,” which the then-nominee denied.
According to the transition official, the enthusiasm was palpable upon Patel’s nomination.
“There’s a cadre of senators that knew Kash before he was nominated,” they said, adding that they were excited.
He was confirmed last week by a narrow margin of 51-49. This caught his team by surprise as they actually expected both Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, to come down in favor of his nomination.
During his meeting with Collins, a source familiar told Fox News Digital that Patel referenced the fact that she is the only elected Republican from Maine in Congress and is up for re-election in 2026. The then-nominee also told her that he understood if she was in a position in which she couldn’t vote for him.
Collins’ office did not provide comment to Fox News Digital in time for publication.
Patel’s meetings with both Collins and Murkowski had been good, per the transition official.
“Kash and Lisa had many conversations and talked a lot,” they explained.
While she didn’t vote for him, the Alaska Republican did call Patel in the hours leading up to the vote, giving him a heads-up that she wasn’t going to be able to support him, a source familiar shared.
Another significant vote was that of former Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who opted to support Patel after opposing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
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Trump’s team leading Patel through the process had strategically worked on getting McConnell’s backing behind closed doors.
Before Christmas, the then-nominee had already done 40 meetings with senators. This was on purpose; they wanted to get senators talking with each other, the source said.
This early meeting blitz was specifically designed to lay the groundwork for Patel’s eventual discussions with McConnell, Murkowski and Collins, along with others who were potentially skeptical.
When McConnell’s meeting came around, it appeared the strategy worked, with the seemingly open-minded Republican asking questions about Patel’s background experience in law and national security. McConnell also seemed particularly interested in Patel’s plans to increase transparency.
Another key win for the now-FBI director was having Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., in his corner. The senator had previously hesitated on Hegseth’s confirmation, waiting until the last minute to announce his support.
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What truly sold Tillis on supporting Patel, with whom he was relatively unfamiliar, was the opinion of former South Carolina Republican congressman and current Fox News weekend host Trey Gowdy. Patel and Gowdy worked with one another when the former was a staffer for former Republican congressman Devin Nunes. The two were part of investigating the FBI’s probe into potential Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Gowdy spoke with Fox News Digital, sharing that he received calls about his experience with Patel from “maybe a dozen” senators. He said he was happy to share his opinion but urged each of them to meet with the nominee themselves rather than just take his word for it.
Tillis quickly became one of Patel’s biggest supporters, giving him advice as he met with other lawmakers.
The North Carolina Republican even introduced Patel for his hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, also creating a “K$H Bingo” game that included subjects Tillis expected to be brought up by Democrats during the hearing. The sheet included subjects such as “Deep State,” “Enemies List” and Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, among others.
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