'Start the clock': Dem senator predicts Kash Patel ouster after bombshell drinking report

Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Kash Patel could be next to be ousted from his Donald Trump Cabinet post, according to a Democratic Party lawmaker.Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) took to Bluesky and suggested an exclusive from The Atlantic would be enough to see Patel removed from his post. He wrote, "Stooge Patel getting sloshed at the 'Poodle Room' in Vegas? You simply cannot make this up!! Too good. Start the clock."Former Trump administration staffer Olivia Troye, who is running for a Democratic Party House seat nomination in Virginia, added, "Remember when I warned this would happen if Kash Patel became FBI Director? I said he was unfit. He threatened to sue me. Now he is the Director—and it’s happening."Patel has exhibited erratic behavior, including unexplained absences and what witnesses described as "bouts of excessive drinking" that have alarmed FBI staff, according to Sarah Fitzpatrick's investigation in The Atlantic. Most alarming was Patel's "freak-out" when temporarily locked out of the FBI computer system due to an IT error. "He panicked, frantically calling aides and allies to announce that he had been fired by the White House, according to nine people familiar with his outreach," a source said.The ensuing chaos forced the White House to field emergency calls from Congress and FBI leadership asking who was now in charge of the nation's premier law enforcement agency."Patel, according to multiple current officials, as well as former officials who have stayed close to him, is deeply concerned that his job is in jeopardy," wrote Fitzpatrick. "He has good reasons to think so — including some having to do with what witnesses described to me as bouts of excessive drinking."The White House has reportedly already begun talks about who could replace Patel if he is let go."Speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information and private conversations, they described Patel’s tenure as a management failure and his personal behavior as a national-security vulnerability," said the report.