♪ like a relentless weed, moderate to severe ulcerative colitis symptoms can keep coming back. start to break away from uc with tremfya... with rapid relief at 4 weeks. tremfya blocks a key source of inflammation. at one year, many people experienced remission... and some saw 100% visible healing of their intestinal lining. serious allergic reactions and increased risk of infections may occur. before treatment, your doctor should check you for infections and tb. tell your doctor if you have an infection, flu-like symptoms or if you need a vaccine. healing is possible with tremfya.

ask your doctor about tremfya today. ♪ >> dana: fox news alert. welcome back to our coverage on "america's newsroom," we're on top of the story of the american airlines jet that crashed with a blackhawk helicopter around 8:47 p.m. last night. early this morning, there was news that this is no longer a recovery -- rescue operation but a recovery operation. that was the tragic news we learned this morning. we're getting much more as we also understand the president of the united states is likely to speak at 11:00 a.m. from the brady briefing room from the white house. we'll hear from him. we have heard from the secretary of defense and the new secretary of transportation as well, pete hegseth and sean duffy. we want to go to lucas tomlinson with much more on what we're

learning. hi, lucas. >> good morning, dana. we just heard from newly installed secretary of defense pete hegseth that called for a 48 hour pause where the army aircraft helicopter was involved in the collision with american flights 5342. that midair collision occurring just before 9:00 p.m. at 8:48 p.m. we heard from the secretary over the potomac river behind me. right now it is not likely there are any survivors. we heard that from the d.c. fire chief earlier saying that 28 bodies have been recovered, 27 aboard the american airlines flight and one aboard the blackhawk. something else we just heard from the defense secretary saying it was an annual proficiency flight with the blackhawk crew. three aboard, three pilots and one crew chief. there has been many talk in the military circles some helicopter pilots aren't getting enough hours. not clear if that played a role

here. one thing he said these pilots had night vision goggles aboard. not clear if the pilots were wearing them. i spoke to a former marine corps cobra pilot very unlikely with this much ambient light from the city and airport that those pilots would have been wearing night vision goggles. we heard from defense secretary calling it an annual proficiency flight from the flight crew. there were 64 people aboard american airlines flight 5342, 60 passengers and four crew members, three aboard that blackhawk helicopter. we heard from d.c. fire chief who said this is no longer a search and rescue operation, now a recovery operation. 28 bodies have been pulled from the potomac. the icy potomac. the weather has warmed a little bit but arctic temperature for

weeks now. inauguration day was inside. this water is frigid with these temperatures it would not be likely anybody would have survived those temperatures. of course the reason why it is now a recovery operation. many anxious family members are waiting to hear more about the recovery efforts. but right now that's the latest from here near the banks of the potomac. >> bill: it appears you are in crystal city, correct me if i'm wrong. from your elevated position is can you see where the recovery efforts are happening with a good set bin act lars and what can you describe? >> it's happening just over my shoulder. reagan national airport right here and we can see search and rescue boats in the water. of course, with this collision happening at about 9:00 p.m. last night you have to look at tides and currents, debris is going to be shifting and floating down the potomac. that will hamper recovery

efforts in the potomac. to take everybody to the scene of what happened last night here over the potomac at 9:00 p.m. that american airlines flight 5342 was coming from wichita, kansas. members of the u.s. figure skating team on board and from the kremlin there were russian skaters on back coming back from the world championships in wichita last week. the plane was flying north up the potomac. to get to runway 33 that corresponds with the compass, that plane must bank over the bowling air force base in maryland what you see in the distance. minutes before that plane landed, that is when the collision took place. it is not clear right now why the blackhawk helicopter didn't avoid that airliner. they've been flying vfr visual flight rules. this matter remains under investigation. the u.s. army as we heard from

the defense secretary next of kin notifications are underway right now for the crew. >> bill: the governor of virginia, glenn youngkin, joins us now. good morning to you. our hearts to out to you and the residents of your state there. what can you add based on what you have learned so far? good morning. >> it's been a tragically horrific night and the notice this morning that all teams had shifted from rescue to recovery is just heart wrenching. heart wrenching for the families that i know were expecting a loved one to be home with them last night. and that is where all the focus is today. of course, we had just the most extraordinary response last night with first responders coming from all over. the coast guard was on the scene immediately and first responders from all over northern virginia and d.c. and maryland, along with federal resources. it was like something no one had

seen before here at dca. this morning the same intensity is being delivered in order to recover every lost life and reunite them with their families. i had a chance to speak with the chairwoman of the ntsb this morning. they are mobilizing their investigatory efforts and hugely important. they also are on point supporting the families. but i offered her every resource available to us on both fronts to make sure that families understand that we are praying for them and we care for them and we can understand that this is a circumstance they would have never possibly imagined. and so with that as the top focus, we'll also support them in their investigation to make sure that what was understood to be a very routine approach with both crews in contact with air traffic control and yet, of

course, something went massively wrong. and that's going to be the work that will be so important to make sure it never happens again. air travel in the united states is the safest form of travel. we have the safest air travel in the world and yet something went wrong. we have to find out what went wrong and make sure it never happens again. >> dana: could you tell us more about where the families might be gathering? what sort of resources are available to them? >> there has been a family resource center that is established by american airlines and supported by the ntsb and everybody else that has been established in bethesda, maryland. all the information around that has been disseminated. i know that families are coming in from all over today and, of course, they are being met by resources to support them in their every need. of course, they are most concerned about their loved one and that's why this recovery

effort is so important. i have had a chance to speak with the fire and rescue personnel from the district in virginia and maryland and, of course, the coast guard resources that are here and they are so committed to make sure that every lost life is recovered. families are reunited and most importantly, that these families that are suffering today, like as i said they've never dreamt they ever would get the support they need. >> dana: have you thought about the amount of air traffic that is happening in that area? >> well, it's a busy area, of course, with all of the military and commercial activity, along with the federal government's activity. it is an area that has been safe for a long time and, of course, we have other very busy areas around the nation.

but this is a topic that will be a significant part of this investigation to make sure that we understand what happened and that it never happens again. there is no confusion about the fact that something went very wrong and we have to figure out what it is and make sure it doesn't happen again. >> bill: the depth of that water is not that daunting. in some cases it's four feet, eight feet, 20 feet deep. do you have any reason to think that all the bodies will not be recovered, governor? >> we are praying that that will not be the case. my understanding is that american airlines flight 5342 inverted in the water. that it did break into multiple pieces. and so that makes the recovery efforts challenging. but having spoken to the amazing men and women that are at work

today, they are so committed to make sure that they are successful in their duties and responsibilities today to recover every single lost life. >> dana: governor, is there anything else that you would want to say to the families? i'm sure everything is happening right away. but i was touched by the mayor of wichita, kansas and one of the things she will do today is hold a prayer service at city hall for everybody to gather. she said all are welcome and no doubt that will be an important moment for that community that will be grieving for a long time to come. >> it is. i spoke with the governor of kansas last night and she, like me, was in a state of shock. the connectivity between wichita and d.c. by a flight is a lot more than just air travel. and therefore we will be grieving with these families

together. and this kind of community support, national support for families that, as i said, were introduced to news they could have never possibly imagined, this is a moment for us to pray for them, to support them, and to make sure that they understand that we are with them at this great time of terrible, terrible tragedy. >> bill: governor, thank you for spending time with us. want to bring in a former coast guard rescue swimmer. i'm sure you are listening to our coverage and reaching out to contacts of your own. where do you think we are right now? hello. >> this is a challenging crisis from a number of different levels, local, state, federal, and it is an unspeakable

tragedy. it is a difficult decision to move from a rescue operation to that of a recovery. they take a look at a number of different factors. i think it is probably appropriate at this point given the totality of the circumstances to move into the recovery phase. to all of those affected as the governor said a moment ago, some folks out there are in tremendous pain, probably the most pain they've ever experienced in their lives. my heart goes out to them their family, friends and folks involved in the mishap. >> bill: can i ask you a little bit. you were an expert swimmer with a lot of experience. what the governor said there is something we were not aware of. we were told the plane broke into three different pieces or parts, let's say. it was inverted, too. if that's the case, what sort of challenges are involved in that? >> you have to think about the

weather conditions, the tides, currents, wind direction, speed. they have a safety zone coast guard established a safety zone over that area. they will be exercising drift models to hone in on with accuracy and hitting this hard with as many resources as they can for several days. >> dana: how do the conditions of the water and those cold temperatures, it has been very, very cold there for the past two weeks. >> yeah. that's going to be a challenge for the folks that are the first responders there. they represent the best and brightest, the strongest. they are out there in terrible conditions right now trying to get that done. survivability for temperatures in 35 degree water is about an hour to hour and a half. that's for someone that is healthy with a life jacket on.

so they've got some real challenges to affect this safely and i will be pulling for them. >> bill: we all will. sir, thank you for jumping on with us and we appreciate your input there and your analysis based on what we think we know. dana, we're 13 hours into this and there is still so much more to learn. the president will speak at 11:00 a.m. eastern time, 45 minutes from now on what was already an exceedingly busy news day today. >> dana: especially in washington, d.c. you have a new secretary of defense, pete hegseth and new secretary of transportation, sean duffy. you can prepare for a lot of things and then you have to be ready for are all of the events that will happen and this is one of them happening on their first days in the job. >> bill: a lot of people watching us loss night it is quite stunning the moment that the news breaks and then it starts to unwind and expose

itself and i think that image of the collision in the dark night sky is wow. the explosion, the fireball, all of that. that's something that we don't often have an occasion to witness. but we have that in this case. you think about the families whether in wichita or washington, d.c. area. you heard what the governor said getting ready for many families to come to that scene soon. >> dana: john roberts is with us at reagan national airport with another update. the airport, is that still slated to open in 45 minutes? >> it is. i don't know if they will be able to get it fully open. we see a lot of people with luggage. unclear if they are picking it up left here or headed to flights. they do hope to have this open at 11:00. what a horrific scene people will have as they take off from this airport of the wreckage of

the two aircraft, the cr700 as well as the blackhawk helicopter in a tangled mess in the silt plain just on the east side of this airport. you can see it there sticking out of the water. they do hope to get it back open very soon. >> bill: john, you were listening to the governor a moment ago and i don't know if he was able to share more with the reporters on scene there but we were asking about a location for the families and where they would meet and where they would convene. we'll get more information on that in moments. john, stand by there live at dca. as you mentioned, dana, it is a busy news day and very busy in washington, d.c. >> dana: kash patel is the nominee for the f.b.i. he is worn in for his hearing and start his opening statement. let's listen. >> tragic accident that befell our nation last night. where we lost civilians and service members. i pray for their families, i

pray for law enforcement and military personnel and i pray for their souls and hopefully god will find them peace in the near future. i have would like to welcome my father and my mother who are sitting here today. they traveled here to get here from india. my sister is also here. she also traveled the oceans just to be with me here today. it means the world you guys are here. i wouldn't be here today without their guidance, unwavering support and relentless love. when president trump informed me of his intention to nominate me as director of the f.b.i. i was deeply honored. sitting here today i carry not only the dreams of my par interests but also the hopes of millions americans who stand for justice, fairness and rule of law. it is rooted in my family's history which has shaped my worldview. my father fled theidal

dictatorship in uganda where 300,000 men, women and children were killed based on their ethnicity because they happened to look like me. my mother is originally studied in india and my dad. they would later immigrate to new york as the senator pointed out where i was born and raised in a household of my father as seven siblings, spouses and half a dozen children. that's the only way we knew how to do things at the time in the 70s and 80s, the indian way. we would soon learn the american way. these values have shaped and been the driving force of my career in 16 years of government service. protecting the rights of the constitution is of the utmost importance to me and has been every single time i've taken that oath of office. the recent terrorist attacks in new orleans tragically claimed the lives of 14 americans and serves as a reminder our national security is at threat

both internally and externally. the f.b.i., the federal bureau of investigation and the department of justice where i served play a pivotal role in securing our freedoms and safeties for american citizens. if confirmed as the next f.b.i. director, i will remain focused on the f.b.i.'s core mission. that is to investigate fully wherever there is a constitutional factual basis to do so and to never make a prosecutorial decision that is solely the providence of the department of justice and the attorney general. for the first eight years after law school, i served as a public defender. first for miami-dade county and later for the southern district of florida. during that time i represented some pretty awful human beings charged with some pretty heinous crimes. but what i learned there was the core value that has been enshrined in me since. due process must be provided without bias to all americans

and if we cannot provide due process to the worst, then there can be no due process for anyone and our constitutional republic fails. i battled on that hill for that due process. i would later serve in the obama justice department as a terrorism prosecutor in the national security division where we successfully contributed to prosecutions of terrorist organizations like al qaeda, and others. i was honored to receive the 2017 assistant attorney general's award from loretta lynch for my work in helping the yu began dans bring people to justice for murdering 74 innocent people including an american and receive the human intelligence award for related work on that mission. my experiences at the national security division would later be followed by my experiences on the national security council as senior director for counter terrorism and deputy director of

national intelligence responsible for the creation and promulgation of the presidential daily briefing. our nation's most sensitive classified information and secrets to protect our country. my time in the white house was preceded by my time in congress as a staffer on the house intelligence committee where i spearheaded the investigation that exposed serious fisa foreign intelligence surveillance act abuses by members of the department of justice and federal bureau of investigation. that misconduct eroded the public trust in our f.b.i. the erosion of trust is all too low today. 40% of americans have trust in the f.b.i. in order to get it back there is a two-fold track, senator. one, violent crime is exploding in this country and we cannot afford them to allow it to run away. we must tackle violent crime. just in 2023 alone there were

100,000 rapes, 100,000 drug overdoses and 17,000 homicides. the priority of the f.b.i. if i'm confirmed will be to insure that our communities are protected and safeguarded and our children have parks to play in and not needles to walk over. the way we do this we let good cops be cops. we let law enforcement and provide them with the tools necessary and resources they need to get after violent crime. second way we do it on equal track is aggressive constitutional oversight from congress. the public trust can only be restored if there is full transparency. i'm committed to that full transparency. members of congress have submitted hundreds of questions that have been unanswered by the f.b.i. in recent times. that will not occur if i'm confirmed. all appropriate requests for information will be responded to expeditiously and fully. i'm committed to working alongside the dedicated men and

women of the f.b.i. three warriors of justice and i will always have their backs because they have the backs of the american people. i look forward to answering your questions and take a moment to thank my family, my friends, people who traveled here and my entire team that has made this day possible. god bless america and i look forward to your questions. >> the first round, is that right, three minutes the second round. mr. patel, i'm not going to go through all the things that you've done through your career because i said those in my opening statements but democrats on the committee say you don't

have experience. what are you most proud of from your career in public service? >> mr. chairman, i appreciate the question. it is really humbling to be afforded the opportunity to have served this country for 16 years. what i'm most proud of is my work in national security protecting the no fail mission, returning american hostages, killing high value terrorists that brought hate and destruction to our shores. i have served that mission in democratic and republican administrations and it is the one mission that we cannot fail and it is the one mission where the f.b.i. must play a critical role. >> as you well know, you and i discussed this in my office, whistleblowers are critical to rooting out waste, fraud and abuse. their courage to come forward and make legally protected disclosures about government wrongdoing benefits the country.

i think they are politically -- they are good american citizens, just want the government to do what it is supposed to do. i think they are treated by bureaucracies not just in the f.b.i. but throughout the bureaucracy like skunks at a picnic. will you protect whistleblowers from retaliation unlike former director wray and promote a culture at the f.b.i. that values whistleblowers important contributions? >> absolutely, mr. chairman. i share in your beliefs about the importance of whistleblowers. >> we've spent a lot of taxpayers' money ruining whistleblowers. will you commit to insuring that no taxpayer money will be used to identify and retaliate against whistleblowers? >> senator, if i'm confirmed it will not. >> okay. you and i have heard a lot of criticism about various

statements about january 6th. you said quote, those who broke actual laws should be prosecuted end of quote. but you have also called out the partisan nature of prosecutions and compared how the biden justice department treated january 6th defendants without -- with how they ignored many other crimes, those include crimes related to illegal immigration as well as riots that took place around the country. so explain your position on january 6th to this committee and how do you respond to critics who say that you are anti-law enforcement? >> mr. chairman, i greatly appreciate the question and the opportunity to discuss that. if anyone wants to consider me as anti-law enforcement look at my 16 years in government service. i was trying 60 jury trials in state and federal court upholding the rights of the indigent and breathing life in constitutional due process or later as a nation fall security

prosecutor where i served this country and oversatisfies. when i was a joint special operation embedded with seal team six and delta chasing down some of the most high value terrorists on this earth and successfully. i have respected law enforcement and take that oath again, god willing, to be the next director f.b.i. for january 6th i have said there can never be a tolerance for violence against law enforcement and anyone that commits an act of violence against law enforcement must be investigated, prosecuted, and imprisoned. on january 6th i said the same thing about acts against law enforcement. the capitol police who i have served with and when i was chief of staff at the department of defense rushing to the aid of the members of this committee and your colleagues to provide the national guard was my top

mission priority. not politics. and that is my love of this country to protect our laws and our way of life. it was no different. if there is any corruption i've been the first to call it out and i will continue to call out corruption in government service because it is a privilege to serve this nation. thank you, mr. chairman. >> outside of this committee and some people on this committee have accused you of promoting the queue anone movement. they've asked your future boss many questions about this. i think it's easy to see thieves attacks for what they are, guilt by association. are you a follower or promoter of that? >> no, i have publicly including interviews this this committee rejected those baseless

conspiracy theories. they must be addressed head on with the truth and i will continue to do that and i will always continue to support americans who support law enforcement, our military and want a secure border. >> over the past four years the f.b.i. and justice department have weaponized the law enforcement towards partisan ends. this has affected you personally. you along with even members of my staff were the victims of f.b.i. overreach when they secretly subpoenaed your records during the investigation into crossfire hurricane. inspector general horowitz of justice department was right to say actions like this have a quote, unquote chilling effect on whistleblowers. how do you intend to make sure this kind of misconduct never happens again? >> senator, this may be one of the scenarios that most uniquely qualifies me to take command at

the f.b.i. having been the victim of government overreach and a weaponizeed system of justice and law enforcement, i know what it feels like to have the full weight of the united states government barreling down on you. as a biden inspector general determined those activities were wholly improper and not predicated upon law and facts. i will insure if confirmed that no american is subjected to that kind of torment, to that kind of cost financially and personally and make sure no american is subjected to death threats like i was and subjected to moving their residences like i was because of government overreach, because of leaks of information about my personal status. if confirmed as f.b.i. director, mr. chairman you have my commitment no one in this country will feel that pain.

>> senator durbin. >> i woke up this morning to national public radio and they had an item on there about what has happened to those who were given blanket clemency by president trump. one of these individuals was a man named matthew hut tle. are you familiar with him? i was reminded this morning. a man found guilty of numerous crimes who one described this morning was an outrageous situation where he beat his 3-year-old child to a point where the poor kid couldn't sit down for a week. he is one of the demonstrators who came to the capitol on january 6th. he was incarcerated and charged and pled guilty to crimes that he had committed, violence against police officers. after he was released by president trump, he returned to his home state of indiana.

a few days later, he was stopped on the road, pulled a gun on a policeman, the policeman sheriff's deputy shot and killed him. this is not the only instance of a person who received president trump's clemency committing another crime. peter schwartz was mentioned this morning on the radio, 38 criminal convictions, 38. he had been sentenced to 14 years in prison. he was released because of the president's unconditional clemency given to him as well. so i guess my question is this. was president donald trump wrong to give blanket clemency to the january 6th defendants? >> thank you, ranking member. a couple of things on that. one, the power of the presidential pardon is just that. the president. >> i concede he has the authority. was he wrong to do it? >> as we discussed in our private meeting, senator, i have

always rejected any violence against law enforcement and i have including in that group specifically addressed any violence against law enforcement on january 6th. i do not agree with the commutation of any sentence of any individual who committed violence against law enforcement. >> do you think that america is safer because the 1600 people have been given an opportunity to come out of serving their sentences and live in our communities again? >> senator, i have not looked at all 1600 individual cases. i have always advocated for imprisoning those that cause harm to our law enforcement and civilian communities and i believe america is not safer because president biden's commutation of a man who murdered two f.b.i. agents, agent coalers and williams family deserve better than to have the man that point blank range fired a shotgun into their heads and murdered them released

from prison. it goes both ways. >> he is 80 years old and he was sentenced to home confinement. he have is not free as you might have suggested. >> he killed two f.b.i. agents. that's not acceptable. >> he went to prison and should have. my question to you though is do you think america is safer because president trump issued these pardons to 1600 of these criminal defendants, many of whom violently assaulted our police in the capitol? >> america will be safe when we don't have 200,000 drug overdoses in two years, america will be safe when we don't have 50 homicides in a day. i am -- >> i don't think we're safer, matthew shuttle -- huddle was sent back to indiana. i don't think we were safer with peter schwartz. i could go through a long list of individuals, some of whom are wanted in states and members of this committee. let me move to another topic if

i can. tell me about your j-six choir. what is that? >> it's not my choir. it is simply a recording i was utilized to raise funds for families in need of non-violent offenders. >> who sings on this recording? >> i don't know, senator. >> what did you have to do with it? >> simply to raise funds to assist families of non-violent offenders whose kids needed college education payment and rent needed to be paid. >> my understanding is the the performers on this j-six choir were the rioters who were in prison? >> i'm not aware of that. i didn't have anything to do with the recording. >> you weren't aware of who made the recording? >> no, senator. >> that's interesting. did you receive any money for selling copies of that music or that recording? >> absolutely not. >> okay. you do have a foundation. >> i'm proud of the kash foundation, $1.3 million we've given to families in need across

this country including police officers, putting kids in college and helping people in disaster relief areas rebuild homes and communities. >> one and 0llc. >> i believe you are referring to the llc that one of the individuals has his private business with. >> is it part of the kash foundation in any way? >> only in that one of the members of the board has that llc for his outside business. >> andrew ellis? >> yes. >> do you know how much was paid to him from your charitable work? >> yes, like any other charity we have to go out and fundraise revision something every member of this committee is familiar with and use digital marketing campaigns and paid a digital marketing company through one and 0 a quarts million dollars to raise $4,500,000 that we gave away to families in need like

when hurricanes struck florida, texas and north carolina. >> we'll go through the details of your foundation and expenditures with questions for record that the chairman has mentioned. >> i look forward to it. >> you have a chance to answer those under oath. mr. patel you frequently associated with and sometimes praised extreme figures with well documented histories of anti-semitism. racism and the like. in september of 2023 you appeared with laura loomer an event promoting your book. this one here. you shared a photo of yourself and her in which you held her book and she held yours. a few months before this event she posted on texts that the september 11th were an inside job. around that time she accused florida's first lady casey desantis of exaggerating her cancer diagnosis to gain voter

sympathy and others have criticized her extremism and described her as a crazy conspiracy theorist who regularly utters disgusting garbage. another called her really toxic. giving all this why did you associate with her? >> senator, as you can see i took a photograph with an individual who at showed up at a book event. i don't believe i'm guilty by association and i certainly don't believe that an individual who is the the first minority to serve as the deputy director of national -- is a racist and detest any conjecture to the contrary. >> are you familiar with a stu peters, does that name ring a bell? >> i'm sorry? >> are you familiar with mr. stu peters? >> not off the top of my head. >> you made eight separate appearances on his podcast. he promoted outrageous conspiracy theories and worked with a prominent neo-nazi.

ted nudgeent, the list goes on. when it comes to your association with individuals, why are so many of them in this category? >> my association, as you loosely define it, is by appearing in media over 1,000 times to take on people who were putting on conspiracy theories and devow them of their false impressions and to talk to them about the truth. that is something that i will always continue to fight for, senator. >> senator graham. >> we'll eventually talk about the f.b.i. that's the job you are up here for, right? have you ever been subject to racism as an individual? >> unfortunately, yes. >> let's get into a few of them. >> if you look at the record from january 6th where i

testified before that committee, because of my personal information being released by congress, i was subjected to a direct and significant threat on my life and i put that information in the record. i had to move. in that threat, i was called a detestable -- it's in the record. a detestable sand nigger with no right being in this country. you should go back to where you came from. you belong with your terrorist home friends. that's what was sent to me. that's just a piece of it. but that's nothing compared to what the men and women in law enforcement face every day and that's why they have my support. >> growing up were you subject to racism? >> yes, sir. >> okay. now, i think the reason you are here has a lot to do with your

work on crossfire hurricane. are you familiar with that f.b.i. operation? >> i am, senator. >> senator durbin mentioned a church report and history of abuse but he failed to mention crossfire hurricane. he failed to mention the horowitz report. wonder why? if you were waiting for these guys over here to figure that out, you will die waiting. so this is the nunes memo. you worked for him on the house side. >> yes, sir. >> david nunes. are you familiar with the memo by the foreign intelligence service act abuse in the department of justice. did you help write this meme snow >> i did as a staffer. >> this memo you dissected the abuses of crossfire hurricane, right? >> i did, senator. >> and the mueller investigation. so the crossfire hurricane

investigators two of them were strzok and paige. are you familiar with them? >> i am. >> it was opened up on july 31, 2016, and here is what strzok said. damn, this bill is momentous. this matters, the other one did, too. but that was to insure we did -- super glad to be on this voyage with you. that's to paige. paige responds a couple months later he is not ever going to be president, right? talking about trump. strzok, no, no, he won't. we'll stop him. is it fair to say the people in charge of investigating crossfire hurricane hated trump's guts? >> you don't have to take my word for it. that statement along with statements from the sources -- >> are those days over in the f.b.i. you hope? >> if they're not they will be. >> you know who carter page was? >> i do. >> you know the f.b.i. secured

warrants against him on four occasions and the information that they relied upon came from the steele dossier? >> i do. >> was it you that were able to find out the steele dossier was a bunch of crap? >> we followed the money and exposed the fraud that was there. >> and the primary sub source was danchenko, right? he was actually a russian analyst. are you aware in january he told the f.b.i. that let's see, what did he tell the f.b.i. steele had no proof to support the statements and it with as just talk. the primary sub source claimed to the f.b.i. his information came from word of mouth and hearsay, conversations he had with friends over beers and some of the information were statements he heard made in jest and told the f.b.i. this in january of 2017 and they got two more warrants after that.

>> that's creek. >> are you aware the f.b.i. had information that the steele dossier was a bunch of bullshit and nobody every told anybody at the top? or they lied about being told? >> that's correct. >> are you aware of the fact the fisa court rebuked the f.b.i. and an f.b.i. lawyer went to jail because he misled the court by manipulating an email from the c.i.a. >> i am. >> do you believe that crossfire hurricane was one of the most disgusting episodes in f.b.i. history of a corrupt investigation led by corrupt people who wanted to take donald trump down? >> yes, sir. >> do you think that's why you are in this chair today to fix that? >> i think that's a big part of it. >> that crossfire hurricane this guy wouldn't be here. and my friends on the other side, like pulling teeth,

horowitz investigation, the inspector general, labeled this fraudulent at its core. mismanaged at its core. running stop signs at every turn they went forward when they should have stopped. the durham report said it was ob viewousy politically motivated. this is not trustworthy but they plowed on. because of you and trey gowdy and others we now know about this. everybody who signed the warrant under questioning by me said if they knew then what they know now they wouldn't have signed the warrant. comey said that.

yates said that. rosen stein said that. the reason you are here is because most of the public, almost every republican believes that the f.b.i. has been used continuously in a political fashion, ignoring evidence, making up evidence, lying to get donald trump. and when it came to the hunter biden laptop they told every social media outlet in october of 2020 oh, that's russian disinformation. that was b.s., too. right before the election the f.b.i. intervened to shut reporting on the hunter laptop down as being russian misinformation according to zuckerberg. do you promise all of us those days are over at the f.b.i.? >> yes, senator, they are. >> are you proud of what you did to find all that? >> absolutely. >> do you think that's why you are here today to make sure it never happens again

>> the american people deserve just that. >> senator whitehouse. >> welcome, mr. patel. i remember january 6th, colleagues running through our halls to flee the mob. colleagues shouting rioters should be shot. us returning to our constitutional business through hallways cleared for us by automatic weapons carrying swat teams. none of you, none of us said those violent rioters should be pardoned. a republican colleague said such pardons would be hard to believe. even absurd. your former colleague jd vance said the violent rioters should not be pardoned. even jim jordan said pardons would focus on all the people who didn't commit any violence. well, trump pardoned all of them. and there is a lesson in that.

every time you think trump would never go that far, rethink that. we all seem to' gray violence against police is unacceptable. yet people who attacked capitol police officers were put back on the street. a personal trump army out there with people who have proven themselves willing to do violence on trump's call. in only ten days, some are already back committing crimes. we've also tried as a committee together to address the dangers of illicit drug sales over the internet and i assume we're all against murder for hire. trump also just pardoned a dark web operator sentenced to life in prison for trafficking illegal drugs online and accused of soliciting murders for hire. those pardons, as mr. patel has

said, are a mistake but also a signal that we are entering a strange and dangerous time. that is the context for today's hearing. warnings that the f.b.i. could become trump's enforcer. use the powers of law enforcement to stifle speech and dissent. punish political rivals of either party. hand out free passes, get out of jail free card to violent supporters are warnings we should heed. here are some warnings of this nominee's trump administration colleagues. former attorney general bill barr said this nominee has virtually no experience that would qualify him to serve as the highest level of the world's law enforcement agency end quote and we would never be able to command the respect necessary to run the day-to-day operations of the bureau. that's for the deputy position.

former c.i.a. director was reported threatening to resign rather than have this nominee serve under her. john bolton, trump's former national security advisor said i didn't think he was qualified. i was forced to hire him. trump's deputy national security advisor, the nominee's former supervisor said his ideas are ludicrous, he is absolutely unqualified for this job, he is untrustworthy. and it is an absolute disgrace to even consider an individual of this nature. that's from republican appointees who worked with him. here is what this nominee himself has said. about using his office to prosecute journalists. we will go out and find the conspirators, not just in

government, but in the media, we are going to come after you whether it's criminally or civilly. is that a correct quotation, mr. patel? >> that's a partial quotation. >> but it is correct. >> in part. >> regarding his publication of his enemy's list mr. patel proclaimed the manhunt starts tomorrow and reposted a video depicting him taking a chain saw to his political enemies. is that you, kash patel, reposting that at the top of that page? >> senator, i had nothing to do with the creation of that. >> is that you reposting it was my question. >> that's me at the top. >> you said f.b.i. agents were responsible for the violence on january 6th and i quote you here

beyond a reasonable doubt. is that what you said? >> that's completely incorrect and i appreciate the opportunity to address that. >> i will give you an opportunity in writing. this is my time now. >> have at it. >> inspector attorney general investigation found it was false and you said we should impeach judges who rule against donald trump who are in your words political terrorists. when this nominee tries to explain all this away keep one thing in mind. he testified under oath before a colorado judge who presided over a trump case in which he was a witness and the judge found and i'm quoting here, he was not a credible witness. his testimony is not only illogical but completely devoid of any evidence in the record. that's from a judge. this is a dangerous time and i

ask all my colleagues to consider whether these plain comments by this person and by his own trump administration colleagues should be given a blind eye, just overlooked, or whether, like the warnings of pardoning violent january 6th offenders, three warnings to be heeded. there is an unfathomable difference between a seeming facade being constructed around this nominee here today and what he has actually done and said in real life when left to his own devices. conduct shows character. and if you look at history, you see the danger of security

chiefs in authoritarian regimes becoming the tools of political power. the characteristics that they often show are that they are vengeful, that they are grandiose, that they are intemper at, that they're partisan and blindly loyal, and that they are servile and won't say no. i'm afraid that the history of this nominee's conduct raises those warnings. and i yield my one second back. >> before senator cornyn, you said you would like to explain something, i forget the point he made. you can do that now if you want to. >> simply this, senator.

in the collective, all of those statements are taken out of grotesque context and anyone that thinks my 16 years of service isn't how i would proceed if confirmed as f.b.i. is intentionally putting false information into the public ether and creating more public discourse. the only thing that will matter if i'm confirmed as the director of the f.b.i. is a deweaponizeed, depoll it i sized system of law enforcement completely devoted to rigorous obedience to the constitution and a singular standard of justice. >> before i call on senator cornyn, i would like to say that we've heard about the january 6th pardons. i think it's important that we remind people at the same time of some pardons by the previous administration, thomas sanders, a kidnapper who murdered a

12-year-old girl named lexis and her mother, aid ran peeler, a canadienian drug king pin convicted in the death of a boy and his mother. pelletier who has been referred to that murdered two f.b.i. agents, and even director wray at that time, former director wray said that that shouldn't have happened and judge michael conahan, who took kickbacks for wrongly sending juveniles for profit detention centers and alex saab who laundered illicit proceeds for narcotics terrorists and was a key connection between venezuela and iran, and five family members of

his own family. president biden did that, senator. >> welcome, mr. patel. do you believe america is an exceptional nation? >> the greatest nation. >> your family went through a lot to get here. >> they sure did. >> and your life story is, i think, a great example of people pursuing the american dream. do you believe what a large part of what makes america an exceptional nation is the rule of law? >> it is one of the fundamental present september that determines that. >> why is that? >> without able a.m. ca ashen of the rule of law we go back to the uganda my father fled. >> i believe the two most important institutions in america to preserve and protect and enforce the rule of law are the f.b.i. and the department of justice. and the sort of politicalization

that senator graham and others have already talked about during the crossfire hurricane investigation or project james comey at the f.b.i. and the abuse of intelligence tools like title i of section 702 are a betrayal of american values and adherence to the rule of law. and i think your biggest task is going to be, along with pam bondi at the office of the attorney general, is to restore the rule of law to the department of justice and the f.b.i. are you willing to do that? >> absolutely, senator. >> without regard to partisan affiliation or politics. >> absolutely. >> do you believe president trump as the commander-in-chief

needs access to all of the lawfully available intelligence that can be collected by the american intelligence community in order to inform him so that he can make good judgments as commander-in-chief to assure safety and security of the american people. >> having been responsible for the promulgation of that intelligence i firmly believe he and every president must have it. >> so you would not support any impractical or perhaps im material or unworkable ways to inhibit the flow of that information to president trump. >> no, i would not. >> let me just ask you, you and i talked about this a number of times and it has come up before in a number of different contexts but as i have always said i think 702 of th