Trump mocks report claiming he fired Kash Patel: ‘Totally false, let’s take a picture’

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump rejected an MS NOW report claiming he had fired FBI Director Kash Patel. The report alleged Trump was considering Patel’s removal over questions about his use of Bureau resources.

Instead, Trump laughed off the story, publicly praised Patel, and underscored his support by taking a photo with him at the White House.

White House calls Kash Patel firing rumor 'fake news'

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt debunked an MS NOW report claiming that President Trump is considering firing Kash Patel over a negative headline.

Leavitt opened her post by saying, “This story is completely made up.” She also recalled where she was when the reports about Patel were released: “In fact, when this Fake News published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI Director Kash Patel."

Leavitt recounted her conversation with Trump about the report, saying, “I read the headline to the president and he laughed. He said: 'What? That’s totally false. Come on Kash, let’s take a picture to show them you’re doing a great job!’”

She concluded the post by saying, “Do not believe the fake news!”

Leavitt reinforced her message that the story was fabricated by posting a photo of Trump and Patel together in the Oval Office. The image shows both men smiling and giving a thumbs-up, directly contradicting the rumor’s claim of internal tension.  

Reports raise questions over Kash Patel’s conduct and leadership

MS NOW reported, citing three unnamed sources, that President Trump and his aides had grown concerned about media coverage involving Kash Patel. After Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt challenged the report on social media, an MS NOW spokesperson responded that the outlet “stands behind its reporting.”

The New York Times reported that a Bureau SWAT team provided security for Patel’s girlfriend at a National Rifle Association convention in Atlanta, and that Patel used a government jet for personal travel.

Patel visited the White House on November 25 for the president’s annual pre-Thanksgiving turkey pardon, where Trump acknowledged him and said he was “very busy doing a great job.” Patel, a former Justice Department attorney and congressional staffer, became a controversial pick to lead the FBI.

During his confirmation hearing, Sen Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, argued that Patel lacked the “experience, the temperament or the judgment” required to lead the agency.

Patel has played a central role in Trump’s hard-line approach to federal law enforcement, and his actions have stirred internal unrest within the Bureau.

A federal lawsuit filed on September 10 alleges that Patel illegally removed top FBI executives at the direction of the Trump administration as part of an effort to transform the nation’s chief law enforcement agency into a political instrument of the White House.