Throughout Donald Trump’s second term, the FBI has been purging those deemed insufficiently loyal to the president and his agenda, but the campaign reached new depths last month. As part of an unsubtle revenge tour, three experienced bureau officials found themselves unemployed, including Brian Driscoll, a widely respected figure among rank-and-file agents who was fired after he helped prevent a mass firing of thousands of FBI officials who worked on Jan. 6 cases.
Reporting on the chaos, MSNBC’s Ken Dilanian noted that the “purge that is ongoing is without precedent in the modern history of the bureau. It raises questions about whether the Trump administration is trying to turn the nation’s most powerful law enforcement agency into an instrument of presidential whim — exactly the thing he baselessly accused his opponent of doing.”
A month later, the problem is still getting worse. NBC News reported:
At least 15 FBI agents were fired Friday in connection with their actions during the protests that followed the death of George Floyd, a source familiar with the terminations told NBC News. The agents had been assigned to help secure federal buildings during the demonstrations, when a tense standoff developed between a large crowd of protesters and a limited number of FBI personnel. Some agents were photographed kneeling, which the source described as a tactic meant to de-escalate the conflict.
The bureau has not yet explained why taking a knee in honor of a murder victim is a fireable offense.
The FBI Agents Association, however, said in a statement that it “strongly” condemns the firings as “unlawful,” adding that the move violated “the due process rights of those who risk their lives to protect our country.”
The same statement suggested Director Kash Patel’s personnel purge is illegal.
“Leaders uphold the law — they don’t repeatedly break it. They respect due process, rather than hide from it,” the FBIAA said. “Patel’s dangerous new pattern of actions are weakening the Bureau because they eliminate valuable expertise and damage trust between leadership and the workforce, and make it harder to recruit and retain skilled agents — ultimately putting our nation at greater risk.”
In case this isn’t obvious, Patel — an unqualified conspiracy theorist, who’s spent the year struggling with questions about whether he’s up to the job — testified during his confirmation hearings that he would never do what he keeps doing.
“I have no interest, no desire and will not, if confirmed, go backwards,” the then-nominee told senators. “There will be no politicization at the FBI. There will be no retributive actions taken by any FBI, should I be confirmed as the FBI director.”
Months later, the director who had no interest in going “backwards” saw his FBI fire at least 15 agents who took a knee for George Floyd five years ago.
This post updates our related earlier coverage.
