September 17, 2025 - 10:00am
After several days of growing scepticism, Trump allies rallied behind Kash Patel again yesterday as Senate Democrats grilled the FBI Director on Capitol Hill. “Kash Patel just NUKED Sen. Adam Schiff,” one influential X account wrote, after he told Schiff he was the “biggest fraud to ever sit in the US Senate”. Meanwhile, conservative talk show host Benny Johnson applauded him for “shut[ting] [Sen. Cory Booker] down effortlessly”. So did the FBI Director do enough to remain in MAGA’s good graces?
Questions about Patel’s fidelity to the MAGA movement have dogged him since a June appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience. He squirmed over questions related to Jeffrey Epstein, and has never fully regained the trust of many Trump supporters.
MAGA distrust escalated after the cold-blooded assassination of Charlie Kirk, a friend to Patel and many others in Trump’s orbit, due to early missteps in the investigation. Within 48 hours, Steve Bannon warned that “the base” was “not happy”, with activist Chris Rufo going further, arguing that Patel “performed terribly in the last few days”. Rufo concluded: “It’s not clear whether he has the operational expertise to investigate, infiltrate, and disrupt the violent movements — of whatever ideology — that threaten the peace in the United States.”
It’s no wonder, then, that Patel had no interest in playing defence at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, especially as he came under fire from eager Democrats such as Schiff and Booker. He even trolled Sen. Dick Durbin with a joke about Joe Biden’s autopen scandal.
Why has Trump stood by his Director? Patel, better than most, understands that the President prizes loyalty above nearly all else. He was fully aware that if he put on a show and took on the Democrats, Trump would have loved it. They have the same enemies, and Patel knows it.
The real question isn’t whether Patel is in Trump’s bad books — it’s whether he’s in trouble with Trump’s supporters. MAGA will forgive a lot if Trump signals they should, and Patel has long shown he knows how to work that base. His quick autopen quip yesterday proved he can still land points. But Kirk’s death is still raw for supporters: the longer Patel leaves questions hanging over the investigation, the greater the risk that the base turns on him.
Still, history suggests that MAGA rarely moves as a bloc without Trump’s cue. If the President decides Patel is indispensable, much of the grassroots outrage will dissipate. But if he wavers — or even hints at looking elsewhere — the FBI Director’s standing could collapse overnight. That precarious balance makes Patel’s position uniquely fragile: secure for as long as Trump’s patience holds, yet one misstep away from becoming expendable.
Join the discussion
Join like minded readers that support our journalism by becoming a paid subscriber
To join the discussion in the comments, become a paid subscriber.
Join like minded readers that support our journalism, read unlimited articles and enjoy other subscriber-only benefits.
Subscribe