Dem Senator Straight Up Asks Todd Blanche ‘How Long Do You Intend to Put Up With That Kash Patel Character?’

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) flat out asked Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche how much longer he intends to “put up” with “that Kash Patel character” during a tense exchange on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

The heated moment came during Blanche’s Senate confirmation hearing, where he faced questions on everything from the Jeffrey Epstein files, the $1.776 billion anti-weaponization fund, and his relationship with President Donald Trump.

Well into his 10-minute window to interrogate Blanche, Whitehouse asked about the FBI and its operation under Director Kash Patel.

“How long do you intend to put up with that Kash Patel character?” Whitehouse asked. “Are you good with his airplane jaunts? Are you confident he’s not drinking on the job? Are you sure none of his travels are pretext for vacation activities like snorkeling, Olympics, and visiting girlfriends? Are you sure he knows what he’s doing? Do you vouch for him? Are you willing to look at whether he lied to this committee?”

Blanche fired back by knocking the line of questioning and pledging his full support of Patel.

“That’s an extraordinarily obnoxious question, Senator,” Blanche said. “And I have full faith in Director Patel and the work that he’s doing every day, and he-”

Cutting him off, Whitehouse said, “Great, and you get to own that.”

The queries came amid mounting frustration with Patel, specifically about his taxpayer-funded travel.

Last week, it was reported that he was called to the White House, forcing him to cancel a planned weekend trip to see his girlfriend, country singer Alexis Wilkins, perform in Chicago.

Earlier this week, President Donald Trump said the FBI was “wasting its time” investigating the death of Senator Lindsey Graham over the weekend, after Patel pledged in an X post to make “every necessary resource available.”

Watch above via C-SPAN3.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!