The Atlantic Argues for Kash Patel’s Lawsuit to Be Tossed in Scorching Motion: ‘An Assault’ On the Constitution from ‘A Man Who Swore to Uphold it’

Kash Patel

The Atlantic argued for FBI Director Kash Patel’s defamation lawsuit against them to be thrown out in a scathing motion filed Monday in U.S. District Court in D.C.

Patel filed the lawsuit back in April — accusing The Atlantic and writer Sarah Fitzpatrick of defaming him in a blockbuster story in which they reported Patel had “alarmed colleagues with episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences.”

Patel’s attorneys, in the initial filing, argued The Atlantic published “a sweeping, malicious, and defamatory hit piece” against him which was complete with “obviously fabricated” allegation.

The Atlantic responded Monday with a scorching brief — arguing that Patel “brings this defamation action against The Atlantic for publishing an undeniably newsworthy article about his job performance that he finds politically inconvenient. It is an assault, by a man who swore to uphold it, on the core Constitutional value that ‘debate on public issues should be uninhibited, robust, and wide-open, and that it may well include vehement, caustic, and sometimes unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials.’”

The brief — which calls the FBI Director’s allegations “meritless” — notes that Patel has now filed five defamation lawsuits against media organizations in recent years and has yet to win one.

“By filing these suits, Director Patel sends an ominous message to the press: publishing reporting that he does not like comes at a high cost,” the brief said. “These tactics strike at the very foundation of the First Amendment, which was adopted to prevent powerful government officials—like Director Patel—from controlling the public narrative by ‘punish[ing] the dissemination of material that is embarrassing to the powers-that be.'”

In a statement, The Atlantic’s Editor in Chief Jeffrey Goldberg saidd that The Atlantic — in addition to trying to get the case thrown out — is also seeking to begin discovery.

“The Motion to Dismiss filed today by The Atlantic explains why this lawsuit is meritless and should be dismissed as a matter of law,” Goldberg said. “We are simultaneously asking the court to permit us to begin seeking factual discovery from the FBI and the Department of Justice – including documents and depositions of key individuals – that is appropriate given the allegations in this matter. If Director Patel did not want to face this process, he should not have filed this suit.

“These legal filings are consistent with the promise I made to our staff and to our readers in May: we will defend The Atlantic and its staff vigorously; we will not be intimidated by acts of politically motivated retaliation; we will continue to cover the FBI professionally, fairly, and thoroughly; and we will continue to practice journalism in the public interest.”

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