Kash Patel and Sen. Van Hollen Trade Accusations at Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing

FBI Director Kash Patel and Sen. ) traded accusations of misconduct during a Senate appropriations subcommittee hearing on Tuesday. Van Hollen cited reporting from The Atlantic magazine regarding allegations of excessive drinking and unexplained absences by Patel.

Patel denied the allegations as “unequivocally, categorically false” and said he would take any tests Van Hollen was willing to take, including the alcohol dependency audit administered to active-duty military members.

Patel questioned Van Hollen’s meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a deported Salvadoran described in the hearing as a domestic abuser. “The only person that was slinging margaritas in El Salvador on the taxpayer dollar with a convicted, gang-banging rapist, was you,” Patel said. Van Hollen responded that he would take the test Patel proposed.

Patel has sued The Atlantic for $250 million over its article. The vessels’ operators have not been publicly identified by the U.S. government. No publicly released evidence has documented certain contested claims raised during the exchange. Van Hollen’s office has not commented as of the date of the hearing on additional details raised by Patel.