Kash Patel fires a dozen FBI agents who investigated Trump

On February 25–26, 2026, FBI Director Kash Patel fired at least 10 to 12 agents, analysts, and supervisors who had worked on Jack Smith's classified documents investigation into Trump. The firings followed a Reuters report that the FBI had subpoenaed Patel's and Wiles's phone records during the 2022–2023 probe, before either held their current positions.

Patel said the subpoenas were buried in prohibited case files 'designed to evade all oversight' and called their existence 'outrageous and deeply alarming.' He launched an internal investigation into the agents who conducted the probe — in effect, the FBI investigating its own investigation of the FBI director.

The classified documents case against Trump was dismissed in July 2024 by Judge Aileen Cannon, who ruled that Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed as special counsel. The underlying allegations — that Trump retained hundreds of classified records at Mar-a-Lago after leaving office — were never adjudicated on the merits.

The FBI Agents Association, which represents current and former agents, condemned the firings in a public statement, calling them unlawful terminations that violated employees' due processDue ProcessThe fundamental constitutional requirement that government follow fair procedures and apply laws reasonably to protect life, liberty, and property.Key ConceptDue ProcessThe fundamental constitutional requirement that government follow fair procedures and apply laws reasonably to protect life, liberty, and property.Open conceptBookmark rights. The association said the firings 'weaken the Bureau by stripping away critical expertise' and jeopardize its ability to recruit.

In September 2025, three former FBI officials — Brian Driscoll, Steven Jensen, and Spencer Evans — filed a lawsuit against Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, alleging wrongful termination. The suit claimed Patel privately acknowledged the firings were retaliatory, potentially illegal, and in violation of FBI protocols that protect agents from political reprisal.

Patel's broader overhaul of the FBI includes disbanding the bureau's public corruption squad (CR15) in May 2025, reassigning field offices to report directly to branch directors rather than the deputy director, and proposing to shift his operations to Nevada and the West Coast. He also proposed altering the FBI's physical fitness test and partnering with the UFC.

In February 2026, Patel faced separate criticism for traveling to the Winter Olympics in Italy on a government jet, where videos showed him in the U.S. men's hockey team's locker room after their gold medal win. Sen. Richard Durbin provided whistleblower disclosures to the Senate Judiciary Committee alleging excessive personal use of FBI aircraft.

During his January 2025 confirmation hearings, Patel told senators that 'all FBI employees will be protected against political retribution.' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the firings reflected Trump's 'law and order agenda' and that he had full confidence in Patel.