FBI Director Sues The Atlantic Over Excessive Drinking Claims

FBI Director Kash Patel filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic on Monday, alleging the magazine published false and harmful claims about his personal behavior. The outlet’s allegations include excessive drinking and erratic conduct in Las Vegas, where Patel lives.

Patel Sues The Atlantic

Patel’s 19-page lawsuit was filed in the US District Court in Washington and also lists the article’s author, Sarah Fitzpatrick, as a defendant. According to the filing, the lawsuit aims to hold the defendants “accountable for a sweeping, malicious, and defamatory hit piece.”

Patel’s lawsuit identifies 17 statements from the article that he claims are among the many defamatory assertions made about him. These include allegations that he “is known to drink to the point of obvious intoxication, often at the private club Ned’s in Washington, D.C., and that he “drinks heavily at the Poodle Room in Las Vegas.” The Poodle Room is a members-only social club atop the Fontainebleau Las Vegas hotel, where he frequently spends parts of his weekends, according to the Atlantic article.

In a statement released through his attorneys at the Binnall Law Group, Patel said that The Atlantic’s story was false. He added that the publication had been provided with accurate information before publication, but chose to report false claims anyway. Patel also stated that he took the role to protect the American people and that the FBI has achieved what he described as the most significant reduction in crime in US history. He also asserted that negative media coverage would neither undermine nor halt the agency’s mission.

The lawsuit states that Director Patel does not drink excessively at those establishments or anywhere else, and that his behavior has never been a concern within the government. It also seeks to hold the defendants accountable for what it describes as a “sweeping, malicious, and defamatory hit piece.”

The Atlantic Won’t Back Down

The Atlantic has stated that it stands behind Fitzpatrick and her reporting and intends to adamantly defend against what it calls a “meritless lawsuit.” The news outlet has also not disclosed its sources, pointing to standard journalistic practice when dealing with sensitive internal information.

Meanwhile, Fitzpatrick said she spoke with more than two dozen individuals and allowed them to remain anonymous to discuss sensitive information and private conversations. However, Patel’s lawsuit still claims that the defendants could not evade responsibility for what they wrote by “hiding behind sham sources.”

In other FBI-related news, the bureau is asking the public to help with the identification of the suspects who shot rapper Offset recently in front of the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.