White House denies report Trump may remove FBI Director Patel

The White House is disputing a news report claiming President Donald Trump is weighing the removal of FBI Director Kash Patel, according to a statement from Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

“This story is completely made up,” Leavitt said in a social media post on Tuesday. “In fact, when this Fake News published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI Director Kash Patel.”

“I read the headline to the President and he laughed,” Leavitt claimed. “He said: “What? That’s totally false. Come on Kash, let’s take a picture to show them you’re doing a great job!”

According to MS NOW, the outlet formerly known as MSNBC, several unnamed sources claimed Trump and senior aides were frustrated by recent negative headlines involving Patel and were considering replacing him with senior FBI official Andrew Bailey.

The outlet also reported that Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche had expressed concerns about Patel’s social-media activity and other issues related to his conduct.

Patel, who attended the White House turkey pardoning ceremony earlier on Tuesday, was publicly praised by Trump.