FBI Director Kash Patel is threatening to sue The Atlantic after the magazine published allegations that he engaged in “conspicuous inebriation” and unexplained absences, claims his team calls categorically false and defamatory.
“See you and your entire entourage of false reporting in court… But do keep at it with the fake news, actual malice standard is now what some would call a legal lay up.”
The tweet included an email from FBI Assistant Director for Public Affairs Ben Williamson responding to the outlet’s inquiry:
“Top to bottom, this is one of the most absurd things I’ve ever read. Completely false at a nearly 100% clip. And with a two hour deadline.”
His attorney, Jesse Binnall, said the legal warning went out before publication. In a letter sent to Fitzpatrick on April 17, the same day the outlet planned to publish, Binnall laid out the specific claims Patel disputes and warned of swift legal action if they ran.
The Atlantic had sent the FBI’s Office of Public Affairs a request for comment at 2:09 p.m. with a 4:00 p.m. deadline, less than two hours to respond to 19 allegations. Binnall’s letter called that window itself “strong evidence of reckless disregard for the truth.”
The letter identifies seven specific claims it deems defamatory, including:
“Claim #5 — Director drinks “to the point of apparent intoxication” at Ned’s (DC) and The Poodle Room (Las Vegas) “in the presence of White House and other administration staff”;Claim #7 — “on multiple occasions in the past year, members of his security detail had difficulty waking Patel because he was seemingly intoxicated and this information was supplied to DOJ and White House officials”;Claim #8 — “breaching equipment” was requested at HQ because Patel had been “unresponsive behind locked doors” and there were concerns about reaching him “in an emergency”;Claim #9 — Director Patel’s conduct is a “threat to public safety” including in the event of a domestic terrorist attack;Claim #11 — Director Patel is “dragging his feet on terror cases,” delaying/refusing FISA warrants;Claim #14 — alcohol played a role in Patel’s public statements about active investigations “including the murder of Charlie Kirk”;Claim #19 — Director Patel had security detail shut down the FBI Association Store so he could shop alone and expressed frustration that merchandise “wasn’t intimidating enough.”
Binnall called the sourcing “vague” and “unattributed,” built on phrases like “people familiar with the matter,” and said the breaching equipment claim “has no corroborating public record whatsoever and appears to be either fabricated or drawn from a single hostile and unreliable source.”
“They were on notice that the claims were categorically false and defamatory. They published anyway. See you in court.”
FBI communications strategist Erica Knight went further on X, posting a detailed counter-record of Patel’s tenure, including 67,000 arrests nationwide, a 20% drop in the murder rate, and more than 6,200 missing children recovered.
“The so-called ‘intoxication incidents’ The Atlantic breathlessly reports have happened exactly ZERO times,” Knight wrote. “Every serious DC reporter passed on this. Sarah Fitzpatrick and Jeffrey Goldberg printed it anyway. Lawsuit is being filed.”
The Atlantic published the story anyway. When asked about the lawsuit threat on MS NOW, Fitzpatrick responded on air.
“I stand by every word of this reporting. We have excellent attorneys.”
Patel is now daring the outlet to defend it in court.
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