Lindsey Graham defends Kash Patel in heated exchange with CBS host

Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., had a tense interaction Sunday during a live interview with Margaret Brennan on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

Graham told Brennan he was “prepared” to vote to confirm Kash Patel, President-elect Donald Trump pick for FBI director and believes Patel’s confirmation hearing will “expose him as a very qualified lawman.”

The remarks came after Brennan cited former US Attorney General Bill Barr’s memo on Patel.

“Patel had virtually no experience that would qualify him to serve at the highest level of the world’s greatest law enforcement agency,” Barr wrote in his 2022 memoir.

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Former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr is seen during a news conference on Dec. 21, 2020. CBS “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan cited Barr’s 2022 memoir as she spoke with Sen. Lindsey Graham on January 19, 2025. (Michael Reynolds-Pool)

Graham said Barr was wrong when he wrote it, and he’s wrong now about Patel. He said he’s taking his advice on the candidate from former Rep. Trey Gowdy, who worked with Patel.

“Kash was a public defender, he was a prosecutor, he worked with Trey Gowdy on the Russia hoax.” Graham said. “So I think he has the experience. He has the confidence of the president.”

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President-elect Donald Trump has nominated longtime ally Kashyap “Kash” Patel, who has been a frequent and harsh critic of the FBI, to serve as the bureau’s next director in the new administration. (Reuters)

“I’m willing to vote for him because I know him too. Let’s see if he was never asked about the Russia hoax he exposed,” Graham continued. “People on the right believe he was part of the solution, not the problem.”

Graham then began to discuss this situation in the Middle East and its relationship to the “world stage”.

“You took me all the way to Israel from Kash Patel,” Brennan said.

Donald Trump shakes hands with Sen. Lindsey Graham after a meeting with Senate Republicans at the National Republican Senatorial Committee office in Washington, DC, on Thursday, June 13, 2024. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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“You shouldn’t be worried about Kash Patel,” Graham responded when Brennan asked about Patel “going after reporters.”

“You should worry about reporting the news fairly, which you don’t when it’s all about Trump,” Graham concluded.

The CBS host reminded Graham that he’s a guest on the show because “we wanted to hear from you,” before going to a commercial break.