US Senate minority leader calls on FBI director to resign amid allegations of misconduct

US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Monday called for the immediate resignation of the head of the FBI, citing new reports about his conduct and fitness for office.

Speaking on the Senate floor, Schumer pointed to recent reporting by The Atlantic which said Kash Patel has a pattern of “conspicuous inebriation and unexplained absences,” claiming that he is “known to drink to the point of obvious intoxication."

Schumer said that the reporting “only confirmed what Senate Democrats have said from the start — Kash Patel is not simply unqualified. He's a grave risk to the rule of law and to American national security.”

The New York Democrat said he has formally urged acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to preserve all records and communications related to Patel’s conduct before “the Trump administration tries to brush it under the rug.”

Schumer argued that the leadership of the Federal Bureau of Investigation demands professionalism and stability, qualities he said are currently lacking.

"Americans deserve steady, sober leadership from their FBI director and they're not getting it, (it) seems, in any way," he said.

Schumer concluded with a direct call for Patel to step down: “Patel must resign immediately. Every day he remains in office subjects America to serious and unnecessary risks.”

Patel on Monday filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit over The Atlantic article alleging his misconduct, which was written by reporter Sarah Fitzpatrick based on more than two dozen anonymous sources.

In response, The Atlantic stood by its reporting, calling the suit “meritless.”