Overview

• Michael Feinberg, a 15-year FBI veteran, resigned publicly Tuesday, denouncing leadership by Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino as “playing dress-up” and lacking investigative expertise.
• Feinberg recounted being forced to choose between demotion or resignation over his friendship with former agent Peter Strzok and facing polygraph demands and loyalty pledges.
• He warned that prioritizing MAGA-aligned hires over experienced personnel has deprofessionalized the bureau and eroded its core public-safety mission.
• Feinberg also criticized a new emphasis on assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement roundups, with FBI agents concealing their identities during immigration arrests.
• His departure and public rebuke mark the latest high-profile exit in a series of purges since Patel’s January appointment, raising concerns about politicization at the FBI.