Overview
- A Wall Street Journal review found repeated FBI Gulfstream flights tied to Director Kash Patel’s circles, including nine trips to Las Vegas and seven to Nashville, with a late‑October stop at the Boondoggle Ranch near San Angelo, Texas.
- Justice Department officials complained to the White House about Patel’s travel, and a White House directive had urged senior officials to curb trips unrelated to the president’s agenda, though the administration continues to publicly back him.
- The FBI told one outlet that Patel logged fourteen purely personal trips and seven that combined personal and business, noting he is a required‑use traveler who must reimburse at commercial rates for personal travel.
- Internal fallout has included the Oct. 31 removal of Steven Palmer, who oversaw units that manage FBI aircraft, and the FBI jet’s public flight tracking was blocked on FlightAware at the operator’s request.
- Patel publicly dismissed critical coverage as “hot garbage” and, hours after the latest reports, took the White House podium to tout a Beijing trip focused on fentanyl precursor controls, while separate reporting has criticized his premature social‑media posts about investigations.