FBI Director Kash Patel rebuked Democratic California Sen. Adam Schiff on Tuesday after Schiff asked him about Ghislaine Maxwell’s transfer to a lower-security prison.
After Maxwell met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on July 24 and July 25, she was transferred to a minimum-security prison camp in Texas from a federal prison in Tallahassee, Florida. During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Patel told Schiff that the Bureau of Prisons was responsible for the transfer, leading to a heated clash.
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“The Bureau of Prisons decided on their own, without any consultation with Blanche or anyone else, that they were going to suddenly, after this interview, completely unrelated to this interview, completely unrelated to anything she said, move her to a prison not suitable for a sex offender?” Schiff asked. “You want the American people to believe that? Do you think they’re stupid?”
“No. I think the American people believe the truth, that I’m not in the weeds on the everyday movements of inmates. What I am doing is protecting this country, providing historic reform and combating the weaponization of intelligence by the likes of you,” Patel responded. “And we have countlessly proven you to be a liar in Russiagate, in January 6th. You are the biggest fraud to ever sit in the United States Senate. You are a disgrace to this institution and an utter coward.”
A career intelligence officer who previously assisted House Intelligence Committee (HPSCI) Democrats repeatedly told the FBI in 2017 that Schiff allegedly approved leaking classified information related to Russiagate in an effort to “indict President [Donald] Trump,” memos show.
Schiff asserted the prison move “stinks to high heaven” and started to say he was “not surprised” about something before Patel interrupted him.
“I’m not surprised that you continue to lie from your perch and put on a show so you can go raise money for your charade,” Patel retorted. “You are a political buffoon at best … Take it to the bank that the FBI is protecting this country and the state and citizens of the California … But all you care about is a child sex predator that was prosecuted by a prior administration and the Obama Justice Department and the Biden Justice Department did squat.”
“And what did President Trump do? Bring new charges courageously. And what have we done? You said I’m the most transparent FBI director in history? 33,000 pages of information to you,” he added. “I challenge you to say anything credibly to the truth. Go ahead and run to the cameras where you want to go now.”
The House Oversight Committee published over 33,000 pages of documents pertaining to deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein on Sept. 2 after obtaining them from the Department of Justice.
The Bureau of Prison confirmed the Maxwell transfer occurred, but did not explain why, NBC News reported on Aug. 1. Trump denied awareness of the transfer when a reporter asked him if he “personally approve[d]” it, Newsweek reported on Aug. 5.
