President Trump on Tuesday fiercely denied a report that he’s debating whether to remove his FBI director, Kash Patel, amid concerns of his recent mishandling of high-profile investigations and alleged abuse of government resources. In response, the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, released a statement saying the story was “completely made up” and included a new picture of Mr. Trump and Mr. Patel posing together in the Oval Office while giving “thumbs up” signs.   

“In fact, when this Fake News published, I was in the Oval Office, where President Trump was meeting with his law enforcement team, including FBI Director Kash Patel. I read the headline to the President and he laughed. He said: ‘What? That’s totally false. Come on Kash, let’s take a picture to show them you’re doing a great job!’ Do not believe the Fake News!” Ms. Leavitt wrote on X.

 The report, from MS NOW – the left-leaning news outlet formerly known as MSNBC – said that Mr. Trump was seriously considering firing Mr. Patel and replacing him with his new co-deputy director, Andrew Bailey.

Mr. Patel has continued to face negative press coverage over alleged abuse of government resources, which include a private government jet and FBI SWAT protection for his girlfriend – along with notable high-profile investigative missteps, according to MS NOW.

Both President Trump and his White House aides are eying the FBI co-deputy director, Andrew Bailey, as a potential replacement, MSNOW reported. Mr. Bailey, who was previously Missouri’s attorney general, joined the FBI in September amid the fallout of the Justice Department’s mishandling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and to support Deputy Director Daniel Bongino in what is considered the bureau’s most demanding job. At the time, it was speculated that Mr. Bailey, who had left a powerful elective office to join the Trump Administration, was in line for a big job like attorney general or FBI director.

Mr. Patel, 45, has come under fire for assigning members of the FBI Nashville field office’s SWAT team to protect his girlfriend, country singer Alexis Wilkins, after she received death threats over social media. The New York Times reported last weekend that he went ballistic when he learned Ms. Wilkins’s FBI detail had left one of her events early when they determined it was secure.

He has also come under scrutiny over his frequent and mandated use of a private government plane for personal trips that include a wrestling event in Pennsylvania, where Ms. Wilkins performed the National Anthem, and a stay at a luxury hunting resort in Texas. In August, Mr. Patel flew to Inverness, Scotland, where he spent a week at the Carnegie Club at Skibo Castle with a group of friends. His stay at the golf resort required a round-the-clock security team of FBI agents and “extensive and expensive” advance preparations, the New York Times reported.

Although Mr. Patel is mandated by Congress to fly on planes equipped with secure communications technology and must reimburse the government for the cost of a commercial ticket if he uses the jet for personal travel, the trips to Pennsylvania and Texas — both of which occurred during the government shutdown — reportedly triggered criticism from within the Trump administration, including Ms. Bondi, which she has since denied.

Mr. Patel fired the FBI official in charge of the aviation unit after the media published reports about his jet use.

An FBI spokesperson declined to comment to the Sun.

Mr. Patel’s brief tenure as the bureau’s ninth director has been marred by seemingly careless investigative gaffes that critics say pointed to his lack of law enforcement experience. This included his hasty announcement on X that the FBI “thwarted a potential terrorist attack” on Halloween weekend by arresting several alleged terrorists in Michigan — despite there being no criminal charges filed at the time. Local law enforcement, whom he thanked for “crushing our mission,” had reportedly been left in the dark about the investigation and “called each other to find out what was going on,” the Wall Street Journal reported.

Two teenage accomplices of the alleged terrorists behind the planned ISIS-inspired attack on gay nightclubs in Detroit learned of the arrests on X and sped up their plans to leave the country, per the Journal. 

The Justice Department told the White House that Mr. Patel’s premature announcement “disrupted the investigation” — a similar complaint to Mr. Patel’s rushed decision to publicize the arrest of Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer in September, despite that suspect being released a short time later. The actual suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, turned himself in to local authorities the following day. 

Under federal law, Mr. Trump can appoint Mr. Bailey as acting FBI Director without Senate confirmation after the co-deputy director has served in his current role for at least 90 days.

Mr. Bailey, a staunch conservative who joined the FBI on September 15, can theoretically start working as acting director after December 15th and serve in the role for the ensuing 210 days without confirmation, per the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. 

Meanwhile, Ms. Wilkins has rankled several prominent MAGA figures after filing separate $5 million defamation lawsuits against social media personalities Elijah Schaffer and Samuel Parker, accusing them of insinuating she was a Mossad spy. Ms. Wilkins filed a similar $5 million lawsuit against Mr. Seraphin in August. 

The Binnall Law Group, which is led by the president of the Kash Foundation, Jesse Binnall, is representing Ms. Wilkins in all three lawsuits.