Kash Patel hearing: FBI director nominee pressed on Jan. 6, conspiracy comments

Sen. Grassley questioned Patel on his opinion about the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, mostly glossing over his past comments that have suggested law enforcement was partly culpable in the attack.

In answering, Patel struck a different tone than one we have continually heard from President Trump, who in one of his first acts in office pardoned hundreds of rioters who violently attacked police.

"As for Jan. 6 and I have repeatedly, often publicly and privately, said there can never be a tolerance for violence against law enforcement," Patel said. "And anyone, anyone that commits an act of violence against law enforcement must be investigated, prosecuted and imprisoned."

President Donald Trump's controversial pick to lead the FBI, Kash Patel, insisted in his opening statement that while he would "guide the agency" in its investigations and national security efforts, he would "never make a prosecutorial decision," if confirmed.

"I will remain focused on the FBI's core mission, that is to investigate fully where there is a Constitutional factual basis to do so, and to never make a prosecutorial decision, that is solely the provenance of the Department of Justice and the Attorney General," Patel told the Senate Judiciary.

Patel has previously said that officials involved in building criminal cases against Trump or helping Joe Biden "rig" the 2020 election should be prosecuted.

He has also previously said that the FBI's 2016 investigation of alleged ties between Trump or his associates and Russia -- dubbed "Russiagate" -- was such a massive "criminal enterprise" that it "drowns Watergate."

Patel said he believes that to rebuild public confidence in the FBI, the FBI needs to "tackle violent crime," to "let good cops be cops," and needs to support "full transparency."

Before Patel began his opening statement, the top Democrat on the panel, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, insisted Patel had no legitimate qualifications for the job.

Durbin held up posters with excerpts of Patel's writings and social media posts and stated that Patel "traffics in debunked conspiracy theories" and has "neither the experience, the temperament nor the judgment" to lead the FBI.

Trump "has found a loyalist" to put atop the FBI, Durbin said.

Kash Patel's confirmation hearing has begun, with Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, offered a preemptive defense of Patel, saying the FBI director nominee has been unfairly attacked by critics and inaccurately accused of having an "enemies list."

Democrats will have a chance to offer a statement too, before Patel provides his opening statement.