Kash Patel to be named acting ATF chief, sources say

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Kash Patel to be named acting ATF chief, sources say

Kash Patel, the newly sworn-in director of the FBI, is expected to also be named acting head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, two Justice Department sources confirmed to CBS News Saturday.

Following a lengthy process, Patel, a Trump loyalist, was confirmed by the Senate Thursday as FBI director in a slim 51-49 margin, with two Republican senators joining all Democrats in dissent.

The ATF, like the FBI, is an agency within the Justice Department. It has more than 5,200 employees and a budget of approximately $1.6 billion. One of its primary responsibilities is to investigate gun crimes.  

Patel would replace Marvin Richardson, the ATF’s current acting director. ABC News was first to report the move. 

Steven Dettelbach, who served as ATF director under former President Joe Biden, told CBS News in an interview last month, just prior to stepping down, that he believed the agency would be a target for cuts from the Trump administration.

During his presidential campaign, President Trump was critical of the agency and Dettelbach.

“On day one, we will sack the radical gun grabber Steve Dettelbach,” Trump told members of the National Rifle Association at a gathering last February.

Congressional Republicans have already proposed $188 million in cutbacks to the agency for the 2025 fiscal year, alleging the ATF overreaches and places too many restrictions, including on pistol braces.

Dettelbach told CBS News that if the ATF were eliminated, “people would be killed.”

“I believe that the mission of this agency, which is fighting violent crime, is wildly nonpartisan and bipartisan,” Dettelbach said.

The Justice Department has faced turmoil over the past several weeks amid scrutiny from the Trump administration.

Several federal prosecutors resigned after refusing to drop corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

Last month, eight senior FBI officials were asked to step down from their posts or face termination. The FBI was told to submit a list of all current and former FBI employees who were assigned to investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Those employees were also asked to answer a questionnaire.  

Melissa Quinn and

Scott MacFarlane

contributed to this report.

Jacob Rosen

Jake Rosen is a reporter covering the Department of Justice. He was previously a campaign digital reporter covering President Trump’s 2024 campaign and also served as an associate producer for “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” where he worked with Brennan for two years on the broadcast. Rosen has been a producer for several CBS News podcasts, including “The Takeout,” “The Debrief” and “Agent of Betrayal: The Double Life of Robert Hanssen.”

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