Kash Patel refuses to answer basic questions about the Epstein files

FBI Director Kash Patel appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee for his first oversight hearing, Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, at the Capitol in Washington.

FBI Director Kash Patel is in his second day of congressional hearings on Wednesday, and he's as ornery as ever. Rep. Eric Swalwell of California pressed Patel on whether he had informed the president or the attorney general about Donald Trump's name appearing in documents related to the investigation of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.  Patel found himself unable to keep his cool.

“Remembering your oath to tell the truth. Did you ever tell Donald Trump his name is in the files?” Swalwell asked. 

“I have never spoken to President Trump about the Epstein files,” Patel responded. 

Patel admitted to speaking “numerous” times with Attorney General Pam Bondi about the Epstein files, but he still refused to answer Swalwell’s question. The tension escalated quickly as Patel lashed out at Swalwell, ignoring the simple yes-or-no query or any kind of useful information.

“Did you tell the attorney general that Donald Trump's name is in the Epstein files?” Swalwell asked one last time.

“The question has been asked and answered,” Patel said.

“You have not answered it,” Swalwell replied. “And we will take your evasiveness as a consciousness of guilt.”

Patel’s tenure as director of the FBI has attracted criticism from all sides of the political spectrum. He has repeatedly shown a knack for clumsily misinforming the public on critical issues, while failing to deliver the transparency he promised regarding the release of the Epstein files.

His performance on Wednesday resembled his behavior in the previous day’s Senate hearings, further exposing him as an incompetent hothead.