FBI Director Kash Patel was grilled Tuesday over the government’s lingering silence about the man who shot Donald Trump during the 2024 campaign. Appearing on Special Report with Bret Baier on Fox News, Patel faced questions about why the FBI has released so little public information about Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old Pennsylvania man who opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Baier opened the segment by replaying a clip from an interview in which Patel promised a “more robust picture” of the shooting, telling viewers that investigators were still combing through files to better explain how the attack unfolded.

Nearly a year later, Baier said, little appears to have changed.

“I don’t think we, the public, have a more robust picture,” Baier told Patel. “I feel like we haven’t gotten the whole story.”

Patel pushed back, calling that assessment “unfair” and defending the bureau’s handling of the case.

“We, the FBI, have put out all the information that we possibly and legally can,” Patel said.

“He’s dead,” Baier noted.

“Yes,” Patel replied, “he’s very much dead,” but insisted the bureau still must adhere to investigative and disclosure rules.

The exchange turned to one of the central questions that has fueled skepticism among Trump allies and conservative lawmakers: what the bureau knows about Crooks’ communications and potential contacts.

“Where were the cell phones? Why don’t we know who he was talking to?” Baier asked. “What exactly happened?”

Patel countered by pointing to the FBI’s cooperation with Congress, saying the agency has turned over roughly 40,000 pages of documents — a level of disclosure he said far exceeds that of previous administrations.

“That’s a 400 percent increase from the prior two directors,” Patel said. “We will continue to provide this information … when we’re legally able. It’s never going to be enough for everyone.”

The FBI director emphasized that investigative findings were shared with the Justice Department, which ultimately decided what could be made public.

“We’re not saying ‘trust us,’” Patel said. “We did an exhaustive search.”

Still, Baier continued to press.

“Do you think everything has been put out about the shooter in Butler?” he asked.

“Everything,” Patel replied.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)