FBI Director Kash Patel is facing a wave of internal revolt as a blistering new assessment from an alliance of active-duty and retired bureau personnel portrays his first six months at the helm as marked by inexperience, chaos, and self-promotion.

The 115-page report — styled like an FBI intelligence product and based on interviews with 24 sources and sub-sources — paints Patel’s FBI as a “rudderless ship” led by a director who “lacks the requisite experience” and a deputy, Dan Bongino, described by internal critics as “something of a clown.” The findings land just days after the White House denied reports that President Trump was preparing to fire Patel.

Multiple FBI insiders quoted in the report say Patel “is in over his head,” with one source — who identifies as a Trump supporter — calling him “not very good,” “possibly insecure,” and lacking the “measured self-confidence” required for the nation’s top law enforcement post. Another source, while calling Patel “very personable,” said he has generated “a culture of mistrust and uncertainty among the ranks.”

Much of the anger stems from Patel’s conduct in Salt Lake City following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. According to the report, Patel delivered “premature public remarks” that jeopardized the investigation, berated the agent in charge with an “expletive-laden tirade,” and claimed credit for the work of other agencies after the suspect’s arrest.

A particularly stinging anecdote — now circulating widely inside the bureau — describes Patel refusing to exit the FBI jet in Provo without an official raid jacket. Agents scrambling to find one eventually retrieved a medium-sized jacket belonging to a female colleague. Patel allegedly refused to wear it until SWAT agents supplied Velcro patches, delaying his arrival on site.

“He did not make a positive impression,” the veteran source known as ALPHA 99 concluded.

The critique goes beyond the Kirk case. Multiple agents say Patel and Bongino spend too much time posturing online and too little time acting like professionals.

One source said both men need to “stop talking, stop posing, and just be professional.” Another complained that the bureau’s leadership is obsessed with “building their own personal résumés” through social media rather than focusing on internal reforms.

The report also details an incident at the FBI Academy in which Patel reportedly ordered mass polygraph examinations after learning that agents had privately questioned why he requested an FBI-issued firearm — a move one longtime source called “punitive” and unprecedented.

Despite the firestorm, the report acknowledges that Patel inherited a deeply fractured institution. Several sources say “left-leaning factions” within the FBI remain openly hostile toward President Trump, with some offices continuing to display MSNBC and CNN on internal TVs but not Fox News.

Others blamed past recruitment that favored applicants from academic and teaching backgrounds who may lean politically left.

Not all feedback is negative. Several sources say Patel’s rollback of DEI initiatives has reduced bureaucratic drag, that immigration raids under his watch have been “overwhelmingly successful,” and that prosecutors are showing “more aggressive” posture aligned with the administration’s priorities.

Agents involved in counterterrorism and major criminal cases also reported strong morale, saying they feel “completely supported” by local U.S. attorneys in a way they did not under the previous administration.

Still, even these supportive voices say Patel’s reforms “have not gone deep enough.” Many argue he must push changes into mid-management to root out lingering cultural problems.

The alliance behind the report insists it did not set out to undermine Patel, saying its findings emerged organically from overwhelmingly negative feedback — roughly “80/20 negative,” according to the authors.

They say they “want nothing more” than for Patel and the FBI to succeed but argue that “redemption and resurrection of this proud agency” depends on full transparency and accountability.

The report will be presented to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees this week.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)