Washington, DC [US], January 30 (HBTV): US President Donald Trump's pick for Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director, Kash Patel, will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing on Thursday (local time). The hearing is expected to be contentious, according to Politico.

Senate Democrats have been preparing their strategy in hopes of breaking through during the hearing. A few weeks ago, they used attorney general nominee Pam Bondi's confirmation hearing as a practice round for questioning Patel. Democrats repeatedly raised Patel's previous statements, including his plans to target members of the "Executive Branch Deep State."

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democratic member of the Judiciary Committee, called Patel "dangerously unqualified" and "dangerously partisan by his own terms," and said there was "immense amounts of material for him to explain."

Patel, a staunch Trump loyalist, previously served in Trump's administration as chief of staff at the Department of Defense and as a senior National Security Council staffer. As an aide to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, he worked to discredit the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Patel is expected to face tough questions about posts on his social media accounts, including his promotion of so-called vaccine detoxification supplements. One post, showing Patel throwing an object with Senator Adam Schiff's face on it out of a catapult, has already drawn the attention of Senate Judiciary Democrats.

Democratic lawmakers, including Schiff, now a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, also raised concerns about a video Patel reposted featuring an AI-generated version of himself using a chainsaw on the likenesses of Schiff and former Representative Liz Cheney, a member of the committee that investigated the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack.

Senate Judiciary Democrats have requested acting Attorney General James R. McHenry III to provide relevant materials on Patel, referencing a report from former special counsel Jack Smith regarding Trump's alleged mishandling of classified documents. Patel had testified in the investigation and was granted immunity.

In a letter to McHenry, the Democrats wrote, "The Committee cannot adequately fulfill its constitutional duty without reviewing details in the report of Mr. Patel's testimony under oath, which is necessary to evaluate Mr. Patel's truthfulness, trustworthiness, and regard for the protection of classified information."

Earlier in December, Trump nominated Patel to serve as the next Director of the FBI. In a post on the social media platform Truth Social, Trump announced Patel's nomination, highlighting his career in government roles, including as Chief of Staff at the Department of Defense, Deputy Director of National Intelligence, and Senior Director for Counterterrorism at the National Security Council during his first term.

Trump praised Patel for his work on the "Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax" and described him as an "America First" fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending justice, and protecting the American people. He also tasked Patel with addressing critical issues such as rising crime rates, criminal gangs, and human and drug trafficking across the US border. Trump emphasized that Patel would work under Attorney General Pam Bondi to restore the FBI's core values of Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity.

"This FBI will end the growing crime epidemic in America, dismantle migrant criminal gangs, and stop the evil scourge of human and drug trafficking across the border," Trump stated, adding, "Kash will work under our great Attorney General, Pam Bondi, to restore Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity to the FBI."

(ANI)