House Democrats Demand FBI Director Kash Patel Take Alcohol Screening Test

FBI Director Kash Patel leaves after a press conference at the Justice Department in Washington on April 21. (Photo: Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Sipa USA)

Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee are calling on Kash Patel to complete an alcohol disorders screening test following allegations about his drinking raised in a recent report, according to The Hill.

In a letter sent this week, lawmakers asked Patel to take the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and submit the results to Congress by April 28. The screening tool, developed by the World Health Organization, is designed to identify potentially harmful patterns of alcohol consumption.

“These glimpses of your relationship to alcohol would be alarming to see in an FBI agent; for us to see them in the FBI Director himself is shocking,” Democrats wrote in the letter.

The request follows a report from The Atlantic that cited unnamed officials alleging Patel’s alcohol consumption had raised concerns within the FBI and Justice Department. According to the report, some officials claimed his behavior occasionally affected availability and scheduling.

Democrats referenced those claims in their letter, writing that there were accounts of “excessive drinking and unexplained absences,” as reported by The Atlantic.

The allegations have been strongly denied by Patel and his allies. Patel filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic earlier this week.

“I’ve never been intoxicated on the job,” Patel said during a news conference, rejecting the claims outright.

FBI Assistant Director Ben Williamson dismissed the inquiry as “baseless,” while Republican leadership, including House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, criticized the move as politically motivated.

A committee spokesperson told The Hill the request was an “unserious effort” driven by partisan concerns.

In addition to the screening test, Democrats asked Patel to provide responses from his security clearance questionnaire to Congress. The letter was also sent to committee leadership as part of the oversight request.

The situation marks the latest flashpoint between congressional Democrats and the Trump administration, with the dispute centered on leadership conduct at one of the federal government’s top law enforcement agencies.