FBI Director Kash Patel denies drinking allegations at Senate budget hearing, trading accusations with Democratic senator

At the hearing, Patel told Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland that the drinking allegations were "unequivocally, categorically false," and said he would not "be tarnished by baseless allegations and fraudulent statements from the media," according to the Associated Press. Rather than limiting his response to a denial, Patel redirected toward Van Hollen, accusing the senator of "slinging margaritas on the taxpayer dime" during a 2024 visit to El Salvador, where Van Hollen met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia — a Maryland resident the Trump administration had deported to an El Salvador prison.

Van Hollen disputed Patel's characterizations, calling them "provably false." Van Hollen stated that drinks appearing to be alcohol had been staged by El Salvador government officials during a photo opportunity and that "neither of us touched the drinks." He also said a $7,128 charge at the Lobby Bar in Washington, D.C. that Patel cited on social media was campaign money spent on a staff holiday party, not taxpayer funds. Van Hollen accused Patel of spreading an "urban legend in right-wing media."

CNN reported that Patel, in the same exchange, described Abrego Garcia as a "convicted gangbanging rapist" — a characterization CNN noted was inaccurate on multiple points: Abrego Garcia has not been convicted of gang membership or rape. CNN further reported that Abrego Garcia has been indicted on human trafficking charges but has not been charged with rape. CNN described Patel's testimony as potentially inconsistent with Justice Department ethics standards prohibiting false statements about individuals and prejudging guilt.