Tag: People

Washington
CNN
 — 

One of the people on Kash Patel’s list of “corrupt actors” from the “deep state” is taking the drastic step of moving their family before Patel’s potential confirmation to lead the FBI.

The individual, granted anonymity to speak freely about security measures, decided to relocate in the coming weeks and is taking other steps to keep their new home purchase anonymous. They said they’re doing this because they are afraid Patel might weaponize the FBI against them or use his platform to inspire others to take action.

“After being doxed several years ago, we were tired of dealing with the constant anxiety of always needing to look over our shoulders,” the person told CNN. “Everyone deserves to have safety and security at home. Moving and taking precautions to keep our address anonymous will feel like a weight lifted.”

The list in question appears as an appendix at the end of Patel’s 2023 book, “Government Gangsters.” It names more than 50 current or former US officials that he claims are “members of the Executive Branch deep state,” which he describes as a “dangerous threat to democracy.”

Some of these people are now taking dramatic measures to protect themselves and their families, according to interviews with nearly a dozen people on Patel’s list or who fear they’ll be scrutinized by the Patel-run FBI. The list includes a blend of high-profile figures and lesser-known officials who might be more vulnerable if Patel pursues retribution.

“You’re referring to the glossary of a book,” Patel spokeswoman Erica Knight said of the list of names in Patel’s book. “Kash Patel will follow the Constitution and enforce the law to take criminals off of our streets, fight violent crime and put an end to the deadly fentanyl crisis. Any notion of ‘retribution’ is false and absurd.”

Nevertheless, another person on Patel’s list, who is a former US official, said they’ve spoken to former colleagues who worked in the federal government and also fear being targeted by the Trump administration and are considering moving their assets into their partner’s name and taking other steps to guard their financial accounts, in anticipation of lawsuits and legal harassment.

Most Republicans have closed ranks around Patel to support his nomination, despite his years-long embrace of pro-Trump “deep state” conspiracy theories, and his public vows to seek retribution against President Donald Trump’s perceived political enemies.

Congressional Democrats have repeatedly criticized Patel for what they call an “enemies list,” a label Trump allies have disputed. To the contrary, Trump has argued that going after some of these people is a key element of “ending the weaponization of the federal government,” because he believes these people wrongly targeted him during his first presidency.

At attorney general nominee Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing earlier this month, Democratic lawmakers accused Patel of having an “enemies list” at least six times, and the topic is sure to come up again at his own hearing.

“Patel has even compiled an enemies list of ‘government gangsters’ to target,” Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said, later adding, “his enemies list, what he calls his government gangsters, this is what you expect of Stasi, this is what you expect of secret police.”

Bondi told lawmakers, “There will never be an enemies list within the Department of Justice.” And at least one Democratic senator, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, said Patel assured him during a private meeting that he won’t go after Trump’s enemies.

‘Completely unacceptable and inappropriate’

Trump has already started his own efforts to exact retribution.

Within hours of taking office, the president signed an executive order revoking the security clearances of 51 former intelligence officials who signed a 2020 letter arguing that emails from Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop could be Russian-made disinformation. (The Justice Department under President Joe Biden later said the laptop was authentic.)

Trump also swiftly revoked the clearance of his former national security adviser John Bolton. And he removed the security detail of Bolton, who left the Trump White House in November 2019 and has received US Secret Service protection because of threats against him from Iran. Trump also terminated the security detail for Dr. Anthony Fauci, a target of Trump’s ire since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The existence of Patel’s “deep state” list — and the apparent green light from the commander-in-chief to seek retribution — has left many afraid with a range of emotions. Charles Kupperman, a former Trump national security adviser and Bolton ally, told CNN that Patel’s public list makes him unqualified to lead the FBI.

Bolton and Kupperman are both on the list at the end of Patel’s book.

“His professional experience does not meet the leadership, management, or character standards required. Open or veiled threats to those who do not support his confirmation is completely unacceptable and inappropriate,” Kupperman said.

Big names – and relative unknowns

Most of the people on Patel’s list of “corrupt” members of the “deep state are high-profile individuals who are expected Republican investigative targets, including Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

But the expansive list includes several lower-level civil servants, most of whom are now private citizens, who might not have the same security protections or legal resources available to them if the Trump administration decides to make them a target.

Many of the current and former officials on the list were connected to the Trump-Russia investigation stemming from the 2016 election. Others were one-time Trump loyalists who refused to do his bidding at the Justice Department or FBI. Some were civil servants who testified against Trump to Congress during his first impeachment.

Another individual on Patel’s list said, “I’m not concerned about Kash coming after me. He would get no bang out of it. And there are so many bigger fish to fry — whether on his list or others.”

The anticipation of Patel’s confirmation has caused a flurry of preventative actions from the subset of lesser-known people, and others who aren’t named on the list but expect to be targeted by the new Justice Department for their public opposition to Trump.

“Much of the list is going to be unreachable. So, who’s on the next tier? It’s folks in the good government community. People that did everything they could to hold Trump accountable,” including for the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, an individual who runs a nonprofit that led anti-Trump efforts in 2024 told CNN.

That nonprofit has retained outside lawyers for the first time to help prepare for potential criminal investigations and Congressional oversight from Trump’s GOP allies.

“It’s not cheap,” the person said.

The group is also trying to crack down on staffers texting and internal paper trails that might be problematic if they are subpoenaed and become public, by enforcing stricter guidelines to prevent people from being cavalier in emails and texts.

Before Biden left office, he took the unprecedented step of granting preemptive pardons to some of the people Trump has repeatedly threatened to prosecute and imprison.

The last-minute pardons were granted to, among other people, the Democratic and Republican lawmakers who served on the House select January 6 committee, “the staff of the select committee,” and the police officers who testified to the committee.

Before Biden’s preemptive pardons, many of the people involved in the now-defunct January 6 committee had received regular communications from friends and constituents urging them to take security precautions, with some even offering to pay for security details, one Democratic lawmaker familiar with the conversations told CNN.

Many former January 6 committee staffers, who also all received preemptive presidential pardons, had already obtained liability insurance while conducting their work, as CNN reported in 2023.

One key witness involved in the January 6 investigations, who was open to a pardon but did not receive one, criticized Biden for issuing such a narrow list that did not include several high-profile individuals who provided testimony as part of the probes.

“There are many of us who testified, who met with law enforcement, who went above and beyond to tell the truth. It’s quite disingenuous to narrow the target on the backs of this group. If you’re going to issue pardons, then really think about who you’re going to include on that list,” the former witness told CNN.

The former US official on Patel’s list said they have heard from friends at the FBI who have been updating their resumes after the election, in anticipation of mass purges based on who is perceived to be part of the “deep state.”

One of the top concerns in this specific cohort is how to ensure personal security.

In the past few years, there have been high-profile examples of individuals violently targeting prominent political figures, like the assassination attempts against Trump, a hammer attack against Nancy Pelosi’s husband and an attempt to kill conservative Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

“You have to be legitimately concerned about what isolated, random people, who think they are acting in concert with what Trump wants, will do,” the former official told CNN. “People hear what Trump says and then they act, thinking they’re doing what Trump wants.”

Some of the people who fear Patel’s role at the FBI feel more resigned about what’s to come and are strategically keeping a low profile in hopes that they stay off his radar.

“I have nowhere to go. There are many people who have nowhere to go,” said one source who was scrutinized by the Trump-era Justice Department during his first term.

CNN’s Zachary Cohen contributed to this report.