The jetsetting Director of the FBI wants Americans to believe he’s singularly focused on saving taxpayer dollars just days after buying himself some fancy cars.
The 45-year-old podcaster-turned-top law enforcement officer Kash Patel boasted on Friday that he nixed a plan to build the FBI a state-of-the-art new headquarters as a cost-cutting measure.
“We finalized a plan to permanently close the FBI’s Hoover headquarters and move the workforce into a safe, modern facility,” Patel announced on X.
“When we arrived, taxpayers were about to be on the hook for nearly $5 billion for a new headquarters that wouldn’t open until 2035,” he continued. “We scrapped that plan. Instead, we selected the already-existing Reagan Building, saving billions and allowing the transition to begin immediately with required safety and infrastructure upgrades already underway.”
The FBI has used Washington D.C.’s J. Edgar Hoover Building as its headquarters since 1974. Patel said the Hoover building would be closed permanently after the FBI moves out. He did not provide an exact timeline for when the nearby Reagan Building would be ready to become the FBI’s new home.
The FBI did not immediately respond to questions about when the Reagan Building would be ready and how much the move would save versus building a new facility.
Patel, who has faced months of criticism for seemingly using the FBI’s bank account to satisfy his personal whims, made the announcement four days after he was caught motoring around in the FBI’s brand new luxury BMWs.
FBI directors have traditionally been driven around in Chevrolet Suburbans with their security detail, but on Monday, MS Now reported that Patel ordered BMW X5s so that he would be “less conspicuous.”
The price of a basic 2026 Chevy Suburban is roughly $63,000, according to Kelley Blue Book, while a basic 2026 BMW X5 starts at around $68,000. An FBI source told MS Now that the FBI purchased four higher-end X5 models costing $250,000 each, but noted new armored Suburbans would each cost $480,000. They did not say why Patel needed new cars.
Months before purchasing foreign, luxury cars for himself, Patel got heat for flying the FBI’s taxpayer-funded, $60 million jet around the country to watch UFC matches, hockey games, and wrestling events, go on hunting trips, and attend the concerts of his girlfriend, 27-year-old country singer Alexis Wilkins.
He has also been criticized for reports that he ordered FBI agents to work as security detail for Wilkins and as personal drivers for her drunk friends.
FBI directors traditionally take personal flights on the taxpayer-funded jet for security reasons. They’re on the hook for the cost of a commercial flight ticket, while taxpayers fund the other costs associated with a flight, which can total tens of thousands of dollars. Before he was FBI director, Patel harshly criticized his predecessor, Chris Wray, for taking personal flights.
MS Now also reported that Patel pushed for the purchase of a new plane that would have cost between $90 million and $115 million, but the idea was scrapped for being too expensive.
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