this post was submitted on 08 May 2025
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During a Senate hearing to review the FBI’s FY2026 budget request, Director Kash Patel was forced to admit that, despite the law requiring it, he had no such request ready to review.

This surprising development came during an awkward back-and-forth with Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), the ranking Democrat and Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which oversees and approves budget requests.

Senator Murray reminded the FBI Director that the budget request was legally required “last week,” and after the director responded, she surprisedly added, “And your answer is you just understand you’re not going to follow the law?”

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[–] Formfiller@lemmy.world 1 points 3 hours ago

He’s like the kid who is trying to do a book report presentation on a book he didn’t even read.

[–] Randomgal@lemmy.ca 5 points 8 hours ago

Why would he follow the law? He can get insta pardoned if the mean lawmakers act like adults.

The only thing saving this country from full on state-sponsored ethnic cleansing is the fact that they keep appointing the stupidest motherfuckers imaginable to key positions or power.

[–] Smoogs@lemmy.world 2 points 8 hours ago

He kept repeating he’s following the law as if he could just make it up as he goes along. Such an absolute turd.

[–] Jhex@lemmy.world 29 points 1 day ago (1 children)

This is what mediocrity looks like

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 16 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Mendacity.

He knew. He didn't care. He just put out his hand and dared the Senate not to give him a blank check.

And he's going to get that check, because Democrats more are terrified of looking obstructionist than of looking like they can govern.

[–] Jhex@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago

I'm going to upvote just from the great usage of the word Mendacity

[–] RedditRefugee69@lemmynsfw.com 49 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Fascists are inefficient.

He's probably waiting for orders on how to do it, like everyone waiting for Hitler to wake up before countering the Normandy invasion.

[–] Phoenicianpirate@lemm.ee 28 points 1 day ago (2 children)

And when Hitler woke up his first order was for breakfast and he chilled a bit before finally having his meeting. He misread the situation so fucking bad it is a miracle that even the enlisted men guarding him didn't scream at his face.

BTW. The Allies took into account Hitler's sleeping habits when timing their invasion. No joke.

I want to say he even habitually hanged/demoted/sent people who woke him to the Eastern Front.

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He probably also fired the people who know how to make the budget in the first place.

[–] kyle@lemm.ee 18 points 1 day ago (1 children)

What does "legally required" here mean? I assume there's supposed to be a punishment?

[–] korazail@lemmy.myserv.one 15 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I've not read the laws, nor am I a lawyer, but I suspect that the budget laws say something like "The [FBI] shall provide a budget by [date]", but there is no following section attaching a penalty as there are in criminal laws, so there is likely no recourse.

I imagine that this is the same as when you don't have that report ready for the big meeting, or skipped out early before your end-of-shift duties were done: a reprimand from your boss and potentially getting fired.... but his boss is, I think, Pam Bondi, the AG, in this case.

Theoretically Kash could be impeached or censured, as could Pam if she doesn't act. But we know how well that will go. Until then, his inaction is illegal, but unlike some of trumps actions, which can be stayed or reversed via court, I don't think you can stay inaction.

[–] JTskulk@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

Maybe it means Kash isn't the FBI director since he didn't provide the budget. Whoever provides the budget first wins the title!

[–] VampirePenguin@midwest.social 34 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Okay, so $0 for the FBI. Done!

[–] jagged_circle@feddit.nl 14 points 1 day ago (1 children)

That's what Trump wants. Take note of the military and ICE budgets, however..

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

That’s what Trump wants.

It's win-win. Either Dems don't sign a blank check, and Trump uses this as an excuse to hand more power to the DHS. Or Dems do sign a blank check, and Trump uses it to fund an FBI dedicated to further dismantling the democratic state.

[–] jagged_circle@feddit.nl 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Right now we are seeing a power struggle between at least two groups of plutocrats in the US.

The FBI is not on Trump's side. They're not exactly our friend, but their defunding would give more power to Trump

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

The FBI is not on Trump’s side.

The director of the FBI is absolutely on Trump's side. And anyone downstream of him who isn't is getting weeded out.

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[–] Neuromorph@lemm.ee 12 points 1 day ago

"I thought this was just a meet and greet"

[–] Crikeste@lemm.ee 8 points 1 day ago

He’s too busy running his clothing brand Based.

[–] RedditIsDeddit@lemmy.world 20 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Can't imagine how you'd expect an idiot like Kash Patel to do anything right at all.

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[–] Regrettable_incident@lemmy.world 38 points 1 day ago (2 children)

In the photo, the fucker looks like a little kid who didn't do his homework and got caught in the lie.

Hardly the brightest and the best.

[–] FrostyTheDoo@lemmy.world 12 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I feel like he always looks like that. He always looks like he's guilty and looking for an exit or coming up with the next lie. I can't imagine living like that

[–] shawn1122@lemm.ee 4 points 1 day ago

I'm going to guess drugs or alcohol.

[–] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 17 points 1 day ago

My dog ate the budget!

[–] Gates9@sh.itjust.works 18 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I wonder if they’re advising agency heads to do this so they can fuck with the budget for their wealthy tax break bill?

[–] Dagwood222@lemm.ee 31 points 1 day ago (1 children)

No, I think he's that dumb. Look at the lies the Bush Jr. team came up with before the Iraq invasion. Those were great lies; handcrafted with Old World dedication and aged in oak barrels until they were perfect.

These clowns are just incompetent.

[–] Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago (3 children)

People need to drop the "they're incompetent" shtick if they beat you every time. Because if you get beat by people you think are incompetent, what does that make you?

[–] Jhex@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago

It implies nothing because it is not competence that is evaluated here.

Republicans beat Democrats because:

#1 A sizeable core of the American demographic cannot tell the difference between their elbow and a chair (too stupid) and are fearful of their own shadow

#2 The alternative, the Democrats, are almost as incompetent as the Republicans making the distinction moot.

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[–] andyburke@fedia.io 273 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Hold him contempt or stop clutching your pearls.

[–] salacious_coaster@infosec.pub 188 points 2 days ago (4 children)

I'm sure Schumer will move quickly to form a search committee to form a task force with plans to complete a strongly worded letter by late 2027.

After a prolonged investigation taking many months and costing the taxpayer millions, the search committee regretfully concludes that they have been unable to find their balls.

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[–] aesthelete@lemmy.world 36 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Reminds me of the Office: "I thought this was a meet and greet".

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[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 152 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (6 children)

The fucking clownshow continues.

This is you going in to your Professor's office hours to ostensibly turn in your final paper for a course, it is half your grade in the class, and you actually just sit down and explain you are 'still working on it' and 'can i get it to you maybe by the end of next academic quarter?'

I am honestly so, so relieved by this high level public idiocy.

I really am not kidding.

I've struggled with impostor syndrome much of my life.

All gone. Done. No more.

I am legitimately more competent than almost everyone in this administration at their own jobs, despite the fact that I hardly have any relevant credentials to most of their positions.

[–] Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world 8 points 1 day ago (10 children)

I'm saving your comment because this was my exact experience, too, and I'm glad to see this silver lining occurred for others.

These people truly are mentally children, running around playing grown-up. Meanwhile, when I was an actual child, I was expected to be held to the same standards as grown-ups by Boomer parents (and as you likely know, autism + adults not explaining their social expectations = very difficult childhood.)

It's been a trip to see high-level government absolutely sucking at skills that I struggled with for ages, skills that I have been made to feel bad about for lacking. I work harder any day that I go out into public, even if it's my day off, than any of these privileged losers ever seem to. I have to be extremely mindful of myself - my posture, my tone of voice, my volume, my face (can't have resting bitch face), on top of whatever other tasks I have to do, every second of every minute that I'm around other people. I'm also expected to be aware of and mindful of the feelings of those around me, so I have to also accurately rate their posture, tone, etc. Fail any of these things, and anything I say or do has a chance of being misinterpreted poorly. It's fucking exhausting, and I wish there were more understanding and acceptance that allowed us to relax.

These are part of a whole set of skills - situational awareness, social awareness, self awareness - that the modern GOP appears to completely lack. They were raised without needing to apply them, and we can see evidence of their privileged backgrounds whenever they pull some tone-deaf stunt and still expect approval. Whenever I'm feeling down, I can remind myself that I may not be perfect, but at least I'm not as out-of-touch as they are.

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[–] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 42 points 1 day ago (6 children)

Don't sell yourself short. I bet you're more competent than everyone in this administration.

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[–] minorkeys@lemmy.world 84 points 2 days ago (4 children)

Why would any of Trump's administration care? None of them have been held accountable for anything, except to Trump.

[–] walktheplank@lemmy.world 13 points 1 day ago (3 children)

The only people held to account in the US are the poor, disabled and non white.

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[–] gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 168 points 2 days ago (17 children)

I’m so tired of the theatrical outrage and shock and surprise. Of fucking course they’re working in bad faith. But no - let’s give all the fucking fascists the benefit of the doubt. You’re not allowed to be fucking surprised by this. It was all in the playbook. The playbook has been published openly on the internet since early 2020.

[–] refurbishedrefurbisher@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 1 day ago (3 children)

I doubt a single one of our Democratic party elected officials actually sat down and read all of Project 2025.

[–] Formfiller@lemmy.world 2 points 3 hours ago (1 children)

That’s not what Israel is paying them to do

[–] refurbishedrefurbisher@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

It's not just AIPAC that's the main problem (although it absolutely is a problem); the Democrats and Republicans both get massive amounts of "donations" from large PACs (including AIPAC), corporations, billionaires, etc. that they choose to represent them by any means necessary, since that's who they get their paycheck from.

The only way to fix corruption for good is to permenantly make it so that corruption can never happen to begin with. Few individuals/stock traders shouldn't be allowed to own/influence these massive corporations; they need to all be forcibly converted to worker-owned coops (which will also abolish the stock market), and we also need a hard wealth cap (something like $50 million tied to inflation in both liquid and non-liquid assets). Imagine if you got to both vote for who your manager is and also vote to fire them if they do a bad job.

Any system that is still capitalist by nature (like social democracy) will still have an elite few who are able to buy influence. Capitalism actively encourages this to occur by its very nature (as pro-capitalists would say: "greed is good")

AIPAC is more of a symptom of a larger problem.

[–] technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 1 day ago

Don't you remember all the stuff that Biden did to prevent this? \s

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