FBI Director Kash Patel agreed on camera to take a military-grade alcohol screening test during a Senate budget hearing that descended into a mutual salvo of drinking accusations between him and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen.
The confrontation took place on 12 May 2026 before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, convened to discuss the FBI's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget. Van Hollen, the top Democrat on the panel, cited reporting by The Atlantic that alleged episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences from Patel, who has denied those claims and sued the magazine for £185 million ($250 million).
