Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel began his historic tenure on Thursday as the first Indian American to lead the premier investigating agency. The Republican-led US Senate confirmed Patel in a narrow majority vote of 51-49, with two Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins voting with all Democrats against confirming Trump's nominee. Patel is now the first Indian American FBI Director and also the first of Asian descent.
Patel is a former public defender who has seen a meteoric rise in the power structure of Washington D.C. in recent years, rising up to be the Chief of Staff at the Department of Defence and Deputy Director of National Intelligence in President Trump's first term.