Indian-American Kashyap “Kash” Patel, who has been nominated as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director by US President-elect Donald Trump, on Sunday joined social media platform X, which was previously known as Twitter.
“Hello X,” he said in his first post, which has so far received more than seven million views and 24,000 comments.
Hello @X
— Kash Patel (@Kash_Patel) December 1, 2024
Billionaire and X owner Elon Musk, who has been named Trump’s government efficiency chief in the incoming US administration, also congratulated Patel on being nominated to run the FBI.
Congratulations on being nominated to run the @FBI!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 1, 2024
Kash Patel, a former Republican House staffer and a fierce critic of the FBI, was followed by more than three lakh people within hours of joining the social media platform.
He was born in New York in 1980 to parents of Gujarati descent who emigrated from East Africa. Patel completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Richmond before returning to New York to earn his law degree and a certificate in International Law from the University College London Faculty of Laws in the United Kingdom.
After earning his law degree, the 44-year-old worked as a public defender in Florida, representing clients in state and federal courts. He later joined the Department of Justice as a prosecutor, handling high-profile international terrorism cases across East Africa and the United States.
He frequently appeared on the campaign trail to rally support for Donald Trump in his presidential bid against Democrat Kamala Harris.
During Trump’s first term, he advised both the director of national intelligence and the defense secretary.