(CNN) โ Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent turned right-wing podcaster, has been named the next deputy director of the FBI, President Donald Trump announced Sunday, the latest outsider media personality the president has chosen to be in a significant position of power overseeing large branches of complex government organizations.
The FBI deputy director traditionally is a position held by a career FBI agent. The choice of Bongino is a sign of the blowback toward the interim FBI leadership over its weeklong standoff with Emil Bove, the acting deputy attorney general, over his demand for names of FBI agents involved in the January 6, 2021, and Trump-related investigations.
Newly confirmed FBI Director Kash Patel had told allies initially that Robert Kissane, the acting deputy director, was the likely pick to keep the job until Kissane and Brian Driscoll, the then-FBI acting director before Patel was sworn in, resisted Boveโs demands, according to people briefed on the matter.
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday night, Trump touted Bongino as a patriot with โincredible love and passion for our Countryโ and highlighted his extensive background in law enforcement. He also noted that Bongino โis willing and prepared to give upโ his popular daily radio show and podcast, โThe Dan Bongino Show,โ โin order to serve.โ
โWorking with our great new United States Attorney General, Pam Bondi, and Director Patel, Fairness, Justice, Law and Order will be brought back to America, and quickly. Congratulations Dan!โ Trump added.
On Fridayโs episode of his show, titled โThe Golden Age Of Republican Politics, Bongino celebrated the confirmation of his new boss, Patel, saying, โWe got Kash through, so now you are going to see what real change is like.โ
At nearly the same time Trump posted on social media Sunday, the FBI Agents Association โ an organization representing thousands of current and former federal agents โ sent a mass email to members welcoming Patel as the new director and outlining the planned collaborative path ahead.
Responsible for day-to-day oversight
The deputy FBI director has day-to-day oversight of all FBI operations and is responsible for coordinating investigations and intelligence matters in the bureauโs 55 field offices. The deputy director often is briefed on investigations early, and itโs not unusual for the deputy director to know more about cases than the director.
Having an agent in the job is viewed as crucial in helping employees around the country do their work, particularly when conflicts arise with Justice Department prosecutors or other agencies.
In its update to members obtained by CNN, the Agents Association said Patel recently agreed that the next FBI deputy director, who serves as the powerful chief operations officer in charge of the bureauโs approximately 38,000 employees, should be selected from within the ranks of the organization.
FBI officials noted that Patel made no mention of who his deputy would be during his first full day as director.
Following Patelโs Senate confirmation last week, Driscoll returned to his Newark, New Jersey, office and Kissane, the New York FBI counterterrorism chief, was away on a previously planned family vacation.
CNNโs Josh Campbell and Evan Perez contributed to this report.
The-CNN-Wire
โข & ยฉ 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.