Kash Patel breaks with Trump over January 6th pardon in heated hearing
Kash Patel, President Donald Trump’s pick to head the FBI, faced a heated confirmation hearing as Democrats focused on his past statements.
On May 6, the FBI raided the offices of Virginia Senate Majority Leader L. Louise Lucas and the marijuana retail business she co-owned as part of a corruption investigation, according to multiple media reports.
In a statement to USA TODAY, the FBI said it was executing a court-authorized federal search warrant in Portsmouth, Virginia.
“There is no threat to public safety. This is an ongoing investigation and no further information is being released at this time,” the agency added.
Lucas could not be reached for comment.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, which includes Portsmouth, declined to comment.
The Washington Post and the Associated Press both reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, that the FBI had searched Lucas’ offices and a Portsmouth marijuana outlet business as part of a corruption probe.
Lucas led Virginia’s recent redistricting efforts, which are expected to win more Democratic seats in the upcoming midterm elections.
Some Democratic lawmakers expressed concern that the investigation was politically motivated.
“Given the politicization of this administration, with an FBI led by Kash Patel and a Justice Department led by President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, I think people should take this with a grain of salt and wait for the facts to emerge before jumping to conclusions,” Virginia House Speaker Don Scott (D-Portsmouth) said in a statement.
The Justice Department is currently run by Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who previously served as the president’s personal attorney. Under Mr. Blanche and his predecessor, former Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Justice Department has repeatedly indicted people that President Trump has said he wants to prosecute, including former FBI Director James Comey and former New York State Attorney General Letitia James.
Initial charges against both targets were dismissed, and the Justice Department recently filed new charges against Mr. Comey.
During the current Trump administration, the Justice Department has also investigated people hostile to Trump, including California Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, and six members of Congress who urged military members to disobey potentially illegal orders.
Contributor: William Atkinson – USA TODAY Network
