On Thursday, Kash Patel, also known as Kashyap Patel, a determined loyalist of President Donald Trump, was confirmed as director of the FBI, America’s top law enforcement agency, in the Republican-controlled US Senate.

44 years Patel’s nomination drew intense but eventually ineffective opposition from Democrats and was approved by a vote of 51-49.

The vote on Patel’s confirmation to lead the 38,000-member Federal Bureau of Investigation largely followed party lines, except for Republican senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who opposed his appointment.

Democrats criticised Patel for promoting conspiracy theories, defending pro-Trump rioters involved in the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack, and pledging to eliminate members of a so-called "deep state" working against the Republican president.

So far, the Senate has approved all of Trump's cabinet nominees, reflecting his strong influence over the Republican Party. This includes Tulsi Gabbard, confirmed as the director of national intelligence despite her past support for adversarial nations like Russia and Syria, and vaccine sceptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was appointed health secretary.

Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat, made a final attempt to block Patel's nomination by holding a press conference outside the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. He cautioned that Patel would be a "political and national security disaster" if appointed as the FBI chief. Later, while speaking on the Senate floor, Durbin described Patel as "dangerously, politically extreme."

"He has repeatedly expressed his intention to use our nation's most important law enforcement agency to retaliate against his political enemies," he stated.

Patel, a law graduate from Pace University and a former federal prosecutor, is taking over as FBI director, replacing Christopher Wray. Trump initially appointed Wray during his first term. However, tensions grew between Wray and Trump, and despite having three years left in his 10-year term, Wray chose to resign after Trump won the presidential election in November.

Patel, born in New York to Indian immigrant parents, held several senior positions during Trump’s first term. His roles included serving as the senior director for counterterrorism on the National Security Council and as chief of staff to the acting defence secretary.

During Patel's confirmation hearing last month, tensions ran high as Democrats confronted him about a list of 60 individuals, many of them Trump critics, that he mentioned in a 2022 book. He had suggested these individuals should be investigated or "otherwise reviled." In response, Patel denied having an "enemies list" and told the Senate Judiciary Committee that his only goal was to hold lawbreakers accountable.

"All FBI employees will be protected against political retribution," he expressed.

Since Trump took office, the FBI has faced internal disruption, with several agents being fired or demoted, including those involved in prosecuting him for attempting to overturn the 2020 election and mishandling classified documents. Meanwhile, nine FBI agents have filed a lawsuit against the Justice Department to prevent efforts to gather information on agents who investigated Trump and the Capitol riot carried out by his supporters.

In their lawsuit, the FBI agents claimed that the attempt to gather information on employees involved in the investigations was part of a "purge" driven by Trump as "politically motivated retribution."

On his first day back in the White House, Trump pardoned over 1,500 of his supporters who had stormed Congress to try and stop the certification of Joe Biden's election victory.