Donald Trump has tapped Kashyap “Kash” Patel to be FBI director, nominating a loyalist and “deep state” critic to lead the federal law enforcement agency that the president-elect has long slammed as corrupt. Patel, 44, has worked as a federal prosecutor and a public defender but rose to prominence in Trump circles after expressing outrage over the agency’s investigation into whether Trump’s campaign conspired with Russia to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. He has called for the FBI leadership to be fired as part of a drive to bring federal law enforcement “to heel.” If confirmed, Patel would replace Christopher Wray, the FBI director who was appointed by Trump in 2017 after the then-president fired James Comey over the FBI’s Russia collusion probe. Comey later testified to Congress there was no evidence of any collusion but the FBI had a “basis for investigating” the matter. Patel had ties to former Republican representative Devin Nunes, who led opposition to the Russia probe by special counsel Robert Muller while serving as chair of the House intelligence committee. In making his nomination for FBI director, Trump said in a statement on Truth Social that Patel “is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and ‘America First’ fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting the American People.”