Bourbon people

by Jay, San Diego, Thursday, May 07, 2026, 12:17 (18 days ago)

Have you sampled this yet?

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/2026/05/kash-patel-fbi-bourbon/687066

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accompanying note from Jeff Goldberg:

Three weeks ago, The Atlantic reported that FBI personnel are alarmed by what they say is erratic behavior and excessive drinking by the FBI’s director, Kash Patel. The story was based on information provided by 25 separate sources. Patel denied the allegations and filed a defamation suit against The Atlantic and the article’s author, Sarah Fitzpatrick, one of our many outstanding staff writers.

If Patel thought that he could intimidate The Atlantic by suing us, he was very, very wrong. We will fight this lawsuit aggressively—we have the truth, and very capable lawyers, on our side—and we are continuing to report on his leadership of the FBI. Just yesterday, hours after MS NOW reported that Fitzpatrick is the focus of a criminal leak investigation launched by the FBI, we posted her latest story on Patel.

In it, she reported that it is not unusual for Patel to travel with a supply of personalized branded bourbon. The bottles bear the imprint of the Kentucky distillery Woodford Reserve and are engraved with the words “Kash Patel FBI Director,” as well as a rendering of an FBI shield. Surrounding the shield is a band of text featuring Patel’s director title and his favored spelling of his first name: Ka$h. An eagle holds the shield in its talons, along with the number 9, a reference to Patel’s place in the history of FBI directors. Being the thorough, deeply reported magazine that we are, we obtained one such bottle. Here it is:

[A personalized bottle of Woodford Reserve bourbon engraved with the words “Kash Patel FBI Director,” as well as a rendering of an FBI shield, obtained by The Atlantic.]

The report that an Atlantic journalist is the focus of a criminal leak investigation, if confirmed to be true, is very disturbing. As Fitzpatrick’s colleagues Matt Viser and Shane Harris report, investigators rarely subpoena a reporter’s records, to avoid encroaching on journalism that is protected by the First Amendment. But MS NOW’s reporting suggests a reversal of the normal process, with investigators possibly beginning their work with Fitzpatrick.

This isn’t our first rodeo. We’ve faced extraordinary government pressure, and Trump-administration calumny, before. We live in a period in which some media organizations buckle under government pressure. I promise you that we will never give in. If a story is true, we will publish it.

And we will defend The Atlantic and its staff vigorously; we will not be intimidated by illegitimate investigations or other acts of politically motivated retaliation; we will continue to cover the FBI professionally, fairly, and thoroughly; and we will continue to practice journalism in the public interest.

The Atlantic has demonstrated for 169 years that it is committed to the values of democracy, accountability, and transparency, and we will stay true to this commitment. Nothing will deter us from our work.