Patel's Wednesday testimony to a House of Representatives panel had exposed a rare break with President Donald Trump's administration, which has pushed to slash spending across the federal government. Disagreements between agencies and the White House over funding requests to Congress are rarely made public.

FBI Director Kash Patel told lawmakers Wednesday that he is working to avoid a proposed $545 million in cuts to the agency outlined in the White House’s budget request for fiscal 2026, saying those reductions would force him to fire 1,