Kash Patel Faces Bipartisan Fire Over FBI’s New Prostitution And Bestiality Hiring Rules

FBI Director Kash Patel faced bipartisan scrutiny Tuesday over changes to the bureau’s hiring rules that removed prostitution and bestiality from the list of automatic disqualifications for some applicants.

During a more than four hour Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Patel said the changes were intended to ensure trafficking and abuse victims were not automatically barred from FBI jobs because of acts they were forced to commit. “We did not want to punish victims of bestiality, victims who were trafficked,” Patel said.

But senators questioned whether the written policy is actually limited to victims. Republican Senator John Kennedy challenged Patel over why bestiality was included in the revised standards, while Democratic Senator Dick Durbin pointed out that the rules refer to applicants who had “engaged” in the conduct rather than specifically identifying trafficking victims. Patel argued that people forced into such acts should be treated as victims.

The changes go beyond bestiality. Under the revised criteria, an applicant who paid for sex fewer than three times more than 10 years ago may be considered if they were not in a position classified by the FBI as one of public trust. Theft from a previous employer more than three years ago is also no longer automatically disqualifying. Bestiality or animal cruelty occurring before an applicant turned 18 can likewise be considered rather than triggering automatic rejection.

The timing has also drawn scrutiny. Senate Judiciary Democrats said the FBI’s public eligibility document appears to have removed prostitution and bestiality as automatic disqualifiers on February 28, 2025, eight days after Patel’s confirmation. They said a broader internal directive was issued in June 2026.

Democrats have demanded records explaining who approved the changes and how many applicants have since been hired, given conditional offers or placed under case by case review. They also want any FBI analysis of potential blackmail, counterintelligence and courtroom credibility risks, with a response requested by September 28.

The hearing also covered Patel’s handling of Jeffrey Epstein files, FBI personnel dismissed from Trump related investigations, his official travel and whether agents could be deployed at polling places during the November midterm elections.

The FBI has maintained that the revisions do not eliminate background checks or all hiring restrictions. Instead, they remove automatic rejection in specified circumstances and allow individual cases to be assessed.