Kash Patel Fires 10 FBI Agents After Biden-Era Phone Record Subpoenas of Susie Wiles Are Exposed
FBI Director Kash Patel ignited one of Washington's biggest controversies of the week after Reuters revealed Wednesday, February 25, 2026 ET, that the Biden-era FBI secretly subpoenaed the phone records of both Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles while they were private citizens in 2022 and 2023. Patel responded by firing at least 10 FBI agents — and White House allies are calling it just the beginning.
Biden FBI Secretly Subpoenaed Kash Patel and Susie Wiles Phone Records
The FBI subpoenaed records of phone calls made by Kash Patel and Susie Wiles when they were both private citizens in 2022 and 2023 during the federal probe of Donald Trump. The subpoenas were issued while Special Counsel Jack Smith was investigating Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.
The FBI had found the phone records in files labeled as "Prohibited" — a hidden designation designed to restrict access. Patel said he recently ended the FBI's ability to categorize files as "Prohibited" after taking over as director. Senator Chuck Grassley called the revelations "terrible," noting he had been the first to sound the alarm on the existence of Prohibited Access files at the FBI the previous year.
Susie Wiles: "I Am in Shock"
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles reportedly told associates "I am in shock" upon learning about the subpoenas. Patel briefed Wiles on the matter Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the discussion.
The situation was further inflamed by a separate revelation: in 2023, FBI agents recorded a phone call between Wiles and her attorney. Wiles' attorney was aware the call was being recorded and consented to it — but Susie Wiles was not. The secret recording of a conversation between a private citizen and her attorney without her knowledge has drawn sharp bipartisan alarm on Capitol Hill.
Kash Patel Fires 10 FBI Agents Over the Subpoenas
The FBI fired at least 10 agents and support staff over allegations that they obtained phone records connected to FBI Director Kash Patel and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles as part of the investigation into Donald Trump's mishandling of classified documents. The firings came just hours after Reuters first published the story Wednesday afternoon ET.
ABC News reported that FBI agents who worked on the 2022 Mar-a-Lago raid on Trump's home as part of the classified documents investigation lost their jobs as part of the sweep. Trump officials told Axios the disclosure may be just the tip of the iceberg, signaling that more firings could follow as the full scope of the Biden-era surveillance activity is reviewed.
FBI Agents Association Condemns the Firings as Unlawful
The institutional pushback was immediate. The FBI Agents Association condemned the firings Wednesday evening. "The FBIAA condemns today's unlawful termination of FBI Special Agents, which — like other firings by Director Patel — violates the due process rights of those who risk their lives to protect our country," the FBI Agents Association said in a statement.
The firings were the latest in an ongoing purge by Patel of FBI employees who participated in investigations of Trump or otherwise have displeased the White House. They came as Patel is also under fire for his use of the FBI jet, including a trip to Milan to watch the U.S. men's hockey team win the gold medal at the Winter Olympics, where he was filmed drinking a beer during locker room celebrations.
The Full Scope of Surveillance Remains Unclear — and Senate Republicans Are Demanding Answers
The full scope of and justification behind the collection of the phone data — including whether Patel or Wiles were themselves investigative subjects — remains unclear. Both were close advisers to Trump during the period examined by Smith and were both interviewed by investigators. Patel himself testified before a grand jury in 2022 and served as Trump's designated representative to the National Archives at the time the agency sought to collect Trump's retained records.
Patel called the subpoena "the tip of the iceberg" and told Reuters the records were buried in prohibited case files deliberately designed to evade all oversight. Senate Republicans, led by Grassley, are now demanding a full accounting of which other Republican officials, campaigns, and affiliated organizations had their communications swept into the Jack Smith investigation's broad surveillance dragnet — a review that could consume Washington for weeks to come.
