The FBI has ousted multiple high-level officials, including Brian Driscoll, the bureau’s former acting director, along with an officer who was involved with the investigation of the January 6, 2021, Capitol incident, signalling an ongoing effort by Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino to clean house.
For background, on August 7, 2025, press accounts confirmed that former FBI Acting Director Brian Driscoll, along with Walter Giardina, an FBI special agent who was a key player in the J6 prosecutions, had been removed from the bureau. In addition, Steve Jansen, the former admin at the bureau’s Washington field office, was asked to leave as well. The decision reportedly followed accusations from the Justice Department of “weaponization” of the FBI under Biden.
While the Department of Justice reportedly declined to comment on the firings, the FBI Agents Association (FBIAA) issued a statement saying that its members were “deeply concerned by reports that FBI Special Agents—case agents and senior leaders alike—are going to be summarily fired without due process for doing their jobs investigating potential federal crimes.”
In addition, the FBIAA told Fox News that agents “are not given the option to pick and choose their cases, and these agents carried out their assignments with professionalism and integrity. Most importantly, they followed the law.” However, President Trump previously expressed a belief that agents within the bureau were acting in deliberate subversion of his administration, calling the FBI “corrupt” and saying that Director Kash Patel would “straighten it out,” according to Fox.
Importantly, former Acting Director Brian Driscoll was previously the head of a domestic terrorism section that responded to the 2021 Capitol incident. Moreover, as reported by the Associated Press, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove accused Driscoll and other FBI officials of “insubordination” after they reportedly refused “to identify the core team” that investigated J6.
Furthermore, Bove was eventually provided with personnel details for scores of FBI employees, which he requested from the agency to “permit the Justice Department to conduct a review of those particular agents’ conduct pursuant to Trump’s executive order” related to “weaponization” in the Biden administration. Bove’s request came in the form of a memo issued on February 5, 2025, and he clarified, “No FBI employee who simply followed orders and carried out their duties in an ethical manner with respect to January 6 investigations is at risk of termination or other penalties.”
Moreover, after being asked to leave, Driscoll reportedly told his colleagues that it was “the honor of my life to serve alongside each of you,” adding, “I understand that you may have a lot of questions regarding why, for which I currently have no answers. No cause has been articulated at this time.”
"*" indicates required fields
Additionally, Driscoll said that he intends to respond to his firing “like any other [challenge] I have faced in this organization, with professionalism, integrity, and dignity.” He continued, “Never waver in your resolve to answer the call to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution. Continue to be bold and aggressive in the pursuit of justice. Most importantly, stay safe and take care of each other.”
Featured image credit: Shutterstock