Inside the hulking concrete edifice of the J Edgar Hoover building in downtown Washington, the nation's most experienced federal agents are paralyzed by fear.
asserted
agents → paralyze → fear
Instead of zoning in on high profile investigations involving cybersecurity or counterintelligence, some agents find themselves mundanely clicking through internal trainings, the type workers with 9-to-5 desk jobs take pains to avoid.
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workers → zone → pains
In the wild, this behavior is referred to as 'playing possum' – and in the FBI, too, current and former agents say it is a means of survival during the turbulent reign of the agency's director, Kash Patel.
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it → refer → director
'I've had people say, "I just go in and sit at my desk and don't do anything... basically responding to emails, taking the virtual academy classes, and staying out of trouble," because [they] don't want to get fired,' one former agent told the Daily Mail.
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agent → have → Mail
It is a dynamic echoed by other agents, who spoke anonymously to the Daily Mail due to concerns of retaliation.
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who → echo → retaliation
Worry about termination for being assigned to the 'wrong' cases later scrutinized by the Trump administration has prompted some agents to quietly pull back on substantive casework.
'You can't work under a culture of fear,' one agent said.
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agent → assign → fear
And while the abrupt resignation of FBI deputy director Andrew Bailey last month took many in Washington by surprise, insiders say his exit merely exposes a deeper crisis: a bureau drained of expertise and ruled by fears of retaliation.
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exit → take → retaliation
Current and former FBI agents who spoke to the Daily Mail described the turbulent reign of the agency's director, Kash Patel
The J Edgar Hoover Building and FBI headquarters, is seen in Washington, DC.
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Building → speak → Washington
Inside, according to sources, the nation's most experienced federal agents are paralyzed by fear
The Daily Mail spoke to five current and former FBI agents with knowledge of the situation inside the bureau.
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Mail → accord → bureau
'I would say morale has never been this bad ever' at the FBI, one former agent said.
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agent → say → FBI
'They are leading with intimidation,' a second agent said of the director and his top brass.
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agent → lead → director
'And honestly, I think a lot of the culture has shifted towards, "What will make the director happy," instead of what is actually best for the division and the mission.
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what → think → division
'
The FBI 'is in bad shape,' said another individual with knowledge of the bureau's operations.
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individual → say → operations
In their view, the FBI has been 'hollowed out' by a loss of experienced agents at FBI headquarters across its 56 field offices.
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FBI → hollow → offices
Shortly after President Donald Trump took office, all six of the FBI's executive assistant directors were fired or ordered to resign or retire from the bureau to avoid termination, according to a lawsuit filed by former acting FBI Director Brian Driscoll.
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six → take → Driscoll
Others resigned on their own.
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Others → resign → own
'The people that don't want to work for this organization anymore are leaving,' one person said.
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person → want → organization
The FBI has also demoted, reassigned or removed multiple Special Agents in Charge, prompting concern from both Senate Democrats and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Agents Association (FBIAA), a voluntary professional association that represents more than 14,000 active and retired FBI special agents.
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that → demote → agents
The FBIAA is '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,' a spokesperson for FBIAA said in a statement last August.
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spokesperson → go → statement
'Agents are not given the option to pick and choose their cases, and these agents carried out their assignments with professionalism and integrity.
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agents → give → professionalism
Most importantly, they followed the law,' the FBIAA spokesperson added.
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spokesperson → follow → law
Becoming a true expert in a field of investigative work takes roughly 15 years, one agent estimated, and among those leaving are the mentors who often teach younger agents how to work cases.
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who → become → cases
The FBI 'is in bad shape,' said another individual with knowledge of the bureau's operations
Patel previously sparked widespread outrage after footage emerged of him partying in the locker room with the US men's ice hocky team after their Olympics win
Those who remain are questioning who replaces them.
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who → say → them
Several sources cited the FBI's decision to drop automatic disqualification for applicants with past involvement in prostitution or bestiality as particularly concerning.
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sources → cite → prostitution
The bestiality issue 'caused a lot of people to lose confidence' in the judgment of FBI leadership, one FBI agent said.
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agent → cause → leadership
'People are asking, "What exactly are we trying to build here?" they added.
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they → ask → What
'Are we trying to maintain an organization with a certain level of expertise, standards, and professionalism, or are we simply trying to fill seats?'
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we → try → seats
Leadership has also left its own people in the dark.
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Leadership → leave → dark
Last month, the FBI told current and former staff that hackers - allegedly the group ShinyHunters - had stolen their names, addresses, job titles and Social Security numbers.
uncertain
hackers → tell → names
But in the weeks since, those impacted by the breach have heard 'zilch,' one person said.
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person → impact → zilch
There's been no further help or indication on how the bureau is fixing vulnerabilities.
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bureau → be → vulnerabilities
Patel - who previously sparked widespread outrage after footage emerged of him partying in the locker room with the US men's hocky team after their Olympics win - is seen by some inside the FBI as appearing to be out of touch, image-obsessed and ill-equipped for the job.
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him → spark → job
Some expressed sympathy for a director they believe is poorly advised and inexperienced in day-to-day operations.
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they → express → operations
Patel 'insists' on disproportionate credit for FBI 'wins,' one former agent said.
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agent → insist → wins
Others said he wants to 'look and behave' like an agent - wearing the badge, touting statistics - while remaining disconnected from nearly all of them.
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he → say → them
The FBI did not respond to the Daily Mail's request for comment.
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FBI → respond → comment
A spokesperson for Director Patel did not respond to a separate request for comment.
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spokesperson → respond → comment
A spokesperson for the White House disputed suggestions that Trump's FBI director has struggled to adjust to the role, telling the Daily Mail that Patel 'is doing a fantastic job helping keep the Homeland safe, combatting terrorism, and investigating crimes.
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Patel → dispute → crimes
'
'Thanks to President Trump and Director Patel, the FBI helped delivered the largest decrease in violent crime in American history and safer communities for Americans,' White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said.
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Bis → deliver → Americans
Others familiar with Patel's leadership touted the 9.3 percent drop in violent crime in the US during 2025 – the largest annual decline on record, as well as major decreases in other areas.
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Others → tout → areas
…and 13 more, not listed.
The Aporia
