Dan Bongino’s first weeks as FBI Deputy Director have uncovered a depth of politicization inside the Bureau that he says “shocked me to my core,” raising urgent questions about just how far the rot has spread and what it will take to fix it.

At a Glance

• Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent and prominent conservative, was appointed FBI Deputy Director in February 2025.
• Bongino claims to have found disturbing evidence of politicization and “weaponization” within the FBI, sparking internal reviews.
• Kash Patel, another Trump ally, was named FBI Director as part of a larger plan to overhaul the Bureau’s leadership and priorities.
• The new leadership aims to “depoliticize” the FBI, but faces fierce criticism and skepticism about their own impartiality.

Bongino’s Appointment Signals a New Era at the FBI

Dan Bongino’s elevation to FBI Deputy Director in February 2025 was anything but business as usual. The former NYPD officer, Secret Service agent, and conservative commentator entered the Bureau’s top ranks with a mandate from President Trump and Director Kash Patel: restore trust and integrity to an institution battered by years of controversy. Bongino, long a vocal critic of what he calls the “weaponization” of federal law enforcement, wasted no time in launching internal reviews and making public his shock at the extent of the problems he’s found.

‘Shocked Me To My Core’: Dan Bongino Rattled By What He’s Uncovered At FBI So Farhttps://t.co/vSoTDLrxpy

— Kathleen Goble 🇺🇸 (@kathleen_goble) July 26, 2025

As Bongino himself put it, “I’ve spent my life in public service… I am committed to restoring the FBI’s reputation and ensuring it operates above politics.” President Trump called the move “great news for law enforcement and American justice.” Yet, almost instantly, the liberal pundit class and legacy media began hyperventilating, warning that Bongino and Patel’s leadership would only further politicize the Bureau. The irony would be hilarious if it weren’t so infuriating. After years of the FBI being used as a blunt instrument against conservatives, now the left throws a fit as soon as someone with a backbone and a sense of duty steps up to clean house.

Watch: Cryptic post: Dan Bongino vows to reveal the ‘truth’

Inside the Bureau: What Bongino Has Uncovered

Within days of taking office, Bongino began a series of confidential briefings, audits, and personnel reviews aimed at rooting out the cultural and procedural rot that many believe has plagued the FBI for years. According to Bongino, the evidence of politicization and double standards is “staggering.” Staff morale among rank-and-file agents has reportedly been battered by years of mixed messages from leadership, fluctuating enforcement priorities, and a prevailing sense that political calculations, not justice, were driving decisions at the highest levels. Director Patel has outlined a sweeping review of operations, signaling that changes—possibly sweeping ones—are coming soon.

Congress hasn’t stood idly by. Oversight committees are already grilling leadership, some demanding swift reforms, others warning against perceived “purges.” The Attorney General, Pam Bondi, supports the reforms, emphasizing that restoring public trust requires both transparency and accountability. Meanwhile, media outlets run endless speculative pieces warning of a “political takeover” of law enforcement, as if a return to law and order was somehow a threat to democracy rather than its foundation.

Ripples Through Law Enforcement and Politics

Bongino’s appointment and early discoveries have sent shockwaves through the wider law enforcement community and the political class. The short-term impact is already visible: career staff at the FBI are bracing for major changes in leadership and investigative priorities. Some insiders fear morale will dip further as the Bureau’s internal culture is put under the microscope. Others, especially those sick of the status quo, welcome the shake-up as long overdue. The long-term picture is even more consequential. If the reform plans succeed, the FBI could finally shed its tainted reputation and refocus on actual law enforcement, not political vendettas. If the critics are right and the process devolves into a new kind of partisanship, public trust could erode even further—though one could argue, after the past decade, there’s not much left to lose.