This week, FBI Director Kash Patel did something Washington insiders should have expected but most of them feared: he formally ended the bureau’s partnership with the Anti-Defamation League. Conservatives and everyday Americans have watched for years as influential NGOs drifted into partisan activism under the guise of “training” and “partnerships,” and Patel’s move is a welcome reassertion of the FBI’s independence from political advocacy.
Patel didn’t mince words when he explained his decision, calling out the previous era when former Director James Comey openly praised the ADL and, Patel says, embedded agents within the group. That blunt accountability is exactly what this country needs: leaders willing to stop the revolving door between advocacy outfits and federal law enforcement.
The announcement came on the heels of legitimate outrage after the ADL’s public materials labeled Turning Point USA and its late founder as extremist, a move that prompted the ADL to quietly remove more than a thousand entries amid fierce criticism. Americans who care about free speech and fair treatment for conservative organizations saw this as another example of cultural institutions weaponizing “extremism” labels to silence political opponents.
Make no mistake: the ADL has a history of close cooperation with law enforcement and it has performed important work in combating antisemitism. But when an organization starts policing ideology and treating mainstream conservative groups as enemies, it crosses a line — and the FBI must not be complicit in any operation that smacks of political surveillance or biased targeting. The bureau’s cut with the ADL is a corrective step toward neutral policing.
Patel’s action sends a strong message to the swamp: federal agencies will no longer outsource political judgments to advocacy groups masquerading as watchdogs. For patriotic Americans who want law enforcement focused on real threats rather than partisan scorekeeping, this is a principled stand worth applauding. It is past time the FBI put its mission above NGO agendas.
Of course, the reaction from the left will be predictable and performative, accusing Patel of “enabling extremism” while ignoring the ADL’s own problematic overreaches. Those criticisms only prove the point: when a civil-society group begins to make political enemies instead of fighting crime, it loses the moral authority to dictate how law enforcement conducts itself. The American people deserve an FBI that answers to them, not to partisan pressure groups.
Now Congress and conservative leaders should press for transparency about past collaborations between federal agencies and advocacy organizations and ensure strict safeguards against political influence. This moment is an opportunity to reclaim the principle that law enforcement serves the Constitution and every American, not the ideological ambitions of one corner of the culture wars. Patriots should support Director Patel for restoring common-sense boundaries where Washington elites once blurred them.
