FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino Is Stepping Down, but Why Did He Decide to Leave?

President Trump's decisions to name Kash Patel as the head of the FBI, and Dan Bongino to serve as his deputy, still stand out as two of the most controversial appointments of Trump's first term. Now, after just a year in the role, Bongino has announced that he'll be resigning from his position as deputy director.

Following the news that he would no longer be working at the FBI, many wanted to better understand what motivated Bongino to announce his resignation, and whether there was any effort to force him out. Here's what we know.

In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Bongino announced that he would be leaving the Bureau in January.

"I want to thank President Trump, AG Bondi, and Director Patel for the opportunity to serve with purpose," he wrote. "Most importantly, I want to thank you, my fellow Americans, for the privilege to serve you."

Bongino was an unconventional pick for the job because, although he has some former law enforcement experience, he was best known as a conservative radio host.

Although Bongino himself didn't offer any insight into his decision to step aside, Trump told reporters that he believed the decision came because Bongino wanted to return to the world of radio.

“Dan did a great job. I think he wants to go back to his show,” Trump said. Patel, who is staying on to head the FBI, also paid tribute to his deputy.

“Dan is the best partner I could’ve asked for in helping restore this FBI. He brought critical reforms to make the organization more efficient, led the successful Summer Heat op, served as the people’s voice for transparency, and delivered major breakthroughs in long unsolved cases like the pipe bomb investigation. And that’s only a small part of the work he went about every single day delivering for America,” Patel wrote.

Bongino has reportedly had misgivings about his work at the FBI since at least July, according to The Hill, and apparently clashed with Attorney General Pam Bondi over the handling of the Epstein files. Bongino apparently considered resigning then, but ultimately chose to stay on. As a commentator, Bongino had been critical of the FBI and had pushed conspiracy theories, like one suggesting that Jeffrey Epstein had been murdered.

After assuming his role, though, he backed away from that theory, telling Face the Nation that “The evidence we have in our files clearly indicates that it was, in fact, a suicide. There’s nothing there in the file at all that indicates anything other than in fact a suicide.”

Even as he was still in his role, though, he was already making it clear that he planned to return to the world of radio. "One day I will be back in that space, but that’s not what I’m paid for now. I’m paid to be your deputy director, and we base investigations on facts," he told Sean Hannity on Fox News.