BREAKING: Dan Bongino to Resign as FBI Deputy Director

Summary

Bulwark Takes — “BREAKING: Dan Bongino to Resign as FBI Deputy Director”

Date: December 17, 2025
Host: Sam Stein
Guest: Will Sommer

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Episode Overview

This Bulwark Takes episode covers the breaking news of Dan Bongino's upcoming resignation as Deputy Director of the FBI. Sam Stein and Will Sommer dissect the unique—and tumultuous—tenure of Bongino, a prominent pro-Trump media personality and former Secret Service agent. They explore the challenges Bongino faced transitioning from conspiratorial podcaster to the nation’s second-highest law enforcement post, why his presence in government was so peculiar, and what's next for both Bongino and his Trumpworld counterpart Cash Patel.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Bongino's Resignation: The End of An Unusual Era

• Confirmation of Resignation

  • Between their recording and release, Dan Bongino announced on Twitter he would leave the FBI in January, thanking President Trump, AG Bondi, and Director Patel.
  • Sam Stein reads Bongino’s statement (01:15)

• Media Reporting

  • Reports from Ms. Now and New York Times confirm he is clearing out personal effects, prepping to return to pro-Trump broadcasting in Florida (04:00).
  • Quote from Bongino (to reporters): “Print whatever you’d like. No one believes you anyway. Thanks.” (04:00)

• Sam Stein’s Framing

  • Explains significance: Not just news, but a lens on the intersection of media, conspiracism, and government.

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2. The Bongino Era: A Strange, Unprecedented Appointment

• Will Sommer:

  • "It's Bonjean over. I would describe it." (02:59)
  • Calls Bongino’s FBI tenure “one of the strangest … in modern memory,” citing lack of FBI experience and media background (03:15).

• Stagecraft Over Substance

  • Discussion of Bongino’s penchant for dramatic announcements, such as the unfulfilled plan to resign at a pipe bomb press conference (05:00).
  • Stein: “Can you imagine? We got him, folks. And by the way, I’m out.”
  • Sommer: “Mission accomplished. See ya.” (05:16)

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3. The Tension of Public Persona vs. G-Man Duties

• Performative Governance

  • Both Bongino and Patel accused of prioritizing image, social media presence over substance in their federal roles (05:22).
  • “So much of what they do... is just built around stagecraft and social media influence, really.” — Sam Stein (05:22)

• Emotional Vulnerability On Air

  • Sommer recalls appearances where Bongino was defensive about his work ethic and once cried on Fox News about his marriage and job pressures (05:32).

• Patel's Relationship Drama

  • Clip cited: Cash Patel on Katie Miller podcast, defending himself against critics who said he wasn’t working hard—“I think I get to, like, 15% [of my girlfriend’s shows].” (06:38)

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4. Betraying the Base? Conspiracies in Office

• Conflicted Loyalties

  • Bongino, famous for peddling anti-FBI and Epstein conspiracies, struggled to reconcile his previous rhetoric with reality upon taking office.
  • Sommer: On Epstein, “he gets in and he says, oh, geez… from his point of view that Epstein did kill himself.” (07:21)
  • The reversal required Bongino to go on TV and tell his former fans to drop conspiracy theories, enraging many (07:21).

• Bongino’s Fox News Admission

  • Tape played: Bongino essentially admits to Hannity that he fabricated or exaggerated in his podcasting days:

    “I was paid in the past, Sean, for my opinions. That’s clear. And one day I’ll be back in that space. But that’s not what I’m paid for now. I’m paid to be your deputy director. We base investigations on facts.” (09:14)

  • Sam Stein: “He’s basically just prancing around the idea that he was full of shit for a while.” (10:30)

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5. The Return to Conspiratorial Broadcasting

• Can Bongino Go Back?
  • Stein and Sommer debate if Bongino can return to his old audience after ‘betraying’ their narrative.
  • Sommer: “I think he can slide right back into it.” (11:26)
  • Bongino “was way more invested in Bureau work than Patel,” which could aid or hamper his return to media (12:32).
  • Risk: He could become “appointment viewing because he just starts spilling the beans on Bondi.” (12:02)
  • Both note tension between Bongino’s desire for loyalty and potential for resentment if he feels scapegoated.

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6. The Broader Question: Should Podcasters Run the FBI?

• Will Sommer:

  • Jokes about other conspiratorial media figures as possible future nominees: “Julie Kelly… John Solomon...” (14:14)
  • Cites a New York Times story of Bongino attempting jujitsu with agents during training—resulting in his “getting beat up on the mat,” seen as emblematic of his out-of-place tenure (13:47).

• Legacy and Implications

  • Stein raises the credibility issue: “Isn’t it just sort of a disappointment to the people he conditioned that there’s going to be arrests, that Epstein was actually the center of this big cabal...” (14:54)
  • Sommer notes the hypocrisy: “You might say, ‘Well, gee, Dan, if only someone could have done something. Again, you were there.’” (15:22)

• Lax Final Days

  • Bongino reportedly not returning to office before resignation. Stein: “You know, we, we kind of need you in the office, Buddy. Can’t just be in Florida for three weeks. The threats don’t stop.” (16:07)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Will Sommer’s Quip (02:59):
  “‘It’s Bonjean over.’ I would describe it.”

• Sam Stein (05:22):
  “So much of what they do... is just built around sort of like, stagecraft and social media influence, really.”

• Dan Bongino to Sean Hannity (09:14):
  “I was paid in the past, Sean, for my opinions. That’s clear. And one day I’ll 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.”

• Will Sommer critiquing Bongino’s check-out (10:51):
  “He is already… thinking, okay, I got a box up you the newspaper clippings. I gotta box up my old Secret Service memorabilia…”

• Sam Stein's jab at absenteeism (16:07):
  “You know, we kind of need you in the office, Buddy. Can’t just be in Florida for three weeks.”

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Bongino’s Resignation goes public:
  01:00 – 01:50
• Analysis of tenure and media/Times coverage:
  02:59 – 05:22
• Persona vs. responsibilities, emotional TV moments:
  05:22 – 06:59
• Epstein, conspiracies, and the fans' backlash:
  07:21 – 08:46
• Fox News clip: Bongino admits to talk-radio performance:
  08:46 – 10:30
• The future of Bongino and Trumpworld power dynamics:
  11:13 – 12:32
• Will podcasters keep getting government jobs?
  13:59 – 14:32
• Credibility and legacy discussion:
  14:54 – 16:22
• Absenteeism and closing thoughts:
  16:07 – 17:04

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Tone & Style

The dialogue is snappy and wry, blending sarcasm with genuine insight. Stein and Sommer maintain a knowing, almost bemused tone as they deconstruct the absurdities of Bongino’s government stint and the larger spectacle of influencer-politicians. They revel in the spectacle but conclude by raising serious questions about the fitness of “celebrity” personalities in power.

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Summary:
This episode offers a biting, fast-paced post-mortem of Dan Bongino’s unlikely FBI leadership, his complicated relationship with conspiracy culture, and the blurring lines between clickbait and command. It captures both the surreal comic elements and the disquieting implications for American governance.

Transcript

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[Sam Stein]

Hey everybody, it's me, Sam Stein, Managing Editor at the Bulwark and I am here on Wednesday afternoon giving you a pre recording to something we already recorded. Will, Summer and I spoke this afternoon to do a Bulwark take on Dan Bongino. We were talking about reports that Dan was going to be exiting his position as Deputy Director of the FBI sometime in January. Well, it turns out between when we hit record, when we hit stop, and before we got to the point of publishing that video, Dan broke the news himself. He went on Twitter to reveal the following quote I will be leaving my position with the FBI in January. Want to thank President Trump, AG Bondi and Director Patel for the opportunity to serve with purpose. Most importantly, I want to thank you, my fellow Americans, for the privilege to serve you. God Bless America and all those who defend her American flag emoji. Well, should you still watch the video with me and Will now that you know the news? I think so, because in the video we talk about what went wrong from Dan Bongino while he was at the FBI, whether he can actually successfully segue back to his career as a conspiratorial minded podcaster and what the future has for his old buddy Cash Patel, who may be on thin ice himself. Stay tuned. Watch the video. Subscribe to the feed. Catch you later. Hey everyone, it's me, Sam Stein, Managing Editor at the Bulwark. I'm joined by Will Sommer Author of the False Flag newsletter Must read are doing a bulwark takes for you on Dan Bongino. Sometimes we cover him on the newsletter. Not this time. We're going to cover him on video. That's because will we now have two articles, one in the New York Times and today Wednesday on Ms. Now, saying that Dan Bongino, deputy director of the FBI is going to resign sometime in the new year. Now the Times kind of caveat and said, well he's unpredictable. Who knows what he does. But I think we can assume based on the reporters on these bylines that it's likely to happen and it brings to an end should it happen. How would you describe his tenure?

[Will Sommer]

It's Bonjean over. I would describe it.

[Sam Stein]

God, I apologize to the listeners.

[Will Sommer]

I had that one ready to go.

[Sam Stein]

I could tell. Maybe you should have workshopped it a bit more.

[Will Sommer]

Well, I would describe it as one of the strangest tenures of a high, high ranking FBI official in, in, you know, modern memory.

[Sam Stein]

Surpassed only by Cash Patel's, I suppose.

[Will Sommer]

Yes, yes. Surpassed only by his buddy Cash Patel. I mean we have a situation here where a guy who, you know, Dan Bongino was a former Secret Service agent, but he had no history as an FBI agent. Unprecedented lack of experience. Previously we have not had a podcaster leading the most powerful law enforcement agency in. It is a, it was truly strange and you know, and now it is coming to an end.

[Sam Stein]

So this is, I'll just read what Ms. Now has and then I'll read what the New York Times says. Ms. Now says Bongino has told his team, some senior FBI officials he, that he tentatively planned to announce his departure on December 19th. That's according to four people. Several people said some of Bongino's personal effects have been cleared out of his office as of last week. Reached by Ms. Now, Bongino declined to confirm or deny the reports of his plans, adding, quote, print whatever you'd like. No one believes you anyway. Thanks. What a guy. And then the New York Times this, there's a little like chestnut in the New York Times thing that, that like perfectly summarizes the Bongino era. They say that Bongino has said he plans to leave his job as soon as this week or as late as mid January, according to three people. Knowledge of his plans. One sign might be sooner rather than later. Bongino has been sending office knickknacks and other possessions back to Florida where he intends to resume his lucrative career as a pro Trump media broadcaster. They say broadcaster not podcaster in time for the midterm elections. They also know that this month, Mr. Bongino suggested to associates that he might go out on a high note by sharing his plans to step down at a news conference announcing the capture of a suspect in the planting of pipe bombs near the party headquarters of Democrats and Republicans on the eve of January 6, 2021. He did not make that announcement. Had he made that announcement.

[Will Sommer]

I would.

[Sam Stein]

Have been just utterly flabbergasted. Can you imagine?

[Will Sommer]

That would have been.

[Sam Stein]

We got him, folks. And by the way, I'm out.

[Will Sommer]

I'm out. Mission accomplished. See ya.

[Sam Stein]

But it does get to this idea that so much of what they do, Bongino and Patel, is just built around sort of like, stagecraft and social media influence, really.

[Will Sommer]

Oh, totally. And I mean, you know, that kind of leads into what I think I will most remember Dan Bongino for, which is the. The constant tweets he said he kind of stopped doing it later in the administration, but the constant tweets he sent saying, I'm working really hard. Stop saying, I'm not working hard. I'm not here just to be on vacation. And, of course, this culminated in the Fox News appearance where he maybe cried on air. He said, it's so hard. And he said, my wife and I are separated. And he kind of, like, waited a couple beats. I mean, not like, legally, you know, I mean, it was a. Again, these are the guys who are supposed to be catching the terrorists and the spies, and he's just, you know, out really putting, you know, I mean, emotional vulnerability is great for a. I think, but. But maybe not in this.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah. And then we had Cash Patel, and maybe we can insert a little bit of this clip. I know Tim talked a lot about it, but Cash Patel was doing the Katie Miller podcast with his girlfriend. He's talking about how hard it is to, like, maintain the relationship and how he's only gone to 15% of her concerts. We'll play the clip.

[Cash Patel]

It's ironic that they're saying, oh, you're going on vacation or you're going to see your girlfriend perform. And if I was actually abusing it, I would go see every one of her shows. I think I get to, like, 15%.

[Rocket Money Announcer]

Just to clarify, how often has he traveled to see you since January 20th?

[Will Sommer]

Oh, gosh, I think.

[Sam Stein]

What? Nashville? Been in Nashville?

[Cash Patel]

Like, yeah, I've been to her house a couple times with her family for the holidays and, you know, birthdays. I've seen her perform this year, I think three times.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah. Talk a bit about, though, about that tension that Bongino is getting at, which is he has this whole career where he's been spreading all these conspiracy theories, often about the FBI itself. Then he comes in and he has to at least nominally play the adults in the room or at least try to do the job and improve. Way harder than he thought.

[Will Sommer]

Yeah, I mean, this is something Bongino ran into over and over. Was. I mean, I think the most famous example would be the Jeffrey Epstein case where like Cash Patel, he had been out there before joining the FBI saying, you know, the FBI is covering this up. There's all this stuff that's going to be uncovered. And then he gets in and he says, oh, geez. You know, even before kind of the big Trump administration reversal on this, he realizes, you know, from his point of view that Epstein did kill himself. He sees all this evidence. So then him and Cash have to go on Fox and say, you know, basically guys like, cut it out with the conspiracy theories. And needless to say, this was not a hit with the old Bongino talk radio fans and podcast fans. They were furious. And I think, you know, just keeping the Epstein thing going a little longer. I think that is why there was so much tension. We. When the administration did this reversal on Epstein and refused to release the files, Bongino was sort of the main internal dissenter. He was saying, you know, we're blowing this. We're going to infuriate the MAGA base. And I think that's in part because he knew he needed to go back to this audience and so he couldn't really totally abandon the conspiracy theories.

[Sam Stein]

All right, let's play this clip. I want to stay on this point. Let's play this clip. When he again, he seems to only Fox News, but he did speak with Hannity again and, and he sort of talked. I mean, he just kind of pulled the curtain back and he said, yeah, I totally was a different person or spoke differently about this stuff when I was a podcaster and I didn't have to worry about the truth. Let's play the clip and we can talk about on the flip side, I.

[Sean Hannity]

Don'T know if you remember this. This is before you became the deputy FBI director. You put a post on X right after this happened and you said there's a massive cover up because the person that planted those pipe bombs, they don't want you to know who it is because it's either a connected anti Trump insider or an inside job. You said that, you know, long before you Even thought of as Deputy FBI Director.

[Dan Bongino]

Yeah. That's why I said to you, this investigation's just begun. We are pretty comfortable. We have our guy. I think there's again, legal process starts to surface and information, facts start to come out. The public's going to be very comfortable with the investigation that was conducted under Director Patel and his leadership. He's been great on this. But I don't want to, you know, listen. I was paid in the past, Sean, for my opinions. That's clear. And one day I'll 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. And, you know, it was interesting. I was looking out in the crowd today at the presser, and I saw a couple of media figures who you and I both know, who promoted the other scandal, the collusion hoax. And I thought to myself, you know, the difference between us and them is, you know, we evolve as information and new inputs come out. We can produce different outputs because that's what we believe in. We believe in facts and investigations guided by facts. There were people out there in that crowd, I'm sure, still believe in this collusion, fairytale hoax.

[Sean Hannity]

So we'll see.

[Dan Bongino]

We're going to be guided by the facts as this thing goes forward. And I also, I can't get you. Stop the, you know, leave the, Leave the truck here without thanking the President.

[Sam Stein]

Putting aside Hannity saying good grief at the fact that people believe. It's sort of a remarkable clip, right? He's like basically just prancing around the idea that he was full of shit for a while. He's like, well, that was my opinions. Doesn't apologize for getting it completely wrong. Just was like, you know, I was paid to spout off, more or less.

[Will Sommer]

Gosh, was he really checked out in that clip or what? I mean, he is already. He's thinking, okay, I got a box up you the newspaper clippings. I gotta box up my old Secret Service memorabilia. You know, I mean, he's saying in that clip, he's like, look, you know, I used to get paid to be talk radio host. I was so sick I could say whatever I wanted. And look, soon I'll be back to doing that. I mean, he literally says, I will be again someday. Something along those line.

[Sam Stein]

Well, so what happens when he goes back? Does he. I mean, has he torched the credibility with his fan base? Can he get back to a place where he just spouts off conspiracies I mean, how does this work, you think?

[Will Sommer]

I think he can slide right back into it. I don't think he really needed the audience that much. Yeah, I mean, I think the Epstein stuff, in a way, I think had he just done that one Fox News appearance where he said Epstein killed himself, you know, I think people would have been madder at him. But it's in a way, like, I feel like Bambondi and Trump are taking much more heat for the larger Epstein thing at the moment. And so I think Bongino can just be like, you know, I mean, people know that he tried internally to sort of finagle a more base, friendly thing. So I think he'll go back into it. I mean, I don't know. He's kind of a rogue element out there now. I mean, he, I feel like he's so frustrated with his time in government. Who knows what he'll start saying?

[Sam Stein]

I mean, does there is something to that? Like he could become appointment viewing because he just starts spilling the beans on Bondi. Right. Like, you don't know. And I suppose if you're Trump, you better have him in house than out of house. But he also strikes me as kind of a loyal soldier or thinks of himself that way, so I'd be a little bit surprised. The people I talk to who cover this stuff, I don't cover it. Say that he was way more invested in the actual work of the Bureau than Patel in that.

[Dan Bongino]

Oh, no.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah, I know. Like, at least he was putting in the hours where Patel was on his jet. So I just want to make that clear. I'm not like, trying to say he was the ideal deputy, but it does leave Patel sort of there, out there all alone. Right.

[Will Sommer]

Well, I wonder if what we may be looking at here is that Dan is trying to, he's sort of jumping before he gets pushed. And so perhaps there is a larger house cleaning that would have been aimed at both Bongino and Patel. And frankly, I mean, there's been a lot of reporting that Patel's on thin ice. I don't think his appearance on the Katie Miller podcast did him any favors. Look, it's certainly, you know, I know he told the media to stop rushing him to get engaged. Stuff like, I don't think we're doing that, but, you know, that's a pretty funny thing. I'd love to pop the question, but I can't let the MSM win. That's a good excuse for guys use. But, you know, I, I, I think possibly there was a larger push. I Mean, there is this, this co deputy director who is sort of level, at the same level as Bongino who was brought in, who might ultimately be the FBI director. You know, as long as we're on Bongino memories though, I just wanted to, to bring back the time that the New York Times reported on him doing jujitsu moves on FBI agents when he would visit them in training. And I guess it didn't work out so well for him and he kind of got a little beat up on the mat. And then after the Times reported this, Bonino was like, you know, this reporter, this pipsqueak, this pencil neck could never understand what it takes to go on the map.

[Sam Stein]

Is this like the end of the idea of influencers and podcasters getting high ranking government positions, you think? Or will we just be in another. Are they just going to find like, you know, name some other podcaster who could become the next deputy?

[Will Sommer]

I mean, Julie Kelly, the great, the great Jane six report reporter sleuth John Solomon.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah, no, Kelly gets it because she, she threw some shade at that, that original story about the pipe bomber. She was like, this is not right. So maybe she's already got some good instincts. She could be next.

[Will Sommer]

Hannity hit this quote here where early, you know, when the heat was really on Bongino, he said, you know what I have discovered about the way the, this, the previous administration ran things in the government? It shook me to my core. It like sickened me, you know, oh, I've seen these abominations. And now he's just like, all right, well, see ya. You know, none of those people have been prosecuted, you know, for like qanon. People thought that was like the cabal. And he's just like, all right, well.

[Sam Stein]

Okay, so let me push back on you. So like, you think he can seamlessly go back, but like, I don't know, if you look at his tenure, isn't it just sort of a disappointment to the people he conditioned that there's going to be arrests, that Epstein was actually the center of this big cabal and all, and all the files will be really, I mean, how do you just, you know, oversee this, which is a discipline on a variety of fronts? I mean, you saying the pipe bomber was a plan, and then you go back and you're suddenly like, have to live in that community again.

[Will Sommer]

And especially. And you probably will continue to say, oh, the treacherous deep state, you know, all the things they did to Trump. And you might say, well, gee, Dan, if only someone could have done something again.

[Sam Stein]

You were There. Yeah, exactly like that. That becomes complicated. I mean, I'm sure I'll do it, but it just seems weird to me.

[Will Sommer]

I think it's really weird. And you know, in terms of the kind of the Bongino senioritis laziness situation, I do want to note the Ms. Now stories that Bongino has said he will not be return the office basically until he resigns. You know, there's still a couple weeks left in the year. I guess that's okay. Just go right ahead. Nothing. There's, there's nothing.

[Sam Stein]

We shouldn't, we shouldn't just allied that. It's just, it's unbelievable. He is the deputy. He's still the acting deputy director of the FBI. Get to work.

[Will Sommer]

Dude.

[Sam Stein]

You know, we, we kind of need you in the office, Buddy. Can't just be in Florida for three weeks. The threats don't stop. But that's the other thing. Patel's on these podcasts and talking about his marriage and there's like the Brown Killer is still out there, Buddy. I guess the podcast was taped before him, but you get my point.

[Will Sommer]

Yeah, I mean you see the footage of the FBI agents kicking the snow outside of Brown and obviously I understand that's how the grid search works, but it looks like they're just kind of doing a half hearted effort. And then of course you have Dan Bongino who's already taking, I don't know, potentially a month off before quitting.

[Sam Stein]

Jesus. All right, well, we'll see if he actually follows through on this. It wouldn't be beyond him to say, you know, fuck ms, the New York Times, I'm going to stay and then we'll see what happens. But we'll monitor that too if he decides to do that. Will, thanks so much, man. I think we're going to have to do another one of these and we'll maybe like do a ranking of our favorite Bongino moments when he actually steps down. We'll do, we'll do some of the homework now before then. So that will be more professional podcast. Okay?

[Will Sommer]

Absolutely. A five hour stream. You know, all the classics.

[Sam Stein]

Oh, great. Don't put me in hook for that. Will Summer, ladies and gentlemen, I'm Sam Stein. Thanks for watching. Subscribe to our feeds where you get great content like this. Talk to you soon.