FBI Director Kash Patel Cuts Ties With ADL, Calls Them “Extreme” — Same Group That Went After Kanye & Kyrie

The FBI has officially ended its decades-long partnership with the Anti-Defamation League, a move that is shaking up both the political world and civil rights community. FBI Director Kash Patel made the announcement this week, saying the Bureau will no longer work with the ADL and accusing the group of being “an extreme organization functioning like a terrorist group.” Patel claims the ADL crossed the line from advocacy into political maneuvering, and he has no plans to let the FBI be part of that.

The break comes after months of growing criticism of the ADL from conservative circles. The tipping point was the ADL’s decision to include Turning Point USA in its “Glossary of Extremism and Hate,” where it described the conservative youth group as one that spread far-right conspiracies and hosted bigoted speakers. That listing drew intense backlash, especially from supporters of Turning Point, and even Elon Musk accused the ADL of weaponizing its extremism labels against political opponents. Under pressure, the ADL eventually retired the entire glossary, which included more than a thousand entries, admitting that many of the definitions were outdated or being misrepresented. But for Patel, the damage was done. He pointed to the Turning Point episode as proof that the ADL had moved from being a watchdog group into becoming a partisan player.

Patel also accused the organization of spying on Americans and said that former FBI Director James Comey embedded FBI agents within the ADL and even wrote “love letters” to the group. Patel made it clear that this era of close cooperation is over. He framed the decision as a reset for the Bureau, saying the FBI will not rely on groups he sees as politically motivated to shape its training or intelligence sharing.

The ADL, however, is pushing back against the criticism. In a statement, the group expressed respect for the FBI and law enforcement and doubled down on its mission, saying it remains committed to protecting the Jewish people and fighting antisemitism. The organization also pointed to what it called an unprecedented surge of antisemitism nationwide as proof of why its work is more urgent than ever.

This isn’t the first time the ADL has been at the center of a public firestorm. The group has clashed with celebrities like Kanye West and Kyrie Irving in the past, playing a key role in Adidas cutting ties with Ye after his antisemitic comments and calling on Kyrie to take accountability for a controversial social media post. Those high-profile fights made the ADL a household name in pop culture, but also cemented its reputation as an organization willing to use public pressure to hold people and corporations accountable.

Now the ADL finds itself in the middle of an even bigger battle, losing one of its most significant law enforcement partners. The FBI has long relied on the ADL for training sessions and intelligence on extremist groups, but Patel has made it clear he wants to move in a different direction. For critics of the ADL, this was a long time coming.
Whether this move strengthens or weakens the FBI’s approach to extremism remains to be seen, but it has already reignited debates about the ADL’s role in politics, the balance between advocacy and enforcement, and how groups like Turning Point USA get labeled in the national conversation.