Judge Tosses Patel's Defamation Suit: Calling Him a "Nightclub Regular" Is "Rhetorical Hyperbole"
A federal judge dismissed FBI Director Kash Patel's defamation lawsuit against ex-FBI official Frank Figliuzzi, who said Patel was "visible at nightclubs far more than the seventh floor of" FBI HQ. The judge ruled it was "rhetorical hyperbole" — not defamation. The next day, Patel filed a new $250 million lawsuit against The Atlantic over its 26-source exposé on his drinking.