Michael Burgwald and Courtland Rae, the Washington FBI counterterrorism chief and his deputy, were demoted Friday amid a dispute over their team’s decision not to investigate alleged harassing calls to Katie Miller; CNN said no terrorism link was identified.
CNN reported that the team concluded the alleged threats did not meet the threshold for an FBI investigation. Bloomberg Law said Burgwald and Rae were also sent to bureau headquarters; officials and reports did not disclose details of the calls. Katie Miller is a MAGA podcaster and the wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.
MS NOW reported Stephen Miller and FBI Director Kash Patel were upset that Burgwald and Rae questioned the investigation’s legitimacy, and that Washington field office assistant director-in-charge Darren Cox ordered their removal. White House spokesperson Lauren Bis said FBI leadership believed the two were stifling investigations into very serious threats. Cox said Patel did not order the move and described it as a field-office personnel decision based on mission needs.
