A Secret Service Veteran’s Uncommon Path
Through Federal Law Enforcement’s Inner Sanctum
In the annals of FBI leadership, few appointments have generated as much attention—or as much controversy—as Dan Bongino’s brief tenure as Deputy Director. On December 17, 2025, the former Secret Service agent and conservative media personality announced his departure from the nation’s premier law enforcement agency after just ten months in the position, marking the end of one of the most unconventional chapters in Bureau history.
The announcement came via social media, characteristically direct and gracious. “I will be leaving my position with the FBI in January,” Bongino posted on X (https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/17/politics/dan-bongino-leaving-fbi). “I 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.”
President Trump, speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews earlier that day, offered his own assessment with characteristic brevity: “Dan did a great job. I think he wants to go back to his show.”
An Unprecedented Appointment
When President Trump named Bongino as FBI Deputy Director in February 2025, the appointment represented a dramatic departure from tradition. For more than a century, the position—which oversees the Bureau’s day-to-day operations—had been held exclusively by career FBI agents who had worked their way through the ranks (https://www.npr.org/2025/12/17/nx-s1-5647821/fbi-deputy-director-dan-bongino-stepping-down). Bongino brought no FBI experience to the role, though his law enforcement credentials were substantial in other respects.
Born and raised in Queens, New York, Daniel John Bongino began his public service career with the New York City Police Department in 1995 as a police cadet while attending Queens College. He became a full-time officer in 1997, serving in Brooklyn’s 75th precinct until 1999 (https://www.fbi.gov/about/leadership-and-structure/deputy-director-dan-bongino).
His career trajectory changed significantly when he joined the United States Secret Service in 1999 as a special agent. Initially assigned to the New York Field Office and later the Melville, Long Island Resident Office, Bongino distinguished himself in financial crimes investigation, earning a Department of Justice award for his successful work on the Financial Fraud Task Force. In 2002, he moved to the Secret Service Training Academy in Beltsville, Maryland, where he taught criminal investigative methods and helped redesign the curriculum to address emerging trends in financial crimes.
The pinnacle of Bongino’s Secret Service career came in 2006 when he joined the elite Presidential Protection Division during George W. Bush’s second term. He remained on protective duty through the transition to the Obama administration, coordinating presidential visits to Prague, Jakarta, and even an active war zone in Afghanistan. According to archived campaign materials, Bongino became one of the earliest tenured agents given operational responsibility for sections of the presidential detail (https://www.amazon.com/Life-Inside-Bubble-Top-Ranked-Service/dp/1938067363).
From Protection to Politics to Podcasting
In 2011, Bongino made the unusual decision to resign from the Secret Service to enter politics, running as a Republican for the U.S. Senate in Maryland in 2012. Though he lost to incumbent Senator Ben Cardin, his campaign marked the beginning of a new phase—one that would eventually lead to extraordinary success in conservative media.
Bongino’s transformation into a media powerhouse happened gradually but decisively. He began as a guest commentator on Fox News, eventually hosting “Unfiltered with Dan Bongino” from 2021 to 2023 before parting ways with the network over contract disagreements. But it was his podcast, “The Dan Bongino Show,” that would become his signature achievement and cement his influence in conservative circles.
By 2024, the podcast had become a juggernaut. According to industry tracking, the show saw over 200 million downloads in that year alone, with more than 350 million views on Rumble, the video platform in which Bongino held an investment stake (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/dan-bongino-show-podcast-audience-213600163.html). During July 2024, following the assassination attempt on President Trump, the podcast experienced a 40% surge in audio downloads, reaching over 16 million downloads for the month. The show climbed to number two overall on Apple Podcasts and number three on Spotify’s charts, cementing Bongino’s status as one of America’s most-listened-to political commentators.
His Rumble channel alone topped two million subscribers—more than double his YouTube following—and the platform became his primary distribution method after YouTube permanently banned him in 2022 for COVID-19 misinformation policy violations (https://www.insideradio.com/podcastnewsdaily/dan-bongino-podcast-tops-two-million-subscribers-on-rumble/article_b0e6a5f4-6f16-11ec-acb4-87af9c1b285e.html).
The FBI Chapter: Promise and Turbulence
Bongino assumed his duties as Deputy Director on March 17, 2025, concluding his commentating roles three days earlier. He served under FBI Director Kash Patel, another Trump loyalist without prior FBI experience, in what represented a significant reshaping of Bureau leadership.
The appointment was not without accomplishment. Bongino’s most visible success came on December 4, 2025, when he stood alongside Director Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi to announce the arrest of Brian Cole Jr., a 30-year-old Virginia man charged with planting pipe bombs near the Republican and Democratic National Committee headquarters on the eve of the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot (https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/17/fbi-dan-bongino-steps-down-epstein-jan-6.html).
The pipe bomb case held special significance for Bongino, who had previously discussed the incident extensively on his podcast. He had told Fox News host Sean Hannity that his first meeting upon joining the Bureau involved requesting a full briefing on the case. The successful arrest represented a vindication of sorts—a tangible law enforcement victory during his brief tenure.
FBI Director Patel praised Bongino’s service in a statement following the resignation announcement. “Dan is the best partner I could’ve asked for in helping restore this FBI,” Patel wrote on X. “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” (https://www.newsweek.com/fbi-deputy-director-dan-bongino-plans-to-leave-patel-11229654).
The Epstein Files Controversy
However, Bongino’s tenure was also marked by significant internal tensions, particularly surrounding the handling of files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. As a private citizen and podcaster, Bongino had been vocal in questioning official accounts of Epstein’s 2019 death in federal custody and had called for the release of what he believed were hidden documents.
In July 2025, the FBI and Department of Justice issued a joint memo stating that after an exhaustive review, they found no “client list” in the evidence and that no additional individuals would be charged in connection with Epstein’s sex trafficking operation (https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/fbi-deputy-director-dan-bongino-leave-post-january-rcna249789). The memo sparked immediate backlash from Trump supporters who had expected more revelations.
According to multiple reports, Bongino and Attorney General Bondi had a heated confrontation following the memo’s release. Axios reported that Bongino threatened to resign during what was described as a contentious meeting (https://www.axios.com/2025/12/17/dan-bongino-tenure-fbi-trump-show). The episode highlighted the difficulty Bongino faced in reconciling his previous media commentary with his law enforcement responsibilities.
In a May interview with Hannity, Bongino attempted to address the tension between his past statements and his current role. “I was paid in the past, Sean, for my opinions,” he explained. “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” (https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/fbi-deputy-director-dan-bongino-leave-post-january-rcna249789).
This public recalibration earned Bongino criticism from some of his longtime supporters who had expected him to maintain his more provocative positions even within government. The challenge of serving both as a Trump administration official and as someone with a history of promoting conspiracy theories about the very institution he now led proved to be a persistent source of tension.
A Unique Leadership Challenge
The structural challenges Bongino faced were considerable. In August 2025, in what many interpreted as a signal of waning confidence, the administration appointed Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey as co-deputy director alongside Bongino (https://www.axios.com/2025/12/17/dan-bongino-tenure-fbi-trump-show). This unusual arrangement fueled speculation about Bongino’s future with the Bureau.
Sources close to the situation told media outlets that Bongino had complained both publicly and privately about the demanding nature of the position and its impact on his personal life (https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/17/politics/dan-bongino-leaving-fbi). The role of Deputy Director traditionally involves managing the day-to-day operations of an agency with over 35,000 employees—a far cry from the relative autonomy of hosting a daily podcast.
Reports emerged that Bongino had quietly told confidants he would not return to headquarters to work in December and had begun clearing personal effects from his office (https://www.thedailybeast.com/dan-bongino-is-boxing-up-his-fbi-office-as-exit-talk-grows/). By the time Trump made his comment about Bongino wanting to return to his show, the deputy director’s departure had become an open secret within the Bureau.
Assessing the Service
To evaluate Bongino’s FBI tenure fairly requires acknowledging both the accomplishments and the inherent challenges of his position. On the positive side of the ledger, he successfully helped lead a major investigation to a resolution with the pipe bomb arrest. He brought an outsider’s perspective to an institution that Trump and his allies believed needed reform. And he maintained his composure and professionalism during what must have been an extraordinarily difficult transition from media personality to law enforcement executive.
The challenges, however, were equally significant. Bongino’s lack of FBI experience meant he was learning the agency’s culture and operations while simultaneously trying to reshape them. His past statements on various conspiracy theories created credibility issues both within the Bureau and with segments of the public. The Epstein files controversy demonstrated the difficulty of managing expectations when campaign promises met institutional realities.
Career FBI agents reportedly struggled with having leadership that lacked institutional experience and knowledge. Yet to Bongino’s credit, he appears to have recognized when his previous media statements conflicted with the evidence he encountered in his official capacity and was willing to publicly acknowledge that his views had evolved.
The Media Empire Awaits
As Bongino prepares to depart the FBI in January 2026, he returns to a media landscape where he remains a dominant force. His podcast continues to rank among the most popular in America, and his Rumble platform provides him with an independent distribution channel insulated from the content moderation policies that led to his YouTube ban.
The financial opportunities awaiting Bongino in the private sector far exceed his government salary. As both a content creator and an investor in platforms like Rumble and other conservative media ventures, he has built a media empire that generates substantial revenue and reaches millions of Americans daily. His books, including several New York Times bestsellers on political topics, provide additional income streams.
More importantly, Bongino returns to the media world with enhanced credentials. He can now speak not just as a former Secret Service agent but as someone who served at the highest levels of federal law enforcement. His brief FBI tenure, regardless of its challenges, provides him with insider knowledge that will inform his commentary and likely attract even larger audiences.
A Singular Moment in Bureau History
Dan Bongino’s ten months as FBI Deputy Director will be remembered as an unusual experiment in the annals of the Bureau—an attempt to bring an outsider’s perspective to an institution long dominated by career professionals. Whether that experiment succeeded or failed depends largely on one’s perspective and priorities.
For those who believed the FBI needed disruption and reform from outside its traditional culture, Bongino’s appointment represented a bold attempt at change. For those who valued institutional experience and continuity in law enforcement leadership, his brief tenure confirmed their concerns about the dangers of prioritizing political loyalty over professional qualification.
What seems beyond dispute is that Bongino approached the role with sincerity and dedication, even as he grappled with the tension between his past commentary and present responsibilities. He delivered at least one significant investigative success with the pipe bomb case, and by most accounts, he worked diligently even when the demands of the position proved taxing.
As he departs in January, Bongino leaves behind questions about the future direction of FBI leadership under the Trump administration, but also a record of service that, while brief and sometimes controversial, was marked by a genuine effort to fulfill the responsibilities of his office.
Looking Forward
In his departure statement, Bongino struck a note of gratitude and patriotism: “God bless America, and all those who defend Her” (https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dan-bongino-resign-from-fbi-deputy-director-role-january). It was a fitting conclusion to a chapter that, whatever its challenges, represented a sincere attempt at public service by someone who had already built a successful career and could have remained comfortably in the private sector.
As Bongino returns to full-time media work, he carries with him experiences that few podcasters or commentators can claim. He has seen the inner workings of federal law enforcement at the highest levels. He has grappled with the complexities of managing a massive bureaucracy. And he has learned firsthand the difference between criticizing institutions from the outside and trying to reform them from within.
For the FBI, Bongino’s departure marks the end of an unusual period and likely a return to more traditional leadership models. For Bongino himself, it represents a return to the work he does best—communicating with millions of Americans through his podcast and media platforms, now enhanced by his expanded law enforcement experience.
Whatever history’s ultimate verdict on his FBI service, Dan Bongino’s willingness to step away from a lucrative media career to take on a demanding government role deserves acknowledgment. In an era when many talk about service, Bongino acted on it, accepting a position of enormous responsibility despite the personal and professional costs.
As he returns to his microphone and his audience, millions of listeners will undoubtedly tune in to hear his reflections on this singular chapter of his career. And whatever else one might say about Dan Bongino’s ten months at the FBI, it certainly won’t be boring to hear his take on it.