FBI deputy director Dan Bongino is expected to leave in the coming weeks after less than a year on the job. Utah Sen. Mike Lee, one of Bongino’s loudest boosters, now has little to say.

The New York Times reported this week that Bongino has been packing up his office and shipping personal items back to Florida, where he plans to resume his right‑wing media career.

The looming departure follows reports that President Donald Trump wants a scapegoat for the Epstein-files debacle. Rachel Bade writes in her Inner Circle Substack newsletter that Bongino clashed with Attorney General Pam Bondi over the release of government documents related to the convicted sex trafficker, and even “refused to show up for work for a time.”

And a 115‑page report prepared for congressional committees on FBI Director Kash Patel and Bongino’s first six months at the bureau savaged Bongino—one longtime agent called him “something of a clown.”

Lee’s ties to Bongino go back more than a decade. He endorsed the former U.S. Secret Service agent in Bongino’s 2012 Maryland U.S. Senate bid. Bongino lost to Democrat Ben Cardin by nearly 30 points.

Lee backed Bongino again in 2014 when he ran for Maryland’s 6th Congressional District. Bongino narrowly lost that race by about 2,800 votes.

In 2018, Bongino returned the favor, signing a letter supporting Lee as a potential Supreme Court nominee during Trump’s first term.

When Bongino was named FBI Deputy Director in February, Lee could barely contain himself, posting on social media, “Let’s freaking go.”

He followed up: “I’ve known @dbongino for 14 years. I think the world of him—he has incredibly sound judgment, the highest standards of integrity, and a work ethic like few people I’ve ever met. I can’t think of a better man [sic] serve as @Kash‑Patel’s deputy at FBI.”

A few days later, replying to Juanita Broaddrick’s “The FBI needs to be gutted and start all over,” Lee said, “I have great confidence that @Kash_Patel and @dbongino will fix [sic]FBI. It needs fixing—quickly.”

Lee’s office did not respond to a request for comment about Bongino’s impending exit after roughly nine months on the job.