Trump Media & Technology (NASDAQ:DJT) stock surged over 2% in premarket trading on Monday after President-elect Donald Trump picked Kashyap "Kash" Patel to lead the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) over the Thanksgiving weekend.
What Happened: Patel is currently a board member of Trump Media, a company primarily owned by Trump. The President-elect's pick to lead the FBI served in other national security roles between 2016 and 2020. Trump Media runs the social media platform, Truth Social.
Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes called Patel a "brilliant pick" to serve as the FBI head.
"Kash and I worked closely together to expose the saboteurs within the Intelligence Community who perpetuated the Russia collusion hoax," Nunes said in a press release issued by Trump Media.
"Kash has the intelligence and fearlessness to expose the corruption in the FBI, reverse its damaging politicization, and restore Americans' confidence in the Bureau's basic honesty."
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Patel has vowed to redirect the FBI's focus on pursuing criminal issues, divesting from its intelligence gathering efforts, according to a Reuters report.
"The biggest problem the FBI has had has come out of its intel shops. I'd break that component out of it. I'd shut down the FBI Hoover building on day one and reopen it the next day as a museum of the deep state," Patel said in an interview in September.
Price Action: Trump Media stock closed at $31.60 on Friday, ending the day up by 3.8%. In premarket trading on Monday, the stock was up by more than 2%. Year-to-date, Trump Media stock has gained 81%, according to Benzinga Pro data.
