One would think that K$sh Patel, too unqualified to be deputy director but now director, could find an active agent who supported his liege within that otherwise famously progressive organization, the Federal Bureau of Investigation. After all, there must be a few of the Republicans who aren’t so RINO or conservative that they would take issue with the agenda of a president whose goal was to remake what was once the nation’s premier law enforcement agency into his personal arm of retribution.

But apparently not.

Mr. Trump, making the announcement on his social media site, said the newly installed F.B.I. director, Kash Patel, had named Mr. Bongino to the No. 2 post at the country’s most powerful law enforcement agency. The role of deputy director does not require Senate confirmation, meaning two steadfast Trump loyalists will effectively be installed at the uppermost reaches of an agency known for its tradition of independence.

Oddly enough, the announcement came on the heels of the agents’ association sending out a message to soothe concerns by stating that Patel acknowledged that the dep should be an active agent, someone with knowledge of what the agency does and how it functions. Not only would this serve to make the new deputy more effective in the performance of his job, but to establish some level of trust in the new management.

No matter how much Trump, or you, loves the choice of Patel, FBI agents can be funny about who they believe deserves to be their boss, and part of that trust involves the expectation that they won’t get canned for doing their jobs should the target end up being a supporter, past or post hoc, of the big guy. Indeed, some FBI agents might even be so bold as to believe that if they catch an FOT (Friend of Trump) doing the dirty, they should do something about it.

And then, about an hour after their union sought to calm their concerns, boom.

The choice of Mr. Bongino is a radical and abrupt departure from that practice and raises startling questions about how two people who have never served as F.B.I. agents will oversee the vast surveillance and investigative powers of an agency of 38,000 people and a budget of about $11 billion.

The combination of Mr. Patel and Mr. Bongino will represent the least experienced leadership pair in the history of a bureau typically insulated from White House interference. It will also ensure that the bureau will be run by men who have freely peddled misinformation and embraced partisan politics.

It’s not as if Dan Bongino has no law enforcement experience. He was an NYPD cop for four years, then served with the Secret Service, eventually making it to the presidential protective detail during the Bush and Obama administrations. He left in 2011 and ran for the Senate in Maryland and got crushed. Since then, he’s been busy.

A former Fox News host, Mr. Bongino left the network in 2023. Notably, he hosted Mr. Trump on his show in 2021, at a time when the network — and much of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire — was trying to turn the page on the Trump era.

His tough-talking style catapulted him to stardom on radio and on social media, where he often peddles rampant misinformation. That includes spreading the falsehood that the 2020 election was stolen, falsely claiming that masks are ineffective at preventing the spread of the coronavirus, and perpetuating labyrinthine and baseless conspiracy theories involving a plot by Democrats to spy on Mr. Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Ironically, a wag might argue that Bongino has better qualifications than Patel, which isn’t to say that Bongino is qualified, but highlights how much Patel is not. But like Patel, Bongino is a Trump lackey, dedicated to what Trump truly appreciates.

“My entire life right now is about owning the libs,” Mr. Bongino said in 2018. He has also echoed a popular grievance among the far right denouncing the so-called deep state.

It would be foolish to believe that Patel’s nomination wasn’t grounded in Trump’s belief that he will dedicate himself to serving whatever purpose pop into Trump’s mind, foremost of which is keeping law enforcement far away from any of Trump’s business interests. But the FBI still needs to function, if only somewhat, to conduct counter-espionage should Xi’s Putin’s Zelensky’s spies try to infiltrate the nation, not to mention the occasional bank robber.

To that end, and with the trust of the bureau at stake, Patel could have well chosen a seasoned agent with Trumpian sympathies as well as the ability and experience to do the job. Instead, he picked (or acquiesced to Trump’s pick) Bongino. The 5 to 6 thousand agents who performed as directed in the investigation and prosecution of January 6th insurrectionists will likely not feel comforted by their new leadership and their future with the Bureau. Nor will their friends and comrades within the FBI.