Kash Patel to be named acting ATF chief, sources say

Kash Patel, the newly sworn-in director of the FBI, is expected to also be named acting head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, two Justice Department sources confirmed to CBS News Saturday.

Following a lengthy process, Patel, a Trump loyalist, was confirmed by the Senate Thursday as FBI director in a slim 51-49 margin, with two Republican senators joining all Democrats in dissent.

The ATF, like the FBI, is an agency within the Justice Department. It has more than 5,200 employees and a budget of approximately $1.6 billion. One of its primary responsibilities is to investigate gun crimes.