Dan Bongino facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dan Bongino
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Official portrait, 2025
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| 20th Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation | |
| Assumed office March 17, 2025 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Director | Kash Patel |
| Preceded by | Paul Abbate |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Daniel John Bongino
December 4, 1974 New York City, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Paula Martinez |
| Children | 2 |
| Education |
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| Signature |  |
| Police career | |
| Department | Presidential Protection Division |
| Country | |
| Years of service |
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| Rank | Special agent |
Daniel John Bongino (born December 4, 1974) is an American political commentator, radio host, and former law enforcement officer. Since March 2025, he has served as the 20th Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Before this, he hosted The Dan Bongino Show on Rumble and Unfiltered with Dan Bongino on Fox News.
Bongino started his career as a New York City Police Department (NYPD) officer from 1995 to 1999. He then became a U.S. Secret Service agent from 1999 to 2011. Later, he ran for Congress three times as a Republican but was not elected. On February 23, 2025, President Donald Trump announced that Bongino would be the next deputy director of the FBI. He took office on March 17, 2025, after finishing his commentating roles.
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Early Life and Education
Daniel John Bongino was born and grew up in Queens, New York City. His family background is Italian.
He graduated from Archbishop Molloy High School in 1992. This was a Catholic high school for boys in Jamaica, Queens. He went to Queens College. There, he earned bachelor's and master's degrees in psychology. He also earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Pennsylvania State University.
Law Enforcement Career
Bongino worked as a police officer for the New York City Police Department from 1995 to 1999.
In 1999, Bongino joined the United States Secret Service as a special agent. In 2002, he moved from the New York Field Office. He became an instructor at the Secret Service Training Academy in Beltsville, Maryland. From 2006, he was part of the Presidential Protection Division. He protected President George W. Bush during his second term. He continued this duty after Barack Obama became president. He left the Secret Service in May 2011 to run for the U.S. Senate.
Some former colleagues criticized Bongino. They felt he used his Secret Service background too much in his political campaigns. They also questioned his claims of having secret information from the Obama White House. Bongino stated he had access to "high-level discussions" in the White House.
Media Career
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Dan Bongino has been a radio host and commentator. He worked on both local and national shows. He was a guest host for The Sean Hannity Show and The Mark Levin Show. He also filled in on WMAL-FM in Washington, D.C., and WBAL in Baltimore. He was a paid contributor to NRATV until December 2018. He also guest-hosted Hannity on Fox News in December 2018.
In December 2019, Bongino started the Bongino Report. This was meant to be an alternative to the Drudge Report. He believed the Drudge Report was no longer fully supporting Donald Trump.
In October 2020, Politico reported that Bongino's posts on Facebook were often among the most shared.
After the January 6 United States Capitol attack, Bongino's Twitter account was temporarily suspended. This happened on January 7, 2021, for breaking the platform's rules. On his podcast, he said that political violence had become normal. He also accused some media outlets of being unfair in their protest coverage.
In March 2021, Cumulus Media hired Bongino. He replaced The Rush Limbaugh Show on their talk radio stations. He also continued his one-hour podcast. In May 2021, Fox News announced he would host Unfiltered with Dan Bongino. This show started on June 5. From July to August 2021, he hosted Canceled in the USA. This was a five-part Fox Nation series about cancel culture. Talkers Magazine estimated his radio show had 8.5 million listeners by October 2021. It was the second most popular show trying to replace Limbaugh.
In January 2022, YouTube permanently banned Bongino. This was because he tried to get around a temporary ban. The ban was related to a video that questioned how well masks worked during the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the ban, he had already moved his podcast to Rumble.
On December 11, 2022, Bongino said he would end his Cumulus radio show. This would happen when his contract finished. Cumulus started removing his show from its stations in June 2023. However, in December 2023, he changed his mind. He signed a new multi-year contract with Westwood One. When Bongino took his FBI job in 2025, Westwood One replaced him with Vince Coglianese.
On April 20, 2023, Bongino announced he was leaving Fox News. He said this was because they could not agree on a new contract.
Views on Vaccine Mandates
On October 19, 2021, Bongino stated he was against companies requiring vaccines. He said he had been vaccinated himself. He asked his employer, Cumulus Media, to end their vaccine rule. This rule had been announced in September. Some unvaccinated employees at Cumulus had already been fired.
Bongino said on his show, "You can have me or the mandate. But you can't have both of us." After a break, he returned and said he was discussing his request with Cumulus. He also started a fund for former Cumulus employees who lost their jobs due to the vaccine rule.
In a December 2021 interview, Bongino confirmed he had received the COVID-19 vaccine. He said his doctor advised it because of his lymphoma.
Political Aspirations
Dan Bongino ran for political office several times.
2012 U.S. Senate Election
Bongino ran for the U.S. Senate in Maryland in 2012. He won the Republican primary election on April 3, 2012. He received 33.8 percent of the votes. However, he lost the main election by a large margin. He only got 26.6% of the votes against the current Democrat, Ben Cardin.
2014 House of Representatives Election
In 2014, Bongino ran for a U.S. House seat in Maryland's 6th congressional district. He ran against the current Democrat, John Delaney. Bongino lost by a very small amount, just 1.5 percentage points.
2016 House of Representatives Election
After moving to Florida in 2015, Bongino decided to run for the Republican nomination in Florida's 19th congressional district. He competed against Chauncey Goss and Francis Rooney. He finished third in the primary election in August 2016. He did not win the nomination.
Deputy Director of the FBI
On February 23, 2025, President Donald Trump announced that Bongino would be the next deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Bongino started his new role on March 17, 2025. The deputy director position does not need approval from the Senate.
Political Views
Bongino is a strong supporter of President Donald Trump. He has said that his goal is to challenge opposing political views.
He has called the investigation into possible Trump-Russia collusion a "total scam." He also supports the Spygate conspiracy theory. This theory suggests there was improper surveillance of Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.
Bongino has spoken out against efforts to reduce funding for police departments. He called such ideas an "abomination."
After Joe Biden won the 2020 election, Bongino supported false claims of election fraud. He said that Democrats had cheated in the election. He was listed among the top "superspreaders of election misinformation" by the group Avaaz.
Bongino was also a strong critic of face mask mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. He stated that face masks were not very effective.
Books Written
Bongino has written several books. These books are about his time in law enforcement, his political views, and his support for Donald Trump.
His first book, Life Inside the Bubble, was published in 2013. It shares his experiences as a Secret Service agent. This includes protecting presidents and investigating crimes. In 2016, he released The Fight: A Secret Service Agent's Inside Account of Security Failings and the Political Machine. This book focuses on security problems and political issues.
In 2019, Bongino published Spygate: The Attempted Sabotage of Donald J. Trump. This book promotes the Spygate conspiracy theory. Later that year, he released Exonerated: The Failed Takedown of President Donald Trump by the Swamp. This book appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list.
Personal Life
Bongino is married to Paula Andrea, whose maiden name was Martinez. She was born in Colombia. They have two daughters together. In 2012, he and his wife ran three businesses from their home. They sold martial arts clothing, designed websites, and advised on security.
Bongino lived in Severna Park, Maryland, from 2002 to 2015. He then moved to Palm City, Florida.
In June 2020, Bongino announced he had bought a part of Parler. This is an alternative social media platform.
Health
On September 23, 2020, Bongino shared that doctors found a seven-centimeter tumor in his throat. He was unsure if it was cancerous. On October 2, he said he received "bad news" from doctors. He had surgery on October 7.
After his surgery, he tweeted that the "entire tumor" was removed. He also said he likely had lymphoma. On October 16, he confirmed he had Hodgkin lymphoma. He continued to receive treatment. In July 2021, Bongino stated that he had "beaten" cancer.
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