WASHINGTON — FBI Director Kash Patel denied allegations about his alcohol consumption Tuesday as Senate Democrats raised concerns about his leadership, pressing him on a series of rolling controversies at the agency.

At one point during a more than two-hour budget hearing, Patel lashed out at Sen. Chris Van Hollen after the Maryland Democrat pointed to allegations outlined in an article from The Atlantic magazine. Patel has filed a defamation lawsuit over the reporting.

“I will not be tarnished by baseless allegations,” Patel said during the exchange before the Senate Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee.

The exchanges occurred at a hearing in which Republicans turned their attention to other key Justice Department officials who appeared on the panel, or asked less contentious questions of Patel.

Under questioning from Van Hollen, Patel denied allegations of episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences during his time as FBI director, saying those accusations were “unequivocally, categorically false.”

He also said there were no occasions in which his security detail had trouble locating or waking him. “It’s a total farce. I don’t even know where you get this stuff, but it doesn’t make it credible,” Patel said.

Moments later, Patel escalated the exchange, accusing Van Hollen of “slinging margaritas in El Salvador,” an apparent reference to the senator meeting with Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, the wrongly deported immigrant at the center of a high-profile legal battle tied to the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts.

“Come on, these are serious allegations that were made against you,” Van Hollen told Patel.

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., praised the FBI’s work in her home state, including an operation with state and local authorities that led to more than 60 arrests and the recovery of dozens of firearms.

“As a resident of Montgomery, and as someone who is raising her children there, I want to say thank you, on behalf of me, on behalf of all the moms and dads that are raising their family there,” Britt said.

Patel, a staunch Trump ally, faced headwinds going into the hearing, as his tenure has been defined by a series of controversies that have ranged from personal to professional.

Under Patel’s leadership, critics say, the agency has engaged in the partisan-fueled firing of career FBI officials, irresponsibly diverted FBI resources toward immigration enforcement and turned resources toward targeting Trump’s adversaries.

The Justice Department has now twice indicted former FBI Director James Comey. The first case was thrown out by a judge. The latest case involves allegations that an Instagram post by Comey showing seashells spelling out “86 47” was in fact an assassination threat against Trump.

Concerns about Patel’s leadership also emerged after video surfaced earlier this year of Patel partying with members of the men’s USA hockey team following their gold medal win at the Winter Olympics.

Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the full Senate Appropriations Committee, told Patel she was “deeply concerned” with reports about his leadership.

“We need somebody at this agency who’s focused on solving criminal cases, not passing out branded bourbon or jetting around the globe,” she said.

“If you want to pass out liquor or pop bottles in a locker room, stick to podcasting — leave law and order to people who really do care about justice,” she said.

Patel responded by citing figures on the agency’s work on going after violent offenders, human traffickers, criminal gangs and wanted fugitives.

“If people want to continue the baseless, fraudulent, false personal attacks at me, that’s great,” Patel said. “Keep the target on me, as I’ve always said. But the mission has never been better.”

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