President-elect Donald Trump ended a turbulent week for his prior pick, Matt Gaetz, by appointing longtime buddy Pam Bondi as his new attorney general on Thursday.
Hours after Gaetz removed his name from consideration due to heightened scrutiny over sexual misconduct claims, Bondi was promoted.
Bondi would head the Justice Department and establish the guidelines for federal investigations and prosecutions if he were confirmed. Some of Trump’s detractors worry that he would use his administration to exact revenge on them, which is why he chose him to be the country’s top law enforcement official.
“The partisan Department of Justice has been used as a weapon against Republicans like me for far too long.” Trump stated on Truth Social, “Not anymore.””Pam will refocus the DOJ to its intended purpose of fighting Crime, and Making America Safe Again.”
Additionally, Trump commended her efforts to combat the trafficking of lethal pharmaceuticals. Bondi, who served as Florida’s attorney general from 2011 to 2019, was a member of a Trump committee that addressed drug addiction and the opioid crisis.
According to the firm’s website, she is currently a partner with Ballard Partners, a lobbying firm, where she chairs the corporate regulatory compliance practice.
Bondi and Trump have a long history. She participated in lock-up chants directed against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the 2016 Republican National Convention. She then served on Trump’s defense team during his initial impeachment trial.
Bondi was implicated in attempts to reverse the 2020 election results after Trump lost. At a news conference in Philadelphia, he falsely claimed that Trump had won Pennsylvania.
There have been prior allegations of improper behavior regarding Trump and Bondi’s relationship, which both parties have refuted. When Bondi was Florida’s attorney general, her campaign committee received a $25,000 payment from Trump’s charity in 2013. According to reports, the donation coincided with a request for Bondi’s office to investigate claims of fraud against Trump University.
Bondi refrained from filing a lawsuit against Trump. After an ethical organization claimed that the foundation had failed to report to tax authorities its payment to the campaign group, he paid a $2,500 fine to the IRS.
Bondi would serve as attorney general and head the Justice Department, which employs over 115,000 people and is home to the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Bureau of Prisons.
The Senate must confirm the attorney general position.
Gaetz called Bondi an excellent choice and complimented Trump’s announcement on X.
“She is a champion for all Americans, an inspiring leader, and a proven litigator,” he said. She will provide DOJ with the necessary reforms.
In his announcement early Thursday that he was pulling his name out of consideration, Gaetz claimed that his “confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition.”
Gaetz is accused of having sex with a girl who is 17 years old. The charges against him have been refuted by him.
On Truth Social on Thursday, Trump lauded Gaetz, saying he “has a wonderful future.”
Senate Republicans initially reacted more favorably to Bondi’s appointment than to Trump’s choice of Gaetz.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., stated on X that “Picking Pam Bondi for Attorney General is a grand slam, touchdown, hole in one, ace, hat trick, slam dunk, Olympic gold medal pick.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee, of which Graham is a member, will hear the attorney general nominee’s confirmation hearings.
Trump’s choices for high-level cabinet positions have already encountered challenges.
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence, has been accused of promoting pro-Russia propaganda, while Pete Hegseth, his pick for defense secretary, is accused of sexual assault. Trump’s choice to be secretary of health and human services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has come under fire for his past support of abortion rights as well as his anti-vaccine activity.
In an effort to secure confirmation of his Cabinet choices in the upcoming Congress, when Republicans will command a 53-47 Senate majority, Trump has been interacting with senators.
According to two people familiar with the conversations, the president-elect has met at his Mar-a-Lago home with Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., since Gaetz withdrew.
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