Pam Bondi, tapped by Donald Trump to lead the U.S. Department of Justice, vowed to maintain the department’s integrity and avoid political targeting during her Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on January 15. Bondi, a staunch Trump ally and former Florida attorney general, assured senators that she would not use the Justice Department to punish political adversaries, stating, “There will never be an enemies list within the Department of Justice.”
Despite this, Bondi avoided direct commitments when pressed on whether investigations into Trump’s critics, including Special Counsel Jack Smith, would be off the table. Bondi’s refusal to rule out such inquiries raised concerns among Democrats, who are wary of the potential politicization of the department.
Bondi, who defended Trump during his 2019 impeachment trial, highlighted her past focus on issues like human trafficking and the opioid crisis. However, she critiqued Smith’s investigations into Trump, labeling them as partisan and part of an effort to “weaponize” the Justice Department. Her stance echoes Trump’s repeated claims that he would use the department to target those who investigated him.
During a tense exchange, Democratic senators, including Sheldon Whitehouse, questioned whether Bondi could maintain her independence given her close ties to Trump, referencing the fallout between the president and his first two attorneys general. Bondi, however, firmly rejected accusations of bias, pledging to uphold the department’s credibility.
While Republicans lauded her as the right candidate to restore trust in the Justice Department, Bondi did not shy away from controversial topics. She acknowledged the legitimacy of Biden’s 2020 victory but hinted at election irregularities in Pennsylvania, mirroring Trump’s baseless claims of fraud. Bondi also noted that she would review potential pardons for individuals involved in the January 6 Capitol riots on a “case-by-case” basis, though she suggested that violent offenders might not be granted clemency.
In a nod to her loyalty to Trump, Bondi defended his pick for FBI Director, Kash Patel, despite controversy surrounding Patel’s alleged support for the QAnon conspiracy theory. Bondi, however, distanced herself from Patel’s views, promising to address the matter if it came up during his testimony.
