Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference at National Harbor in Mundel Gan, Maryland, on February 23. Mandel Gunn/AFP via Getty Images Hide caption
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Mandel Gunn/AFP via Getty Images
President-elect Donald Trump has nominated former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as his candidate for the next U.S. attorney general.
Bondi, who served as Florida’s top prosecutor from 2011 to 2019, is a longtime ally of President Trump and was one of his lawyers during his first impeachment trial. She heads the legal department of the America First Policy Institute, a think tank founded by former Trump-era staffers.
“Pam served as a prosecutor for nearly 20 years, was tough on violent criminals, and kept our streets safe for families in Florida. As the state’s first female attorney general, she said: I asked her to be in charge of opioids in my first term because she did such a great job. I worked with the Substance Abuse Commission during that time and saved many lives!”
President Trump added: “For too long, a partisan Department of Justice has been used as a weapon against me and other Republicans, and that’s no longer the case. “We will refocus on our original purpose, which is to make America safe again.”
The Justice Department is key to Mr. Trump’s second-term agenda, and the department could aim to make it more accountable to the president and go after perceived enemies. Vice President-elect J.D. Vance said the role of attorney general is the most important job in the next administration, next to that of the president.
Whoever takes this position will join a department of more than 115,000 people who will enforce President Trump’s policies while prosecuting crimes, policing businesses, protecting civil rights, and upholding American laws in all aspects of government. must supervise the day-to-day operations of .
Mr. Bondi’s selection continues President Trump’s practice of choosing former lawyers to lead the new administration. Last week, he named former federal prosecutor Todd Branch as deputy attorney general and Emile Bove, who will serve as acting deputy attorney general while Branch waits for confirmation, as chief deputy attorney general. They have represented Trump in several cases, including a New York criminal case in which a jury convicted him of 34 felonies. Trump has not yet been sentenced in the case.
Former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, who had been previously nominated by President Trump to be attorney general, was selected last week after allegations of attending sex parties, using illegal drugs, and having sex with minors. He faced controversy from the day he was selected. Gates has consistently denied this. The FBI investigated these charges starting in 2021, but the Justice Department did not prosecute.
Some lawmakers worried that Gaetz lacked the temperament or experience to lead a department that has long emphasized independence and impartiality in law enforcement.
