And our next contestant is: Pam Bondi.
On Thursday, President-elect Donald Trump nominated Florida’s former top prosecutor to serve as America’s 87th attorney general. The announcement came just hours after (the very recently retired) Rep. Matt Gaetz announced he was withdrawing as Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Justice just eight days after his nomination was announced. Amid allegations of sexual misconduct, it became apparent that Gaetz would lack the support needed even among Republican senators for confirmation. And so, in less than one Scaramucci, Gaetz was out.
Bondi previously served as a county prosecutor and later as attorney general of Florida. So far so good.
Gaetz has not been the only Trump nominee to face backlash. Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, has been fending off allegations of sexual misconduct as well (he calls the claims “false”). Linda McMahon, the former chairperson of World Wrestling Entertainment and Trump pick for secretary of education, has been accused of falsely claiming to have earned a degree in education (she eventually corrected the record). Tulsi Gabbard, who Trump tapped as director of national intelligence, has come under fire for meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a leader with close ties to Russia and Iran who is accused of causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of his own people. Gabbard has also raised eyebrows by repeating claims that Russia invaded Ukraine because it hosts U.S.-sponsored biolabs used to create dangerous pathogens.
In other words, Gaetz was the first of Trump’s choices to end up in the reject pile, but he may not be the last. When you run an administration like a reality television show, it is inevitable that some of the characters will be eliminated from the game.
Enter Pam Bondi. Bondi previously served as a county prosecutor and later as attorney general of Florida. So far so good. While she has never had a leadership role at the U.S. Department of Justice, unlike most of her recent predecessors, Bondi has obtained experience that, at least on paper, exceeds that of Janet Reno before she became attorney general during the Clinton administration. Reno was the state attorney for Miami-Dade County before President Bill Clinton tapped her to be his attorney general after two prior failed nominees.
But experience alone is not the only factor in determining whether a person is qualified to serve in this important position. In addition to being “learned in the law,” as the Judiciary Act of 1789 provides, an attorney general is expected to execute a president’s priorities while protecting the rule of law. In the post-Watergate era, a strict separation between DOJ and the White House has insured the independence required to make charging decisions free from political influence.
If confirmed, Bondi would be the first attorney general to answer to a president with newly declared immunity from criminal prosecution for official conduct, following the Supreme Court’s July decision. She would serve at the pleasure of a president who has vowed to seek revenge against his political rivals. Successfully leading the Justice Department in that environment will require an attorney general of unquestioned integrity and the courage to resist inappropriate orders from the president.
Unfortunately, Bondi’s background suggest that she may lack many of those qualities. First, her integrity has been questioned. In 2013, Bondi accepted a $25,000 campaign donation from Trump’s foundation at the same time her office was conducting a fraud investigation into Trump University. Her acceptance of the donation coincided with her decision not to bring fraud charges against Trump University. While no evidence of a quid pro quo arrangement has ever been shown, the timing made her decision suspect. Bondi denied any impropriety and a Florida ethics panel cleared her of wrongdoing.
It also seems unlikely that Bondi would ever push back against Trump.
It also seems unlikely that Bondi would ever push back against Trump. She served as one of the 45th president’s lawyers during his first impeachment trial, working primarily as a media spokesperson to make his case in the press. Following Trump’s victory in 2016, she served on his transition team. She publicly repeated Trump’s false claims of election fraud in 2020. Recently, Bondi signed onto an amicus brief in support of Trump’s efforts to dismiss Jack Smith’s criminal charges on the grounds that the special counsel’s appointment was unconstitutional.
Bondi is also close with Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, whom Bondi is supporting to fill the Senate seat that would be vacated by Marco Rubio (Trump’s pick for secretary of state). Most recently, Bondi has been working with American First Policy, a think tank affiliated with Trump. This is hardly the kind of independence DOJ veterans are looking for in the wake of the infamous Saturday night massacre.
This loyalty is particularly concerning in light of Trump’s vows to seek vengeance against political rivals. In announcing the appointment, Trump posted on social media, “For too long, the partisan Department of Justice has been weaponized against me and other Republicans — Not anymore.” Bondi has shown a taste for vengeance herself — at the 2016 Republican National Convention, Bondi embraced chants of “lock her up.” Even joking about jailing a political opponent is an insult to the rule of law.
Bondi may not have the same flaws as Gaetz, but that doesn’t make her a great choice. Let’s hope Senate Democrats and Republicans stay focused on confirming the best nominees for the job.
