OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, whom President-elect Donald Trump has tapped to become the next U.S. attorney general, is keeping her cards close to her vest.
Bondi did not respond to a reporter on Capitol Hill when asked whether prosecutions of January 6 protesters will continue if she is confirmed by the Senate next year.
“Trump Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi declines to answer whether any January 6th prosecutions will continue under her,” Florida’s Voice correspondent Eric Daugherty wrote on his X account Monday evening. He added: “To be clear, this is angering Democrats because they want her to say ‘yes.'”
(To be clear, this is angering Democrats because they want her to say “yes”)
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 3, 2024
Bondi, meanwhile, is on Capitol Hill this week meeting with senators ahead of her confirmation hearings, Politico reported.
On Monday, Bondi met with Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who is set to chair the Senate Judiciary Committee responsible for holding hearings to examine her record and qualifications. Later, she met with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), also a member of the Judiciary Committee, who expressed his support, stating that he has known Bondi for years and considers her “very well qualified.”
“I don’t think President Trump could have done better,” said Graham, a close ally of Trump. “The confirmation hearings will be challenging, as they should be, but I have every confidence that she will acquit herself well.”’
After her meeting with Sen. Lindsey Graham, Bondi provided little commentary, saying only that the discussions went well. She is scheduled to return to Capitol Hill today for additional meetings with Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans. Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) told POLITICO at the Capitol that he plans to meet with Bondi and expects to do “more listening than talking” during their conversation, Politico added.
“I expect all these confirmation hearings to be very robust, and they should be,” Kennedy said when asked if he believes Bondi will face any challenges to confirmation. “That’s why God made them, but we’ll properly vet all the president’s nominees, just like we did President Biden’s nominees.”
Given her long-standing political ties to Trump, Bondi is expected to face tough questioning about his threats to seek retribution if reelected, the outlet reported further. While she has been vocal in criticizing the criminal cases against Trump, she has said relatively little about the January 6 riot at the Capitol nearly four years ago or the Department of Justice’s prosecutions of those involved in the riot.
Asked for his input on Monday night, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida said he’d advise Bondi not to “try to be liked by the bureaucrats” if confirmed to lead the DOJ. “Expect to be attacked relentlessly by the corporate press,” he said on “The Ingraham Angle” on Fox News. “And know when that happens that’s a badge of honor, that means you’re doing the right thing.”
Bondi will definitely have her hands full in dealing with reports of corruption and malfeasance at the DOJ.
That said, IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley expressed optimism that the incoming Trump administration will thoroughly investigate the Biden administration’s Justice Department and address the alleged misconduct that he claims tainted its investigations into Hunter Biden, the Washington Examiner reported.
Shapley, one of two IRS whistleblowers who provided insight into the investigation of Hunter Biden’s taxes, acknowledged President Joe Biden’s assertion that his son was “singled out” in his prosecution but argued this was due to Hunter receiving “preferential treatment,” citing the recent sweeping pardon as the latest example.
He also criticized special counsel David Weiss’s stance that Hunter Biden’s charges should not be dismissed, accusing the Justice Department of trying to create the illusion that it is “still in the game” when it comes to pursuing legal action against the first son.
“Hopefully, when the new administration comes in and the new attorney general Bondi comes in, they’ll be looking into this,” Shapley said on Fox News’s The Ingraham Angle. “Maybe appoint a special counsel to investigate this special counsel, because that’s what’s needed because the level of malfeasance that occurred at every level from the attorney general Merrick Garland to David Weiss, the FBI to IRS leadership is just quite appalling.”
