Bondi fielded questions about immigration, weaponization of the Justice Department, and FISA warrants.
Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi fielded questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee on Jan. 15 as part of her confirmation process to serve as the next attorney general of the United States.
During the hearing, both sides of the aisle focused on concerns about the weaponization of the Department of Justice (DOJ), which Bondi pledged not to engage in.
Democrats tended to focus on Bondi’s ties with President-elect Donald Trump and her willingness to maintain the DOJ’s independence from the White House. She also encountered questions about her past as a lobbyist, warrantless searches, illegal immigration, and national security.
While the Senate is expected to confirm Bondi, here are some of the main topics addressed during the hearing:
Weaponization of DOJ
Bondi repeatedly expressed opposition to the weaponization of the DOJ and received multiple questions raising concern about the department’s ability to act independently of political influence.
At the beginning of the hearing, committee ranking member Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) told Bondi that her competence and experience weren’t in question, but rather her “ability to say no” to Trump.
Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and John Kennedy (R-La.) criticized the Biden administration’s DOJ for its prosecution of Trump by former special counsel Jack Smith.
Kennedy said that deciding to prosecute Trump “broke the seal.” He warned that America was headed down a road in which prosecutors would seek to prosecute President Joe Biden’s inner circle for conspiring to conceal his mental decline.
“You’ve got to fix it,” Kennedy told Bondi.
Bondi has received attention for comments she made on Fox News in 2023 when she said: “When Republicans take back the White House … the Department of Justice, the prosecutors will be prosecuted—the bad ones. The investigators will be investigated.”
Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) asked Bondi whether that would include Smith, Attorney General Merrick Garland, or former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), who led the House Jan. 6 Committee.
“No one has been prejudged, nor will anyone be prejudged if I am confirmed,” Bondi responded.
By Sam Dorman
