WASHINGTON – During her Senate confirmation hearing, Attorney General Pam Bondi promised to remove politics from the Justice Department and avoid using it as a tool to oversee a wide range of federal law enforcement activities. Before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Jan. 15, Bondi emphasized that under her leadership, the Justice Department would base its decisions solely on facts and the law, without influence from the White House or President Donald Trump’s desire for retribution. She assured senators that she would support frontline prosecutors and case agents from agencies like the FBI and DEA, while rooting out any corrupt individuals. Bondi, a former two-term Florida attorney general who defended Trump during his 2020 impeachment, indicated that she would stand up to the president if asked to engage in wrongdoing or unconstitutional actions. She reiterated the importance of maintaining the Justice Department’s independence and commitment to enforcing the law fairly. Despite these statements, Bondi quickly aligned the Justice Department with Trump’s political agenda after being sworn in on Feb. 5, issuing a series of memorandums that reversed key DOJ policies and established a “Weaponization Working Group” to investigate prosecutions of Trump deemed politically motivated. The DOJ also scrapped initiatives aimed at safeguarding U.S. democratic processes from foreign interference. Bondi’s tenure has seen the dismissal, reassignment, or investigation of numerous senior officials, including those involved in Trump-related cases and individuals who opposed political interference in the Justice Department and FBI.
At her confirmation hearing, Bondi opposed pardoning defendants involved in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, as suggested by Trump. She stated that she would review each defendant on a case-by-case basis. When Trump issued a blanket pardon to almost 1,600 defendants on his first day in office, Bondi was not yet confirmed. Despite this, Bondi did not publicly object to the pardons, and the DOJ helped to facilitate them.
Bondi’s first news conference, held on Feb. 12, included the announcement that the Justice Department was suing New York officials, including Attorney General Letitia James, over the state’s immigration policies. Shortly after, the DOJ dropped the prosecution of a Trump political ally, New York Mayor Eric Adams, on bribery and campaign finance charges. This decision was made by top Bondi aide Emil Bove, against the objections of the case’s prosecutors.
Following these events, acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon expressed concerns to Bondi about not using the criminal enforcement authority for political objectives. After Sassoon resigned, along with six other prosecutors, Bondi continued her work, campaigning for Trump and reportedly earning from investments related to his social media platform, Truth Social.
The Senate recently confirmed Todd Blanche as deputy attorney general, the No. 2 position at the DOJ, under Bondi’s leadership. Bondi aims to depoliticize the DOJ and address biases against Trump and political conservatives. Supporters like Sen. Chuck Grassley see Bondi as a highly qualified choice for bringing necessary change to the Justice Department.
The Justice Department, represented by spokesperson Chad Gilmartin, chose not to provide a comment for this article. However, the DOJ did offer a list of achievements by Bondi upon request from USA TODAY, including significant arrests in terrorism, human smuggling, and drug trafficking cases. It was also noted that under Bondi’s leadership, the DOJ dismissed four DEI lawsuits against police and fire departments under the Biden Administration. The DOJ issued warnings to officials in California, Maine, and Minnesota regarding non-compliance with the federal law on participation in women’s sports, threatening federal lawsuits. Additionally, a multiagency federal task force was launched to combat antisemitism, with plans to visit universities accused of failing to protect Jewish students and faculty from discrimination. Recent actions by the task force resulted in the withdrawal of federal funds from Columbia University due to persistent harassment of Jewish students.
Critics, including legal experts and former Justice Department officials, have raised concerns about Bondi’s commitment to depoliticize the DOJ, suggesting that her actions may have had the opposite effect. Jeffrey Breinholt, a career senior Justice Department lawyer, remarked that Bondi’s responses to Trump’s political desires and efforts to remove career personnel unsupportive of Trump’s agenda have politicized the DOJ. An important development highlighted was a memo on Feb. 9 that relaxed longstanding guidelines restricting interactions between the DOJ and the White House, potentially signaling a shift towards a politicized DOJ. Bondi’s efforts to disclose documents related to Jeffrey Epstein and his alleged ties to prominent Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton, have also been criticized as potentially serving political agendas.
Overall, concerns have been raised about the politicization of the DOJ under Bondi’s leadership, with actions such as relaxing guidelines on DOJ-White House interactions and the handling of sensitive documents drawing scrutiny from experts and observers.
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Bondi revisited previously disclosed documents from earlier court cases. By emphasizing the Epstein case, she appears to be demonstrating loyalty to the president who appointed her, according to Breinholt. The statement that she released the documents at Trump’s request was criticized as inappropriate for an attorney general expected to remain impartial.
Dennehy, an assistant FBI director in New York, claimed that the New York FBI office did not provide all the investigative files related to Epstein’s case, leading to further tensions with Bondi. Bondi also announced ongoing efforts to root out individuals she deems disloyal to Trump within the Justice Department and federal law enforcement agencies.
In collaboration with FBI Director Patel, Bondi expressed intentions to investigate the conduct of prosecutors and federal agents involved in the investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election. Concerns have been raised about the politicization and weaponization of the Department of Justice under the current administration, with Goodman highlighting a troubling trend of misuse of powers for political purposes.
Some employees have publicly opposed Bondi’s approach, with Stueve, a military veteran and long-time public servant, resigning in protest against what he described as a deteriorating work environment within the Justice Department.
In a letter obtained by USA TODAY, Stueve expressed concerns about a negative work environment where leadership at the highest levels does not make employees feel welcome, valued, or trusted to perform their duties. Last Friday, hundreds of New York FBI agents and staff gathered at 26 Federal Plaza to applaud and bid farewell to Dennehy, the former assistant director, as he left the building for the final time. Amidst the sound of a bagpiper and the presence of TV cameras, Dennehy assured the crowd of his loyalty to the country, the organization, and the employees. For more information, you can contact Josh Meyer, USA TODAY’s Domestic Security Correspondent, through email at jmeyer@usatoday.com or follow him on Twitter at @JoshMeyerDC and Bluesky at @joshmeyerdc.bsky.social. White House reporter Bart Jansen, who previously covered the Justice Department, can be reached at bjansen@usatoday.com. This article discussing AG Pam Bondi’s changes at the Justice Department originally appeared on USA TODAY and raises questions about potential political motivations.
