On Thursday, we learned that President Donald Trump fired Pam Bondi as attorney general, making her the second Cabinet member he's axed in less than a month. Trump's official send-off was gracious, but the question remains: Why did he fire her?
Bondi has come under fire for her handling of the Epstein files. Her muddled public statements about the existence of a so-called "client list" turned a political liability into a full-blown firestorm, drawing bipartisan condemnation and fueling accusations of a transparency cover-up.
But there may be another nugget to the story.
Trump, for what it’s worth, praised her in a post on Truth Social, calling her "a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend, who faithfully served as my Attorney General over the past year,” crediting her with doing "a tremendous job" overseeing a crackdown on crime that drove murder rates to their lowest point since 1900. "We love Pam, and she will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector, to be announced at a date in the near future.”
That's a warm sendoff, atypical for Trump, who often kicks people out the door and trashes them immediately after. It’s a welcome change, as far as I’m concerned. I've never been a fan of his constantly trashing and making enemies out of people he had served in his administration.
According to a report from the Daily Mail, the reason Trump gave Bondi the axe is that he believes Bondi tipped off Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) about the FBI's plans to release documents tied to his decade-old relationship with a suspected Chinese spy. "She's intervening in those matters," a source close to the situation told the paper. "The White House wasn't pleased she was intervening due to her personal friendship with Swalwell."
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Trump had also grown privately furious that Bondi wasn't prosecuting the political enemies who spent years targeting him. He made it known — publicly — posting last September that the delays in those cases were "harming our reputation and credibility."
According to a senior administration source, Trump informed Bondi of her dismissal on Wednesday night, just before he delivered his Iran speech.
And she didn't take it well.
Bondi reportedly pleaded for more time, and the confrontation at the White House grew tense. "She was unhappy and tried to change his mind," the source said. Bondi stayed at the White House throughout the Iran speech, then quietly flew home to Florida.
The Swalwell angle is an interesting one. But still bizarre.
“It is unclear why Bondi would have intervened, but it is believed that Bondi and Swalwell have a friendly relationship,” explains the Daily Mail. “Swalwell, a fellow lawyer, has openly criticized her since she took the AG position after failing to prosecute multiple death threats against him and his family.”
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump's former personal attorney, is now serving as acting Attorney General until a permanent nominee is identified. Some are speculating that EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is a possible candidate.
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