Trump fires Pam Bondi as attorney general
WASHINGTON — President Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday in the second major cabinet shakeup of his second term.
“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, and our Deputy Attorney General, and a very talented and respected Legal Mind, Todd Blanche, will step in to serve as Acting Attorney General,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
Trump told Bondi in person on Wednesday that she was fired, a source with knowledge of the conversation told The Post.
Bondi was at the White House to attend Trump’s address to the nation on the Iran war and had earlier in the day accompanied the president to the Supreme Court to watch oral arguments in a major birthright citizenship case.
A fellow attendee who interacted with Bondi at Trump’s primetime address described her as “cheerful” despite the looming ax. The ousting caps longstanding White House frustrations about how she handled the Jeffrey Epstein files and prosecuting political foes.
One White House official said Trump had been discussing Bondi’s exit for “quite some time and it reached the definitive point yesterday afternoon.”
The AG was back in Florida as of Thursday afternoon and still promoting a DOJ initiative on child IDs.
“I will be working tirelessly to transition the office of Attorney General to the amazing Todd Blanche before moving to an important private sector role I am thrilled about, and where I will continue fighting for President Trump and this Administration,” Bondi said in her first comments.
“Leading President Trump’s historic and highly successful efforts to make America safer and more secure has been the honor of a lifetime,” Bondi said in a statement that touted lowering the murder rate and prosecuting Antifa and drug cartel figures.
Blanche, Trump’s former personal lawyer, praised Bondi as he accepted the promotion.
“Pam Bondi led this Department with strength and conviction and I’m grateful for her leadership and friendship,” Blanche said. “Thank you to President Trump for the trust and the opportunity to serve as Acting Attorney General.”
“We will continue backing the blue, enforcing the law, and doing everything in our power to keep America safe,” added the now-acting AG, who served as Trump’s lead defense attorney in the Manhattan “hush money” case brought by District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who won a conviction in May 2024.
Blanche can serve in the acting capacity for up to 210 days. If Trump decides to nominate him permanently for the position, he — or any other nominee — would need to be confirmed in the GOP-led Senate.
Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lee Zeldin has been rumored for months to be under consideration as a permanent replacement.
A rep for the former congressman from New York did not comment on whether Trump spoke to Zeldin about a possible new job.
In the months preceding her firing, Trump openly expressed concern about Bondi’s faltering prosecutions of his foes such as New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.
One day before telling Bondi she was fired, Trump questioned the lack of prosecutions of members of the since-disbanded Democrat-led House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, whom former President Joe Biden pardoned before leaving office.
In December, Trump declared any pardon signed by autopen “of no Legal effect” — setting up potential test-cases involving people such as former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), whom he accused in February of “the crime of deleting and destroying ALL evidence having to do with the January 6th investigation.”
A source familiar with Bondi’s tenure said she was upset last year after her first congressional oversight hearing that members of Congress were “so mean” and decided to go on offense in the future, leading to fiery clashes that defined her public appearances.
This source said her role was widely viewed as “spokesmodel” while Blanche ran day-to-day operations — a typical function of the deputy attorney general role.
Blanche was the one “blocking the prosecutions of everybody,” this person said — suggesting potential further frustration for Trump.
In September, Trump fumed that his AG hadn’t brought charges against Comey, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) or James, whom said were all “guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done.”
Within days, federal prosecutors indicted Comey for making false statements to Congress about the FBI investigation that sought to establish collusion between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russian officials.
James was hit with an indictment last October for allegedly committing mortgage fraud by purchasing a home in Norfolk, Va., that she listed as a primary residence but rented out to one of her nieces.
Neither of the cases stuck after being brought in Eastern District of Virginia after a juge ruled the interim US Attorney Lindsey Halligan had been unlawfully appointed before pursuing them.
Schiff and Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), who were also referred to the DOJ for alleged mortgage fraud charges, were never indicted.
Bondi’s handling of files on Epstein, the late sex trafficker, also stoked tensions with the White House.
Bondi told Fox News last February that a list of Epstein’s “clients” was “sitting on my desk right now to review.” Days later, she welcomed influencers to the White House and presented them with binders titled “The Epstein Files: Phase 1,” which backfired when guests realized the files already were public.
Her department sharply pivoted away from transparency in July, issuing a memo that said “no
further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted” — drawing sustained bipartisan pushback and legislation forcing DOJ to release the files.
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles told Vanity Fair in an interview published in December that Bondi “completely whiffed” the DOJ’s release of investigative materials on the deceased sex criminal.
Epstein’s association with rich and influential politicians, foreign officials, businessmen and celebrities — including Trump — led to a sustained media frenzy, with Bondi taking heat for fanning the flames of conspiracy theories before trying to douse them.
Sources familiar with Bondi’s exit said the delayed release of the Epstein files made the issue look like a “cover up” through a bad communications strategy that infuriated Trump’s voter base.
“When she lost the base, in time, she lost Trump,” one source noted. “Susie and Trump have considered her a personal friend, and I think that that saved her for a long time.”
“When you don’t have allies in this town, you can survive — but it’s on a clock,” the source added.
The DOJ has since released more than 3 million files on Epstein and Maxwell — including FBI interviews with victims, draft charging documents and internal memos, as well as thousands of photos and videos.
Trump previously ousted Kristi Noem last month as homeland security secretary, naming her to a newly created role as special envoy to the State Department’s Shield of the Americas anti-crime initiative.
Florida attorney Dan Newlin, who is close to Trump and Bondi, told The Post that he expects her to remain an ally of the president.
“Pam literally travelled for four years around the country ground campaigning for President Trump,” he said. “Trump truly loves Pam Bondi, so I am 100% certain it was not personal. It was purely what the president likely felt best for his cabinet. I am confident they will remain lifetime great friends.”
