Why Donald Trump named Pam Bondi for AG after Gaetz withdrew | REUTERS

prior to being attorney general president-elect Donald Trump has nominated loyalist Pam Bondi to be his us attorney general swiftly replacing his first pick Matt gates after the embattled former Congressman withdrew from consideration Bondi who is Florida's attorney general from 2011 to 2019 has experienced that contrasts with Gates's lack of traditional qualifications but Trump's new pick still breaks with long-standing norms says legal analyst James sample of Hoffer University Pam Bondi doesn't have the obvious and frankly indisputable personal flaws that Matt Gates had but they are both uh traditional loyal Donald Trump acolytes Donald Trump very much

wants to break with the norm that the Attorney General is primarily responsible to the country he wants the Attorney General to be primarily responsible to him and to his administration that is absolutely a break with Norms he is looking for loyalty and pugnaciousness and he's going to get both if Pam pondi is confirmed Bondi was part of Trump's defense team during his first impeachment trial she also helped defend Trump over his retention of classified documents after leaving office arguing that special counsel Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed to the case sample says that history with Trump

is troubling as he has vowed retribution against his political enemies he pledged throughout the campaign that he wanted the attorney general and the Department of Justice to seek retribution it is troubling to say the least to have an attorney general who is picked for loyalty to the president especially when the president in turn is now cloaked with an IM that was Unthinkable for example during the Nixon Administration Trump's specific plans for the justice department are not yet fully known but sample says Bondi will likely be directed to prioritize illegal immigration cases where Merrick Garland and

the Department of Justice broadly speaking including Homeland Security including ice um have emphasized due process and incrementalism it is clear that Donald Trump wants to wield as many aspects of the the federal and state apparatus as possible to expedite his plans with regard to um immigration and with regard to deporting those who are in the United States on an undocumented basis a day after his withdrawal Gates praised Bondi and said she will likely have an easier time winning Senate approval the former congressman who faced a house Ethics Committee probe over allegations of sex with minors

and drug use allegations he has denied said he will not return to Congress next year