While Tuesday saw the expected fireworks in the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing regarding President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, Wednesday promises to boast its own share of buzz as six more nominees will present for various committee hearings. (Originally, seven hearings were set, but Secretary of Homeland Security nominee South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem's has now been postponed to Friday.)
One key Wednesday hearing: Pam Bondi, Trump's nominee for Attorney General. Bondi is set to be questioned by the Senate Judiciary Committee beginning at 9:30 AM. The Judiciary Committee, at only 20 members, is a tad smaller than the Armed Services Committee, which boasts 27, so Bondi will face questions from three fewer Democrats than Hegseth did. However, her hearing is scheduled for two days (with the second part on Thursday).
Ahead of her hearing, Bondi provided the committee with a completed questionnaire, which may be viewed here. The questionnaire lays out her basic background and details her experience as a practicing attorney, including cases she has tried.
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Bondi, of course, was not Trump's initial choice for the AG spot. Former Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL) was initially tapped but ultimately withdrew his name from consideration following considerable backlash.
Bondi received her undergraduate degree in criminal justice from the University of Florida and her law degree from Stetson Law School in 1990. She served as a prosecutor in Hillsborough County, Florida, then as the state's attorney general from 2011 to 2019.
Bondi served as Trump's personal attorney during his first impeachment. Most recently, she worked with the America First Policy Institute, as well as SOMA Global, and is of counsel with the Panza, Mauer, & Maynard law firm in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
As noted, she'll face fewer Democrats than Hegseth did (though two of the same in Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Mazie Hirono (D-HI)), but no doubt they'll be loaded for bear.
But while she is more palatable to Republicans who balked at the Gaetz nomination, Bondi is unlikely to win much support among Democrats.
After meeting Wednesday with Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Dick Durbin, the Illinois Democrat said he remained concerned about her record, specifically what role she might have played in Trump's efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
“The role of the Attorney General is to oversee an independent Justice Department that upholds the rule of law and is free of undue political influence,” Durbin said in a statement. “Given Ms. Bondi’s responses to my questions, I remain concerned about her ability to serve as an Attorney General who will put her oath to the Constitution ahead of her fealty to Donald Trump.”
In the end, Bondi only needs to ensure she doesn't lose more than three Republicans, and if she presents as well as Hegseth, she likely won't have to worry much about that. We'll be live blogging the hearing and, of course, cover the highlights.
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