Trump fires Pam Bondi as US attorney general, amid Epstein files furore
US Attorney General Pam Bondi attends an event in the Oval Office on Tuesday.
Photo: EPA US President Donald Trump removed Attorney General Pam Bondi from her post on Thursday, a White House official said, following mounting frustration with her performance, including her handling of investigative files related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump had also reportedly grown frustrated that Bondi was not moving quickly enough to prosecute critics and adversaries who he wanted to face criminal charges.
In a social media post, Trump praised Bondi as a “Great American Patriot and a loyal friend” and said she would move to a job in the private sector.
Trump said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, his former personal lawyer, will lead the Justice Department in the interim.
During her tenure as the top US law enforcement official, Bondi was a combative champion of Trump’s agenda and dismantled the Justice Department’s long-standing tradition of independence from the White House in its investigations.
But it was repeated criticism over the Epstein files, including from Trump allies and some Republican lawmakers, that came to dominate her tenure.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi applauds as US President Donald Trump walks past her at an event in Memphis, Tennessee, on Monday.
Photo: Reuters Bondi was accused of covering up or mismanaging the release of records on the DOJ’s sex trafficking investigations into Epstein, a financier who cultivated ties with an array of wealthy and powerful figures.
The issue created political headaches for Trump and drew renewed scrutiny of his past friendship with Epstein, which he has said ended decades ago.
Her ousting could lead to a shake-up in strategy at the Justice Department and potentially a renewed push to deploy the US legal system against Trump’s targets.
Bondi is the second senior Trump official to be ousted recently.
Trump removed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on March 5 following criticism of her management of the agency and Trump’s immigration agenda.
Bondi, a former Republican state attorney general in Florida, said she worked on restoring the Justice Department’s focus on violent crime and rebuilding trust with Trump’s supporters after federal prosecutors twice criminally charged Trump during his years out of power.
Bondi also faced criticism over the removal of dozens of career prosecutors who worked on investigations disfavoured by Trump, with critics accusi
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