U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed Minister Pam Bondi, who is categorized as a loyalist. It is the second ministerial dismissal in the Trump second-term administration.
On the 2nd (local time), President Trump said on Truth Social, "Pam did an incredible job overseeing a sweeping crackdown on crime across the United States," and added, "A great patriot and loyal friend, Pam will move to the private sector."
Given President Trump's usual penchant for blunt remarks, it appears he announced the dismissal in a relatively friendly manner.
President Trump is said to have harbored dissatisfaction with Minister Bondi since February last year, early in her term. The response to the so-called "Epstein files" was insufficient, and investigations into political opponents at the Ministry of Justice had hardly progressed.
Earlier, Minister Bondi said during questioning about sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's "client list" that "(the list) is on my desk now for review," prompting complaints within the Republican Party that she gave the impression the client list actually exists. Critics said she inflated the Epstein allegations, burdening President Trump.
Afterward, President Trump also publicly warned that Minister Bondi was not being sufficiently proactive in investigations of political opponents.
A representative example came in September last year, when he pressured for indictments of former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey, Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff, and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Thus, Minister Bondi sought to meet President Trump's expectations by taking steps on some sensitive issues even at the risk of violating political neutrality, but she fell after just 14 months in office.
The now-vacant attorney general post will be filled on an acting basis for the time being by Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice Todd Blanche, a closest aide who served as President Trump's criminal defense attorney, and Lee Zeldin, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is being mentioned as a candidate to succeed her.
Administrator Zeldin is considered a loyalist to President Trump and has a track record of leading the repeal of various regulations established for environmental protection.
Meanwhile, this marks the second time a minister has been dismissed in the Trump second-term administration. On the in, Minister Kristi Noem of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was dismissed after controversy grew when Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents killed two civilians.