This almost makes you feel bad for former Attorney General Pam Bondi — with an emphasis on “almost.”
The Wall Street Journal published a report Thursday that offers some extremely awkward details about the way Bondi was ousted from the Justice Department. Earlier that day, President Donald Trump had confirmed that she had been fired in a post on his website, Truth Social.
Trump reportedly informed Bondi she was being canned during a two-mile ride in his presidential limousine — dubbed “The Beast” — from the White House to the Supreme Court to attend the birthright citizenship hearing on Wednesday.
According to the Journal, Trump only needed four words to let Bondi privately know that she was no longer a member of his administration.
“I think it’s time,” Trump said, Bondi later recalled to an associate, the outlet said.
Once at the court, Trump and Bondi sat next to each other for a beat before the president quickly switched seats.
When Bondi asked Trump if she could remain in her position until the summer — to give her time for a more graceful exit, as The New York Times put it — Trump said nope. The Times also reported that Bondi got emotional with friends and colleagues after she got axed.
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Bondi had been on thin ice with the president since at least January, according to the Journal, but Trump finally decided to make the call earlier this week.
Both the Times and the Journal report that the president cut her loose over her mismanaged rollout of the Jeffrey Epstein files and her failure to prosecute Trump’s political enemies — like former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James — with the breakneck speed that he publishes a typo-ridden Truth Social post.
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Although Trump said Thursday that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will become acting attorney general, it is unclear who will permanently replace Bondi. Trump has floated the idea of choosing Lee Zeldin, a former Republican lawmaker from New York and the current administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency, the Times reports.
It is also unclear what Bondi will do next, although she did say in a post on X Thursday that she will be moving to a mysterious but “important private sector role I am thrilled about.”
