The Latest: Pam Bondi, Trump’s pick for attorney general, appears for a Senate confirmation hearing
Senate hearings are scheduled this week for several of Trump’s picks for the Cabinet. Many nominees have met with senators individually. Now, they’ll go before the committees overseeing the agencies Trump wants them to run.
Here’s the latest:
Marco Rubio, Trump’s Secretary of State pick, appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
The 53-year-old’s nomination process is expected to be the most seamless of Trump’s Cabinet picks and could be one of the few to receive near unanimous support from both sides of the aisle.
Bondi says she’ll ‘restore confidence and integrity’ to the Justice Department
And she said she’ll end what she described as “weaponization” of the department. Bondi’s remarks echo those of Trump and other Republicans, who claim the Justice Department has been used for political purposes under the Biden administration.
The Justice Department brought two criminal cases against Trump, but also prosecuted President Biden’s son, Hunter, on gun and tax charges.
Like Trump, Bondi said: “I believe we are on the ‘cusp of a New Golden age’ where the Department of Justice can and will do better if I am confirmed.”
Bondi says her priorities as attorney general would include prosecuting violent crime and gangs
Those priorities would also include protecting the nation from terrorists and “addressing the overwhelming crisis at the border,” she said.
“The Department of Justice must also return to defending the foundational rights of all Americans, including free speech, free exercise of religion, and the right to bear arms,” Bondi told the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Sen. Tom Cotton says US spy agencies must do a better job of responding to terrorism
As President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the CIA prepares to take questions from lawmakers, the new chairman of the Senate intelligence committee says America’s spy agencies need to do a better job responding to growing threats of terrorism.
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, said the nation’s intelligence officials often work in difficult, dangerous environments with little public recognition. But he said recent events like the attack in New Orleans show they must do more to identify threats before they turn lethal.
“In these dangerous times, our intelligence agencies haven’t anticipated major events or detected impending attacks,” Cotton said. “I could give other examples but suffice it to say we’re too often in the dark…. The CIA has neglected its core mission.”
Cotton’s comments came at the start of a confirmation hearing for John Ratcliffe, Trump’s nominee for CIA director. Ratcliffe served as director of national intelligence during Trump’s first term. He’s a former Republican member of Congress.
The committee’s top Democrat wants to know if Bondi can tell Trump ‘no’
The top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee says he wants to know whether Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi will be able to tell President-elect Donald Trump “no.”
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin says it’s critical that any attorney general nominee be “committed first and foremost to the Constitution and the American people — not the president and his political agenda.”
Durbin noted that Trump has vowed to seek retribution against “the enemy within” and threatened to prosecute or jail some of his political opponents and that Bondi, the former Florida attorney general, has echoed those calls.
Grassley says ‘change is desperately needed’ at the Justice Department
He listed a litany of complaints about the Justice Department under Attorney General Merrick Garland, including the criminal cases brought against Trump and the FBI’s search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
The Justice Department abandoned the cases against Trump in November, citing the department’s policy against prosecuting sitting presidents. Grassley urged a swift confirmation of Bondi, saying her prosecutorial experience “speaks volumes about her character and her dedication to the rule of law.”
Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley says Bondi’s qualifications ‘speak for themselves’
The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee highlighted Bondi’s work as Florida attorney general, going after so-called “pill mills” and other initiatives. She became Florida’s first female attorney general in 2011, serving until 2019.
The confirmation hearing is getting underway for Trump’s attorney general pick, Pam Bondi
Bondi, a former Florida attorney general, corporate lobbyist and longtime fixture in Trump’s orbit, is expected to face questions over her loyalty to Trump, given his threats to seek revenge on his perceived political enemies.
Today’s Cabinet confirmation schedule
9:30 a.m.: Pam Bondi, Justice Department The former Florida attorney general makes the first of two scheduled appearances before the Senate Judiciary Committee. She was Trump’s pick for attorney general hours after his first choice, former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration. Gaetz was facing questions about a federal sex trafficking investigation and a House Ethics Committee inquiry into allegations that he paid for sex, including with a 17-year-old girl.
Bondi is a longtime fixture in Trump’s orbit. The attorney general will be one of the most closely watched Cabinet members, given the concern among Democrats that Trump will look to bend the Justice Department to his will.
10 a.m.: Sean Duffy, Transportation Department The former Wisconsin congressman who was also a co-host on Fox Business will be questioned by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. The department oversees pipelines, railroads, cars, trucks, airlines and mass transit systems, as well as funding for highways.
10 a.m.: John Ratcliffe, CIA Ratcliffe, director of national intelligence for the final months of Trump’s first term, goes before the Senate Intelligence Committee. The former Texas congressman is in line to lead the nation’s premier spy agency, responsible for foreign covert operations and collecting data on U.S. adversaries.
10 a.m.: Marco Rubio, State Department The Florida senator has served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which is considering his nomination to be secretary of state. As head of the State Department, job, Rubio would oversee the U.S. foreign service, advise Trump on diplomatic appointments and conduct negotiations with foreign leaders on behalf of the administration.
10 a.m.: Chris Wright, Energy Department
The fossil fuel executive, who has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change, appears before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The secretary oversees energy generation and use in the United States as well as the nation’s nuclear weapon stockpile. Wright would also join Burgum on the National Energy Council.
1 p.m.: Russell Vought, Office of Management and Budget Vought, OMB director during Trump’s first term, goes before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Vought was closely involved with Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term that the Republican nominee tried to distance himself from during the campaign. The budget director oversee the building of the president’s budget and review of proposed regulations.