On the same day former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration as attorney general for President-elect Donald Trump, Trump announced that former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi was his second choice to fill that role in the administration.
Bondi, 59, has remained in Trump’s inner circle for years and continues to advise on legal matters. He was one of the lawyers who defended Trump during the first Senate impeachment trial.
Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi takes the stage to speak at a campaign rally with Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump in Gastonia, North Carolina, November 2, 2024.
Brian Snyder / Reuters
“I’ve known Pam for years – she’s smart and tough, and AMERICA’S FIRST Fighter, who will do a great job as Attorney General!” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
Bondi’s nomination must be confirmed by the Senate. He did not immediately comment on Trump’s announcement.
For more than a decade, Bondi has been a major supporter of Trump and has been involved in several controversies — including the “big lie,” which Trump told in 2020. He publicly supported the false claim that he rightfully won the state of Pennsylvania. .
In this July 7, 2021, file photo, Pam Bondi, former Florida Attorney General, speaks with former President Donald Trump at Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
Eduardo Munoz / Reuters, FILE
In 2013, the Trump Foundation sent a $25,000 donation to Bondi’s fundraising committee for the attorney general’s re-election campaign.
At the same time, Bondi’s office had a lawsuit investigating Trump himself and Trump University, but ultimately did not join the suit.
Both Bondi and Trump have denied allegations that the donation influenced their decision not to join the lawsuit, which was filed by the New York attorney general’s office.
He endorsed Trump for president and spoke at the 2016 Republican National Convention, leading a “lock her up chant” to Secretary of State Hilary Clinton.
He also co-chaired Trump’s re-election bid and spoke at the Republican National Convention in 2020.
Bondi was elected attorney general in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. He is leaving office after reaching his two-term limit in 2019.
A year later, he was selected to be part of Trump’s defense team for his first impeachment trial. He was acquitted in the Senate.
In this Nov. 5, 2020, file photo, Pam Bondi, former Florida attorney general, speaks during a press conference in front of the Convention Center, where votes are counted, during the 2020 Presidential election in Philadelphia.
Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE
Bondi has also been a registered lobbyist since 2019 at Brian Ballard’s firm, Ballard Partners. Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, is also a lobbyist with the company.
Bondi’s most recent clients include the Florida Sheriff’s Association, the Florida Sheriff’s Risk Management Fund and the Major County Sheriffs of America. Her quarterly retainer fees range from $20,000 to $50,000, federal lobbyists show.
He has previously represented investment firms and corporate clients like Amazon, General Motors, MLB, Fidelity, Uber and GEO Group, a private prison company, according to the filing.
In 2019 and 2020, Bondi engaged in consulting and advocacy services on behalf of the Embassy of the State of Qatar on “matters related to anti-human trafficking,” according to a foreign lobbying disclosure filed by Ballard Partners. Bondi registered as a foreign agent for the Qatari government as part of her lobbying work.
After the impeachment trial, Bondi remained with Trump’s legal team during the 2020 campaign and repeatedly made false claims about voter fraud when he lost to Joe Biden.
Recently, he has become a member of the conservative think tank America First Policy Institute, which was formed by former Trump administration officials. He is AFPI’s chairman for the Center for Litigation, and co-chairman of the Center for Law and Justice, according to the think tank’s website.
Bondi and AFPI lawyers are involved in preemptive election lawsuits in battleground states during this year’s elections.
Trump has previously named other private lawyers for senior roles at the Justice Department, including Todd Blanche, Emil Bove and D. John Sauer.
