Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks to the media, June 27, 2025, in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, as President Trump looks on. MANUEL CENETA / AP
US President Donald Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday, April 2, and named his former personal lawyer to serve as the acting chief of the Justice Department. The move, which the Republican president announced in a social media post, comes amid criticism of Bondi's handling of the Epstein files and her failure to successfully prosecute several perceived Trump foes.
"Pam Bondi is a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend, who faithfully served as my Attorney General over the past year," Trump said. "Pam did a tremendous job overseeing a massive crackdown in Crime across our Country." Bondi "will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector," the president said, and will be replaced on an interim basis by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Bondi has drawn fire from some Trump supporters for her handling of the release of the Justice Department files on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking. The Epstein affair has been a major political liability for Trump, who was a longtime friend of the disgraced financier.
