Five takeaways from Pam Bondi’s tense, partisan Senate testimony

Pam Bondi’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee was expected to be a controversial, partisan issue. It lived up to that billing.

This was the attorney general’s first appearance at a congressional oversight hearing, and it was timely.

Two weeks ago, its own Department of Justice Former FBI Director James Comey chargedThis angered Democratic politicians.

Her testimony on Tuesday also came just one day after a group of former Justice Department employees published a letter accusing Bondi of helping to wield a “sledgehammer” in the department’s “long work to protect communities and the rule of law.”

Nerves were frayed, and Bundy was clearly ready for a fight. Here are five takeaways from the hearing.

Recently, officials in the Trump administration, including Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FBI Director Kash Patel, have relied on a clear playbook to testify before hostile congressional committees.

Attack early and often.

This strategy was on display throughout Bondi’s testimony. When asked about the National Guard deployment, she said she hoped Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin and California Sen. Alex Padilla loved their states “as much as they hate Donald Trump.”

When asked about Jeffrey Epstein, she noted that several Democratic senators had taken money from wealthy donors who had ties to the late convicted sex trafficker.

Bondi launched a series of pointed attacks at senators during her questioning.

When it came time for Vermont Senator Peter Welch to ask questions, he began noticing Bondi’s tendency to make personal attacks.

“I’ll wait my turn,” the soft-spoken New Englander said. “But you don’t have to do that now.”

When Bondi wasn’t attacking, she often declined to comment on questions from both Democrats and Republicans.

She said she would not discuss “personnel matters” when asked about the wave of firings of top officials at the Justice Department, including top FBI officials and a U.S. attorney who recommended against indicting Comey.

It did not comment on “ongoing investigations” and legal proceedings, including the Comey case. She also did not highlight conversations she had with the president or other White House aides.

When she was shown a large photo of herself sitting at a table with the president the day after Trump published a post on Truth Social calling for her to indict Comey, her only remark was that she liked the photo.

“This is supposed to be an oversight hearing where members of Congress can get serious answers to serious questions,” California Senator Adam Schiff said after listing all the questions Bondi refused to answer.

“I think you owe the president an apology for your entire career,” Bondi replied.

Bondi seemed determined to focus on what she said was the Trump administration’s goal of reducing crime in the United States.

She was quick to cite statistics that she said showed the successes they have had so far — the number of arrests in Washington, D.C., anti-drug sweeps and illegal firearms seizures in Chicago, and drug seizures at the border.

“We are returning to our core mission of fighting true crime,” Bondi said.

Democrats may have other ideas, but Bondi — and the White House — likely feel they are on safer political ground when they talk about fighting crime.

It is an issue that many Americans care about, according to polls – and one that has the potential to appeal not only to hardline conservative parties, but also to independent and Democratic voters.

One particular source of tension for Bondi over the past few months has been the Justice Department’s handling of its investigation into Epstein, who before his death had well-documented relationships with several wealthy and powerful Americans.

For most of the hearings, it was Democrats who peppered Bondi with questions about Epstein.

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse wanted to know whether the FBI had discovered photos of Trump and “half-naked young women,” and whether the Justice Department had looked into “suspicious activity reports” about Epstein’s finances.

Bondi wouldn’t answer.

Dick Durbin asked about allegations that the Justice Department told the president anything in the Epstein documents related to Trump.

“I will not discuss any of this with you, Senator,” Bondi replied.

The prosecutor was asked why she did not have a list of Epstein’s clients after she had previously claimed to have that information on her desk.

Bondi responded by citing the department’s previous findings that there was no evidence of a conspiracy or cover-up surrounding the investigation.

Questions still swirling around the Epstein investigation have been a rare source of bipartisan attention, with some Republicans joining Democrats in calling for more transparency. It took some time, but this Senate hearing finally gave some indication of that.

Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana recounted recent comments by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick that Epstein was “the greatest racketeer who ever lived.”

The Louisiana senator suggested that Lutnick, who owns a home near Epstein in Palm Beach, Florida, testify before Congress and talk to the FBI.

Bondi continued her dance on Epstein, saying it was up to Lutnick and FBI Director Kash Patel to decide whether a meeting was necessary.

If Democrats have been focused on what they see as the unprecedented weaponization of the Justice Department under Trump, most Republican senators have been more interested in picking fights from a Biden presidency — or before.

Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley spent much of the hearing interjecting about how, in his view, Democrats were obstructing investigations into the Biden family’s business dealings.

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham condemned the FBI’s Russia investigation after the 2016 presidential election. Texas’ Ted Cruz focused on protests outside the homes of conservative Supreme Court justices in the wake of their 2021 decision to strike down abortion rights.

Eric Schmidt of Missouri filled out a real bingo card containing right-wing complaints directed at the Department of Justice.

Bondi, for her part, agreed wholeheartedly with the Republican chorus.

When the five-hour hearing finally concluded, the event looked like a house of partisan mirrors, with each side accusing the other of using political weapons and partisan trials.

“The Department of Justice is supposed to be the guardian of justice and the rule of law in the country,” Senator Alex Padilla said during questioning. “When public trust collapses, justice itself is at risk.”

This is the kind of comment that both Republicans and Democrats on the committee can agree on – before deeming the other side the source of the nation’s problems.