Attorney general nominee Pam Bondi said she wants to end the political weaponization of the Justice Department that she argued has been rife during the current administration.
In Wednesday’s confirmation hearing, Ms. Bondi told Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Rhode Island Democrat, that she would apply the law fairly and would never craft an enemies list if approved for her position.
She said the DOJ’s weaponization against President-elect Donald Trump in recent years, with the department headed by Merrick Garland, is sowing division in the country.
“The whole problem with the weaponization that we have seen the last four years and what’s been happening to Donald Trump — they targeted Donald Trump. They went after him, actually, starting back in 2016. … If I am attorney general, I will not politicize that office,” Ms. Bondi said.
The attorney general nominee said she won’t target people because of their political affiliation and will apply the law evenly.
“We’ve got to bring this country back together, got to move forward or we’re going to lose our country,” Ms. Bondi told Mr. Whitehouse.
The senator said there was concern about weaponization occurring during her tenure.
He also said he wanted to make sure Ms. Bondi is “willing to tell the president no when that’s necessary to protect the Constitution and the integrity of the department.”
Earlier in the exchange, Mr. Whitehouse asked Ms. Bondi if she ever maintained an enemies list during her lengthy career as a prosecutor.
Ms. Bondi sussed out that Mr. Whitehouse was making a reference to FBI Director nominee Kash Patel and responded firmly to the senator’s line of questioning.
“Senator, to cut to the chase, you’re clearly talking about Kash Patel. I don’t believe he has an enemies list. He made a quote on TV, which I have not heard,” Ms. Bondi said. “I have known Kash, and I believe that Kash is the right person at this time for this job.”
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.