U.S. Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi clashed with a senior Democratic senator throughout her affirmation listening to to steer the Division of Justice (DOJ) on Wednesday.
Bondi was compelled to defend President-elect Donald Trump’s decide to steer the FBI, Kash Patel, when Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., pressed her on his previous feedback.
He referenced Patel’s suggestion of closing down FBI headquarters and threatening an “enemies record,” amongst different remarks.
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President-elect Donald Trump’s Lawyer Common nominee Pam Bondi and Sen. Richard Blumenthal clashed throughout her affirmation listening to. (Getty Pictures)
“Is that an individual who, appropriately, ought to be the FBI director? Aren’t these feedback inappropriate? Should not you disavow them and and ask him to recant them?” Blumenthal hammered.
Bondi replied, “Senator, I’m not aware of all these feedback. I’ve not mentioned these feedback with Mr. Patel.”
“What I do know, is Mr. Patel …” she started earlier than Blumenthal tried to chop her off.
Bondi pressed ahead, “Excuse me. What I do know is Mr. Patel was a profession prosecutor. He was a profession public defender, defending individuals. And he additionally has nice expertise inside the intelligence neighborhood.”
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President-elect Donald Trump is pushing the Senate to verify his nominees. (Donald Trump 2024 marketing campaign)
“What I can sit right here and inform you is, Mr. Patel, if he works with operating the FBI, if he’s confirmed, and if I’m confirmed, he’ll comply with the legislation. If I’m the lawyer normal of america of America, and I do not consider he would do something in any other case,” Bondi mentioned.
Blumenthal replied, “Nicely, let me simply submit that the response that I’d have hoped to listen to from you is that these feedback are inappropriate, and that you’ll ask him to disavow or recant them when he comes earlier than this committee, as a result of they’re certainly chilling to truthful enforcement and the rule of legislation.”
It comes after Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., equally pressed Bondi on what Democrats have referred to as Patel’s “enemies record.”
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They’re referring to an inventory of 60 individuals in Patel’s ebook “Authorities Gangsters: The Deep State, the Fact, and the Battle for Our Democracy,” who he branded as a part of the “deep state.”
Bondi defended Patel throughout Whitehouse’s questioning as nicely, whereas vowing there would by no means be an “enemies record” on the DOJ.
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