Trump Removes Pam Bondi, Names Todd Blanche Acting Attorney General
Bondi was removed after controversy over Epstein files; Todd Blanche, Trump's former lawyer and deputy AG, will serve as acting attorney general.
The Gateway PunditWhite House Denies Daily Mail Claim That Bondi Was Fired for Tipping Off Swalwell About FBI's Release of Fang Fang Files | The Gateway Pundit | by Cristina Laila
MEDIAiteEric Swalwell Addresses Claim That Pam Bondi Was Fired for Leaking Info to Him
New York PostActing AG Todd Blanche defends Bondi, rejects reports that handling of Epstein files led to her ouster: ‘Simply not true’
Raw StoryBondi's firing complicates planned testimony on Jeffrey Epstein files
Overview
President Donald Trump removed Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday, April 2, and named Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as acting attorney general, Trump said on Truth Social.
Bondi's tenure was overshadowed by the Justice Department's handling of Jeffrey Epstein files and a combative congressional hearing that drew bipartisan backlash, according to the sources.
Lawmakers including Representatives Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna criticized Bondi's handling of the Epstein files, while some Republicans praised her and survivors said Bondi had not met them, the sources said.
The department released only a fraction of files, with millions withheld and about 200,000 files held back or redacted, and Bondi oversaw prosecutions into political opponents, the sources said.
Todd Blanche, 51, who previously represented Trump in multiple criminal cases and led the department's Epstein-file releases as deputy attorney general, thanked Bondi and Trump and will run the Justice Department as acting attorney general, the sources said.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame Blanche as a partisan loyalist whose DOJ role served Trump’s interests rather than institutional independence, foregrounding critics’ charges (Rocah, Stacey Young), his public defenses of Trump, CPAC and podcast appearances, and the limited Epstein-file release. The article includes Blanche’s and Trump’s quotes, but editorial emphasis stresses conflict and accountability concerns.