Pam Bondi ousted as attorney general, Todd Blanche to become interim AG

President Donald Trump says Pam Bondi is out as Attorney General. In a Truth Social post Thursday afternoon, Trump thanked Bondi for her service to his administration. 

The announcement of Bondi’s ouster follows months of scrutiny over the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking files that made Bondi the target of angry conservatives even with her close relationship with Trump. She also struggled to satisfy Trump’s demands to prosecute his political rivals, with multiple investigations rejected by judges or grand juries or yet to produce charges.

In the post, Trump said Bondi did a “tremendous job overseeing a massive crackdown in Crime.” He added she will be moving to a new role in the private sector at a later date. 

President Trump Truth Social post on Pam Bondi

The president also named Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as the acting attorney general, though three people familiar with the matter have said he has privately discussed Lee Zeldin, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, as a permanent pick.

The announcement follows months of scrutiny over the Justice Department’s handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking investigation that made Bondi the target of angry conservatives even with her close relationship with Trump. She also struggled to satisfy Trump’s demands to prosecute his political rivals, with multiple investigations rejected by judges or grand juries or yet to produce charges.

Big picture view:

Though publicly, Trump has praised Bondi for her loyalty, sources told the New York Times that he isn’t pleased with her lack of aggressiveness when it comes to going after his political adversaries. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks to reporters following a closed briefing in front of the House Oversight Committee at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC on March 18, 2026. (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

What they’re saying:

“Attorney General Pam Bondi is a wonderful person and she is doing a good job,” Trump told The New York Times. 

What’s next:

Bondi is due to give her deposition on the Justice Department’s investigation into the late Jeffrey Epstein, the financier who died by suicide while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, on April 14. 

Bondi has defended the department’s handling of the files and has accused Democrats of using the furor over the documents to distract from Trump’s successes, even though some of the most vocal criticism has come from members of the president’s own party.