Judiciary panel sets hearing date for Trump AG nominee

The Senate Judiciary Committee has set a hearing date for President-elect Trump’s attorney general pick Pam Bondi.

The hearing will take place Jan. 15 and 16, giving senators on the panel the chance to question Bondi before voting on her nomination.

Trump chose Bondi, Florida’s former attorney general, after his first pick to lead the Department of Justice fell through.

He had initially chosen former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), but after the threat of a scathing House Ethics Committee report tanked his chances at being confirmed, Gaetz withdrew from consideration, and Bondi was picked.

Bondi was a senior adviser on Trump’s first impeachment defense team and is now an attorney for Ballard Partners, a group founded by Florida lobbyist Brian Ballard, the 2016 chair of Trump Victory.

She served as Florida’s attorney general from 2011-19.

Bondi was also one of several Republicans who showed up in New York to support Trump during his criminal hush money trial that resulted in his felony conviction last year.

She called special counsel Jack Smith, who led legal cases against Trump, and other prosecutors “horrible” people who were attempting to make names for themselves by attacking Trump.

After his initial nomination with Gaetz, there’s concern that Trump’s choice for attorney general might turn the department into a legal powerhouse that will grant his wishes and even prosecute his political enemies.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) is one of the senators who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Shortly after Bondi was named as the next pick, Klobuchar said she hopes Bondi will “uphold the Constitution” if she is confirmed for the position, and that the hearings will allow her to make her views clear.