Pam Bondi, President-elect Trump’s pick to run the Department of Justice, clashed sharply with freshman Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Wednesday.
The California Democrat, who earned the nickname “Shifty Schiff” as a member of the House of Representatives from January 2001 to December 2024, focused on an oft-expressed concern among Democrats—that Trump’s Department of Justice could potentially investigate Democrats who weaponized the justice system and broke laws to prosecute and harass Trump and his supporters.
Schiff was particularly concerned that former Special Counsel Jack Smith and former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney could be the target of such investigations.
Bondi, 59, was just one of several Trump nominees testifying at confirmation hearings, Wednesday.
CIA nominee John Ratcliffe, Secretary of State nominee Marco Rubio, Transportation Secretary nominee Sean Duffy, Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright and OMB Director nominee Russell Vought also testified to various Senate committees today.
Schiff asked the former Florida attorney general whether she would investigate Jack Smith, as Trump has previously stated that he “should go to jail.”
“Senator, I have not seen the file, I haven’t seen the investigation, I haven’t looked at anything. It would be irresponsible of me to make a commitment,” Bondi responded.
Not satisfied with the answer, Schiff continued, saying “so you would need a factual predicate” to go after Smith, “is that right?”
“Not a summary by you sitting here,” Bondi shot back. “I will look at the facts and evidence in any case,” she added.
When Schiff asked again whether she knew of a factual predicate to prosecute Smith, Bondi reiterated that she would look at “the facts and circumstances of anything brought to me.”
Schiff went on to ask Bondi whether she was “aware of any factual basis to investigate Liz Cheney,” given the fact that Trump has previously expressed a desire to see her in jail, as well.
“Senator, that’s a hypothetical, and I’m not going to answer that question,” she responded. “No one has asked me to investigate Liz Cheney.”
As Schiff continued to press her on Cheney, the exasperated nominee, exclaimed “You know what we should be worried about, the crime rate in California is through the roof!” She added: “Your robberies are 87 percent higher than the national average.”
Later on, Schiff asked her if she had the “independence, the gravitas, the stature, the intestinal fortitude” to tell Trump he lost the rigged 2020 election.
Bondi responded by saying she would not use her position to “play politics” and accused Schiff of trying to engage “in a gotcha.”
“I won’t play politics with any ongoing investigation like you did leaking your colleague Devin Nunes’ memo,” she added.
Bondi was referring to an episode in 2018, when Schiff was serving as the ranking Democrat on the House Select Intelligence Committee with then-chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) when the panel was investigating the Russia hoax.
Mr. Schiff had leaked the Nunes memo, which revealed the panel’s findings that the FBI obtained surveillance warrants from the secret FISA court against former Trump staffer Carter Page during the 2016 presidential campaign. But Mr. Schiff and committee Democrats then released their own summary and falsely claimed that “FBI and DOJ officials did not ’abuse’ the [FISA] process, omit material information or subvert this vital tool to spy on the Trump campaign.”
Two years later, the inspector general’s report would vindicate the Nunes memo and expose Schiff’s memo as a complete sham “riddled with lies and false statements.”
In January 2023, then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy took the extraordinary step of kicking Schiff and fellow Russia-hoaxer Eric Swalwell off the Intelligence Committee.
Undeterred, Schiff persisted in pressing Bondi on whether she believed there was massive fraud that effected the result of the rigged 2020 election.
Bondi said she could only speak to what she witnessed in Pennsylvania, where massive election irregularities were reported.
Schiff shot down her response, saying she was unable to speak what he considered an “easy truth” to the senators or to the president.
The Democrat then asked whether she would oppose blanket pardons by Trump of J6ers who allegedly “beat police officers.”
Bondi answered that she would look at every one on “a case by case basis.”
But Schiff wasn’t satisfied, and pressed her if she would advise against Trump issuing hundreds of pardons on day one, and stating that “of course” she would not be able to look at every file in one day.
Bondi reacted with fury. “I would have plenty of staff—you said ‘of course you won’t’?” she fumed. “I’m not going to mislead this body, nor you,” she exclaimed, adding “you were censured by Congress for comments just like this—so reckless!”
The House of Representatives censured Schiff in June 2023 “for misleading the American public and for conduct unbecoming of an elected Member of the House of Representatives.”
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