Newly confirmed Attorney General Pam Bondi will arrive for her first day at the Justice Department Wednesday after she was sworn in at the White House.
President Donald Trump joined Bondi in the Oval Office as she was sworn in to serve as attorney general by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
Bondi issued a sweeping memo filled with new Justice Department directives immediately after being sworn in Tuesday evening that included cutting off funds to “sanctuary” jurisdictions that shield illegal immigrants from federal authorities.
Bondi has been a strong critic of sanctuary cities, particularly those led by Democrats, which refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. She has argued in the past that these policies undermine law enforcement and national security.
Bondi, in her memo, also directed the DOJ to identify and reassess all funding agreements with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that assist illegal immigrants, Fox News first reported, among other wide-ranging directives.
The memo includes a directive regarding “zealous advocacy,” where the new AG noted that the responsibility of DOJ attorneys includes “aggressively enforcing criminal laws passed by Congress, but also vigorously defending presidential policies and actions on behalf of the United States against legal challenges.”
Bondi recently shared her opinions about the DOJ’s handling of the Epstein client list in an interview with Fox News.
Epstein had clients in such high positions that their names could potentially topple the political hierarchy overnight. In 2019, while awaiting prosecution for sex trafficking, Epstein passed away in his prison cell.
The list of customers who visited Epstein’s island, Little Saint James, in the U.S. Virgin Islands will eventually be made public by the incoming Trump administration, after being postponed for the previous four years under Joe Biden.
