Pam Bondi is sworn in as attorney general as the Justice Department braces for major shakeup

WASHINGTON (AP) — Pam Bondi was sworn in Wednesday as attorney general, taking charge of the Justice Department as it braces for upheaval with President Donald Trump aiming to exert his will over an agency that has long provoked his ire.

The ceremony took place in the Oval Office and it was the first time that the Republican president had participated in a second-term swearing-in of a Cabinet member. It was further evidence of Trump’s intense personal interest in the operations of the department that investigated him during his first term and then brought two since-abandoned indictments after he left office in 2021.

Before Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas administered the oath of office, Trump praised Bondi’s record as a prosecutor and said she will restore “fair, equal and impartial justice at the department.”

Bondi told the president that she would not let him down. “I will make you proud and I will make this country proud,” she said.

“I will restore integrity to the Justice Department and I will fight violent crime throughout this country and throughout this world, and make America safe again,” Bondi said.

The Senate confirmed Bondi, who was Florida’s first female attorney general before becoming a lobbyist, in a 54-46 vote Tuesday that was almost entirely along party lines. The lone Democrat to join Republicans was Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman.

Republicans say Bondi will bring much-needed change to a department they believe unfairly pursued Trump through investigations and mistreated his supporters who were prosecuted in connection with the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

As attorney general Bondi will oversee the FBI, which is in turmoil over the scrutiny of agents involved in Trump-related investigations. He has made clear his desire to go after his perceived adversaries.