If you closed your eyes, you might’ve thought Kash Patel was in the witness chair.
Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats spent Wednesday pummeling President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to become FBI director at a confirmation hearing for his prospective boss: attorney general nominee Pam Bondi.
Ranking member Dick Durbin of Illinois raised Patel’s commentary about QAnon conspiracy theories. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota worried about Patel’s comments about targeting the media. Several Democratic senators expressed concern about his purported “enemies list” of people he believes should be investigated or prosecuted.
It all amounted to signs that Democrats view Patel — a polarizing MAGA loyalist who served in Trump’s first administration— as an easier target than Bondi, who seems to be on a glide path to confirmation.
Democrats have widely conceded they will save their energy fighting other of Trump’s more controversial nominees than they will Bondi, who they appear to consider qualified as a former Florida attorney general. Some Democrats even thanked the nominee for productive conversations about bipartisan issues, such as combating fentanyl addiction and human trafficking.
“If they’re asking about Kash Patel, it must be going pretty well,” quipped Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
The fixation on Patel by Democrats became clear early in Bondi’s confirmation hearing and remained consistent throughout her nearly 6 hours in front of the Judiciary Committee.
“My concern, on the basis of statements that President-elect Trump has made, is that he does identify people as political enemies … and there may come a day where there is pressure on you,” said Vermont Sen. Peter Welch. “I’m just going to express my hope that … when it comes to the constitution or pressure from a higher official, you’re going to choose the constitution.”
Bondi gave a full-throated endorsement of Patel, arguing he was the “right person” for the job and well-qualified. She also declined to defend or criticize his past statements, saying she was unfamiliar with them and would let him speak to them at his own confirmation hearing.
“I don’t believe he has an enemies list. He made a quote on TV that I have not heard,” Bondi said, deftly avoiding discussion of a book Patel wrote containing a long list of “Government Gangsters.”
At times, Bondi sought to remind the committee, gingerly, that she would be Patel’s superior. “Mr. Patel would fall under me and the Department of Justice and I will ensure that all laws are followed — and so will he.”
When Durbin raised Patel’s agreement with aspects of QAnon’s agenda, Bondi seemed to express relief that he would soon be in the hot seat instead of her.
“I look forward to hearing his testimony about QAnon in front of this committee,” Bondi said.
Bondi, a friend and ally of Trump for years, served as Trump’s lawyer during his first impeachment trial and assisted Rudy Guiliani in efforts to block Joe Biden’s Pennsylvania win in the 2020 election. Democratic Senators pressed Bondi on whether she believed Biden won that election, a question she repeatedly sidestepped. Bondi also declined to answer whether she would prosecute Jack Smith, the special prosecutor overseeing investigations into Trump, though she repeatedly emphasized she would be guided by facts, not politics.
In her remarks, Bondi vowed the Department of Justice would not pursue political investigations, despite Trump’s repeated calls for some of his staunchest adversaries to face prosecution.
“The partisanship, the weaponization will be gone,” Bondi said. “America must have one tier of justice for all.”
At the same time, Bondi tangled with some of Trump’s harshest critics on the committee. Her combativeness sometimes crossed lines that pending nominees rarely cross, such as when she mentioned California Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff’s censure by the House for his handling of Trump-related investigations.
Schiff, a longtime representative, was elected to the Senate last year and is now serving on the Judiciary Committee.
When Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse went over his allotted time, Bondi joked that she’d like that time taken away from one of her toughest interlocutors. “Can we take a minute off Sen. Schiff?” she asked, puzzling Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley, the Senate Judiciary Chair, who didn’t immediately pick up on the joke.
Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said Bondi seemed to be trying to avoid saying anything that would provoke Trump, which sometimes complicated her ability to answer simple questions.
“She very artfully dodged questions about whether Pres. Trump lost the 2020 election, which clearly is designed for an audience of one–that’s Donald Trump,” Blumenthal told reporters toward the end of Wednesday’s hearing. “He knows she’s here. She knows he’s watching. And I think that audience is clearly a presence in the room.”
