On Thursday, April 2, Pam Bondi was removed from her position as United States Attorney General, the highest-ranking law enforcement official in the country and head of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The announcement came on Thursday afternoon through a Truth Social post by President Trump, in which he lauded Bondi’s “tremendous job” as Attorney General. In the same post, Trump detailed that Bondi would soon be moving to the private sector, and that her deputy, Todd Blanche, would serve as Acting Attorney General for the time being.

Bondi and the Justice Department have faced intense scrutiny in recent months over the handling of files and materials related to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Bipartisan criticism arose over the DOJ’s lack of transparency and repeated contradictions regarding investigations into Epstein’s criminal activities.

The Acting Attorney General, Blanche, served in the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York in the late 2000’s and was Trump’s defense attorney in three criminal cases in 2023 and 2024.

Bondi’s dismissal from the Office of Attorney General marks the highest-level removal of Trump’s second term. Throughout his first term, President Trump fired several senior-level cabinet members and White House staff. Last month, the President ousted Kristi Noem as Secretary of Homeland Security in favor of Markwayne Mullin, who had previously served as a Senator from Oklahoma.

Until a nominee to replace Bondi is announced by Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Blanche will continue running the Justice Department in an interim capacity.

For more information on the Office of the Attorney General and its responsibilities, visit the Department of Justice’s official website.