Ex-federal prosecutor: How Americans were presented with 'two Pam Bondi’s' during hearing

15 January

Following Donald Trump attorney general nominee Pam Bondi's confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Mary McCord — who served as Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security of the United States — suggested that the MAGA pick appeared to showed two different sides of herself.

Speaking with McCord, who was also a federal prosecutor in the office of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace noted, "There's no political analysis that suggests that she's at risk of not being confirmed, but she'll only be successful, including in Trump's eyes, if she's able to do what she was attacking [Senator] Adam Schiff (D-CA) for — if she's able to use the department effectively to bring cases against federal crimes and federal criminals. And she'll only be able to do that — you can't do that by yourself — she'll only be able to do that if she's able to lead the vast majority of that workforce."

Wallace then asked McCord, "Why have answers so detached from reality?"

McCord replied, "Based on all the reporting I've seen, including your clips, it almost seems like we saw two Pam Bondi's, right? We saw the Pam Bondi who was trying to say that she believed in the independence of the Department of Justice, that she would take very seriously her obligations when it came to investigations and prosecutions, and doing those things with dispassion."

"Yet, on the other hand, every time there was an opportunity to kind of be a cheerleader for Donald Trump, she did so," the ex-federal prosecutor continued. "And I think probably that's because she was playing to a couple of different audiences today. One was Donald Trump himself, and the other were the members of the Senate that have to vote on her. And so that's why I think she was resistant to questions about fraud in the election."

McCord emphasized, "That's why I think she was resistant to the questions that Adam Schiff posed to her. I will say, though, one of the things that I thought Senator Schiff did that was really important at the end of the hearing, or I guess the second round, was when he posited to her, look, we're asking you these questions because we want to know if you can put your loyalty to the president aside when you're making decisions, particularly investigative and prosecutorial decisions."

"Now, as we all know, when it comes to policy, that's one thing," McCord concluded. "Executing the president's policy priorities are very different than individual prosecutions and investigations. And what he said to her was, there will come a day — because it that day comes for everyone — where your loyalty to the president may diverge from your duty to the country as the attorney general, and the question is, what will you do? Because that's what you will be remembered for. And I think that's really one of the key things here. And I don't know what her response is."

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