America’s new Attorney General, Pam Bondi, has hit the ground running. The Trump administration seems to favor people with a lot of energy and drive, kind of like the top man himself, and the new AG fits that mold. She’s taking some big steps to end what she calls the “two-tier system of justice” in the United States, and some of those steps will be welcome, and long overdue.
On Wednesday, Fox News Digital put out a list based on exclusively obtained memos of the AG’s first-day directives.
One, a directive against “zealous advocacy,” seems designed to bring the Justice Department back more firmly under executive branch control:
Bondi issued a directive regarding “zealous advocacy.” Bondi said DOJ attorneys’ responsibilities include “aggressively enforcing criminal laws passed by Congress, but also vigorously defending presidential policies and actions on behalf of the United States against legal challenges.”
The Weaponization Working Group, which is apparently part of this effort, will start their program off by investigating possible political bias in prosecution – such as the prosecutions of President Trump in New York and Georgia.
The real meat on the bone, though, is in her directives restoring the federal death penalty and cutting off federal funding for sanctuary cities, and for the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that facilitate illegal immigration.
On the death penalty:
Meanwhile, Bondi also will end the moratorium on federal executions and order that federal prosecutors at the Department of Justice, including U.S. attorneys’ offices, seek the death penalty when appropriate — specifically with a focus on violent drug trafficking crimes.
Bondi also ordered that the Justice Department “re-evaluate instances of the prior administration electing not to seek the death penalty.”
On drug cartels:
As for cartels, Bondi is directing the Justice Department to work closely with the Department of Homeland Security and other federal partners to “completely eliminate” the threats of cartels and transnational criminal organizations.
Bondi plans to re-imagine charging priorities relating to those cases in order to ensure that law enforcement resources are focused on dismantling the foundational operational capacity of cartels, as opposed to just picking off low-level offenders.
And on sanctuary cities:
And as for illegal migrants, Bondi has directed the DOJ to pause all federal funding for sanctuary cities.
Bondi also has directed the DOJ to identify and evaluate all funding agreements with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that provide support to illegal aliens.
These are all welcome changes from the Merrick Garland years. It’s not just night and day; it’s night and an exploded nuclear warhead.
See Related: BREAKING: The Vote Is in—We Have a New Attorney General
Pam Bondi Clears Major Hurdle on Path to Becoming Attorney General—Senate Showdown Looms
There is a principle in government – or, at least, there should be – that what the government does for anyone it must do for everyone or it must do for no one. That principle has been overlooked, ignored, or willfully violated too often in recent years, and if there is any governmental system in which this principle should be inviolable, it should be the system of justice. There’s a reason that the various depictions of Lady Justice are blindfolded; justice must be clear, it must be evenly applied, and it must treat every citizen equally. Equal treatment under the law is the only equality that is really achievable, it’s the only equality that any level of government should try to enforce, and it is not what we have had from the United States Department of Justice for the last few years.
Pam Bondi appears to be making a good start toward restoring that principle. As with Pete Hegseth at Defense, she is – so far – making the right moves toward reforming a system that has been broken. It will be interesting to see what happens next.
