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U.S. Senator Katie Britt, R-Ala., Wednesday, during her first Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, questioned Pam Bondi, President Trump’s nominee for Attorney General of the United States.
In the hearing, Senator Britt praised Attorney General nominee Bondi’s decades of experience as a tough-on-crime prosecutor and former Florida Attorney General, her track record of success in fighting our nation’s opioid epidemic and drug trafficking, and her commitment to making America safer.
BRITT: “The United States of America could only be so fortunate if you were confirmed, and to have someone of your caliber, of your intellect, and of your experience running a department that unfortunately has been run into the ground . . . I am so thrilled about what you’ve done when it comes to opioid use and human trafficking, and I look forward to you instituting that at the Department of Justice. Your credentials speak for themselves. When opioid and fentanyl overdoses are the leading cause of death between the ages of 18 and 45, in this nation, we need someone who takes it serious[ly]. You not only take that serious[ly], you have a track record of proving to the American people. You’ve done it for the people of Florida, and I look forward to what that means to the families that I have met.”
Senator Britt began her questioning by raising issues with the Biden-Harris Administration’s Executive Office for Immigration Review within the DOJ, which administers our nation’s immigration court system. She asked for Attorney General nominee Bondi’s commitment to reforming EOIR.
BRITT: “Over the course of the Biden Administration, the immigration court backlog has grown from 1.4 million at the end of 2021 to 3.5 million at the end of 2024. Over that same period, the Biden Administration pursued policies both at DOJ and DHS to foster a culture within EOIR of failure to adjudicate cases . . . Combined between cases dismissed, terminations, administrative closures, and failures to adjudicate EOIR during the Biden Administration has allowed around 1 million illegal aliens to remain in the United States on an indefinite basis.”
BRITT: “Will you commit to me that, if confirmed, you will make it a priority to reform the way that EOIR operates and put in place measures to ensure that immigration judges actually adjudicate these claims in cases?”
BONDI: “Yes, Senator, thank you for meeting with me in advance. And I learned so much from you about this topic, and I look forward to learning more and working with you to do everything we can to make sure that functions properly.”
BRITT: “As a part of this effort, I hope that you will consider a number of things, including reinstating the performance metrics for immigration judges similar to [those] that were in place during the first Trump Administration, and a reevaluation of the Biden Administration’s decisions and policies that have encouraged the use of administrative closures. I assume I have your commitment to examine those issues thoroughly.”
BONDI: “We’ll closely examine those, Senator. Thank you.”
Senator Britt also highlighted her concerns over the Biden-Harris Administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ) and outgoing U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland’s lack of responsiveness to congressional oversight, specifically regarding the DOJ’s failure to enforce federal law at the homes of Supreme Court Justices in the aftermath of the leak of the draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
BRITT: “Section 1507, as you well know, makes it illegal to picket or parade near a judge’s residence with the intent of influencing them in the discharge of their duty. It was openly and flagrantly violated on numerous occasions in the summer of 2022. Yet, never enforced by U.S. Marshals stationed at the homes of the Justices, in large part because of the evidence that we showed that [the Marshals] had been actively discouraged from making arrests.”
BRITT: “On May 3, 2023, I led a group of senators – many on this committee – in sending a letter to the Attorney General asking him for a response to 19 questions by the end of May. To this day, I have yet to receive any actual response to my questions.”
BRITT: “. . . if confirmed, will you do everything in your power to have yourself or one of your top officials respond in a timely manner to those of us on this committee? . . . [and] will you commit to working to help me to get answers about why this happened in the Department of Justice so that we can ensure that it never happens again?”
BONDI: “Yes, Senator.”
A video of Senator Britt’s full line of questioning can be viewed here.
This week, Senator Britt sent a letter to Attorney General Garland requesting that DOJ take action to preserve records regarding DOJ’s failure to enforce the provisions of 18 U.S.C. §1507 at the homes of the Justices. Her letter follows repeated attempts by Senator Britt to gain answers from Attorney General Garland regarding this failed enforcement.
