Attorney General Pam Bondi is suing the state of Illinois and the city of Chicago over their liberal sanctuary city policies.
Bondi, 59, got straight to work after she was sworn into office on Wednesday and didn’t waste any time overhauling the agency around pro-MAGA directives.
‘She’s going to restore fair, equal and impartial justice and restore the constitutional rule of law in America,’ Trump said of Bondi in the Oval Office.
Bondi got right to work by issuing 14 orders and directives to implement the administration’s new priorities at one of the agencies least trusted by the MAGA base.
Among those was ordering her offices to investigate so-called sanctuary cities that thwart immigration officials and implement policies or practices that counter federal laws.
Her first full day on the job Thursday, Bondi filed a lawsuit against the state of Illinois, Cook County and the city of Chicago.
She argues in the filing that their sanctuary laws ‘interfere’ with Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s ability to arrest and deport illegal migrants.
Bondi was part of Trump’s defense team in his first impeachment trial. Before that she served as Attorney General of Florida.
Now, she is heading the U.S. Justice Department after the Senate confirmed her in a 54-46 vote on Tuesday. Democrat Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania joined all Republicans to vote for her confirmation.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas swore-in Bondi during an Oval Office ceremony with Trump on Wednesday.
Attorney General Pam Bondi is suing Illinois and Chicago for their sanctuary city policies thwarting federal immigration laws and enforcement
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (pictured) speaks with press last month after he was asked to appear before Congress along other mayors to discuss their sanctuary city policies
Bondi’s new role at DOJ
Trump announced at a prayer breakfast on Thursday morning that he has a second role in mind for Bondi as she takes on leading the Justice Department.
He said he would direct Bondi to head a task force focused on stopping bias against Christian religions.
He promised the room of religious leaders and allies during a private prayer breakfast that he would sign an executive order to create the new group.
Bondi would be charged by the president with heading the task force that would eradicate anti-Christian bias.
‘About time, right?’ Trump said to the group, which held groups including an important demographic for him winning in both 2016 and 2024.
Democrat reaction to Bondi’s confirmation and sweeping ‘weaponization’ orders
Trump, who pledged to end weaponization of the DOJ, admitted that it might not be possible for Bondi to be ‘totally impartial with respect to Democrats’ as she takes lead of the nation’s top law enforcement agency.
‘But I think she’s going to be as impartial as you possibly can be,’ Trump said about Bondi earlier this week.
‘I know I’m supposed to say she’s going to be totally impartial with respect to Democrats, and I think she will be as impartial as a person can be. I’m not sure if there’s a possibility of totally. But she’s going to be as total as you can get.’
Senate Judiciary Ranking Member Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) tore into Trump and Bondi, saying he hopes to be proven wrong of his assumptions on how the DOJ will operate going forward.
‘This is not the beginning of a serious, apolitical Justice Department,’ he wrote on X. ‘We hope Pam Bondi proves us wrong.’
Durbin and all other Democratic members of the panel voted against Bondi’s nomination as Attorney General making it out of the committee for a full floor vote on her confirmation this week.
But their efforts as the minority party in Congress were futile.
Several made remarks on the floor of the Senate to voice their opposition to Bondi’s becoming the next AG.
‘We need an Attorney General who knows their duty is to the people – not the President,’ said Judiciary member Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.).
‘That person is not Pam Bondi,’ he claimed.
Senate Judiciary Democrats say they hop Bondi ‘proves them wrong’ after Donald Trump said she might find it difficult to be ‘totally impartial’ against the Democratic Party
The Senate voted to confirm Bondi in a 54-46 vote on Tuesday that saw Democrat Sen. John Fetterman joining all Republicans. Trump said during her swearing-in on Wednesday: ‘I know I’m supposed to say she’s going to be totally impartial with respect to Democrats, and I think she will be as impartial as a person can be. I’m not sure if there’s a possibility of totally’
Rescinding funding for sanctuary jurisdictions
It was clear that one of Bondi’s main goals was to align with Trump’s border crackdown and target illegal immigration enforcement to make sure all states, cities and localities are following federal law.
She issued an order Wednesday evening pausing all funding to so-called sanctuary cities.
Her first day as AG on Thursday, Bondi filed a lawsuit against Illinois and Chicago for blatantly opposing such immigration laws and preventing federal officials from carrying out their duties to detain and deport illegal aliens.
‘Upon information and belief, the conduct of officials in Chicago and Illinois minimally enforcing—and oftentimes affirmatively thwarting—federal immigration laws over a period of years has resulted in countless criminals being released into Chicago who should have been held for immigration removal from the United States,’ the lawsuit reads.
Denver is another sanctuary city that is bracing for a lawsuit from the Trump administration and preparing for mass deportations of illegal immigrants who have been granted solace in the city
City officials said at the end of January that more than 100 immigrants have been taken into custody in Chicago and the surrounding area since Trump took office on January 20.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was already asked by Congress to appear with other mayors on Capitol Hill to discuss their cities sanctuary policies.
Thursday’s suit is the first of many to come in different sanctuary jurisdictions, Justice Department officials confirm.
Some other areas that could have their entire states or largest cities added to hit list are California, Michigan, Oregon, Washington and Colorado.
If any state, cities or other local governments are engaged in preventing, evading or going against federal immigration laws, the DOJ will instruct funding to be withheld from those jurisdictions.
Bondi’s lawsuit states that Illinois and Chicago officials engaged in an ‘intentional effort to obstruct the Federal Government’s enforcement of federal immigration law and to impede consultation and communication between federal, state, and local law enforcement officials that is necessary for federal officials to carry out federal immigration law and keep Americans safe.’
Ordering DOJ staff back to office
Bondi immediately issues an order for all Justice employees and staff to return to work in-person full-time in accordance with Trump’s executive action completely ending government telework and work-from-home policies.
She said that for DOJ workers, which includes staff with the FBI, working remotely deteriorates the trust of those who want the agency to remain objective.
‘As federal employees, we are held to the highest standards-and maintaining a clear distinction between our professional duties and personal lives is essential to maintaining public trust,’ Bondi wrote in one of the 14 orders she issued on Wednesday.
‘The Presidential Memorandum directs heads of agencies to advance that objective for the benefit of the American people, and I want to thank you for ensuring the Department achieves full compliance,’ she noted.
Bondi’s husband and mother held a bible as she was sworn-into office by Supreme Court Justice Clearance Thomas in an Oval Office ceremony on Wednesday, February 5
Ending diversity, equity and inclusion practices
The new Attorney General says her DOJ will also focus on making sure that all government agencies are complying with Trump’s order putting an end to so-called DEI practices and policies, which prioritized hiring people due to their demographics rather than their merit for the position.
‘To fulfill the Nation’s promise of equality for all Americans, the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division will investigate, eliminate, and penalize illegal DEi and DEIA preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities in the private sector and in educational institutions that receive federal funds,’ she vowed.
Bondi is giving her department’s Civil Rights Division and Office of Legal Policy less than a month to submit a report recommending enforcement for enforce the policies at the federal government level.
She also, however, wants the report to contain ‘recommendations for enforcing federal civil-rights laws and taking other appropriate measures to encourage the private sector to end illegal discrimination and preferences, including policies relating to DEI and DEIA.’
The offices have until March 1, 2025 to submit the joint report.
In regards to affirmative action practices at university, Bondi is assuring the public that educational institutions that students may not treat students differently due to their race.
Bondi said the DOJ will work with the Department of Education to make sure any ‘educational agencies, colleges, and universities that receive federal funds’ are not engaging in ‘treat[ing] some students worse than others in part because of race.’
Bondi’s ‘weaponization’ memo
The Attorney General also sent a memo creating a ‘Weaponization Working Group’ in one of her directives.
This one immediately sent a warning flare to DOJ attorneys who might seek to undermine Trump.
The ‘zealous advocacy’ directive, as the DOJ calls it, demands workers ‘aggressively enforc[e] criminal laws passed by Congress , but also vigorously defending presidential policies and actions on behalf of the United States against legal challenges.’
It also sets limits on ‘personal political views.’
The text includes an explicit threat, stating ‘any Justice Department attorney who declines to sign a brief, refuses to advance good-faith arguments on behalf of the Trump administration, or otherwise delays or impedes the Justice Department’s mission will be subject to discipline and potentially termination.’
Task force on Hamas attack on Israel
Bondi wants to provide justice for those targeted in the October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, which led to a more than year-long war that just reached a ceasefire after Trump was elected.
The memo was issued as part of Bondi’s 14 directives on Wednesday and creates a task force ‘to prioritize seeking justice for victims of the October 7, 2023 terrorist attack in Israel.’
It also will seek to address ‘the ongoing threat posed by Hamas and its affiliates’ as well as ‘combat antisemitic acts of terrorism and civil rights violations’ committed in the U.S.
The October 7 attack was the deadliest single-day murder of Jewish people since the Holocaust.
The Trump administration has been clear it will back Israeli ally.
Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House this week where the president floated the idea of entering Gaza to help rebuild it as Palestinians are moved to other countries in the region.
