Bondi Confirms The Obvious: She’s No Firewall Against Trump

INSIDE: Mike Turner ... Elon Musk ... Rudy G

(Photo by Curtis Means-Pool/Getty Images)

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.

A Dark And Foreboding Hearing

The confirmation hearing of Pam Bondi for attorney general was more alarming and foreboding than I had expected. In advance, I thought she would mount enough of a defense of Justice Department independence and the rule of law to provide a fig leaf of cover for her true aims and those of Donald Trump, making it harder for less sophisticated observers to see through the charade. That would have been problematic in its own right, but the alternative turned out to be worse.

Instead, Bondi was brazen in offering nods to right-wing conspiracies, Fox News talking points, and Trump ego-stroking. Whatever she did to position herself as a colorable defender of the rule of law was overwhelmed by her refusal to acknowledge Trump lost in 2020, her expressed horror with Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigations, and her dodging of any question that would put her at odds with Trump. If she can’t create daylight between herself and Trump now in the abstract, what chance is there of her doing so when the real heat is on?

Between Bondi and GOP senators, the tone of the hearing was largely: We’re going to do exactly what we want to do and you can’t stop us.

Bondi’s Election Denialism

Nothing was quite as disturbing as Bondi’s adherence to the Big Lie because it implicates so many other rule of law issues, including her obvious willingness to consider criminal investigations of Biden DOJ figures on the basis that they had investigated Trump:

Bondi’s Slavish Display Of Loyalty To Trump

Some of the sharper reactions to the Bondi confirmation hearing:

• Dahlia Lithwick: “The main takeaway from her performance, though: If an insurrection happens in a forest, and Pam Bondi isn’t there to hear it, did it really happen?”

• Benjamin Wittes: “She could not bring herself to acknowledge the possibility of having to say no to Donald Trump or to address how she would handle the very-plausible prospect of receiving an illegal order from him.”

• Joyce Vance: “Bondi clumsily walking the tightrope between what she knew she had to say to get confirmed and what she knew she had to say to stay in Donald Trump’s good graces. She made it clear in the process that if she falls off, it will be in his direction.”

A Really Bad Sign

Trump sacks House Intel chairman Mike Turner (R-OH) for being too pro-Ukraine.

The Trump II Clown Show

The sheer volume of charlatans, misfits, and miscreants that Trump has nominated requires triaging. We can’t cover them all in depth, and you can’t keep it all in your head. But I didn’t want these three to slip by without noting them:

• Russell Vought, OMB director: “President-elect Trump’s selection to lead the White House’s budget told lawmakers on Wednesday he may consider withholding funds appropriated by Congress and defended the removal of civil service protections for some employees as necessary to ensure good governance,” Government Executive reported.

• John Ratcliffe, CIA director: “John Ratcliffe, who served as director of national intelligence in Trump’s first term, appeared likely to win easy confirmation after his appearance before the Senate Intelligence Committee, where he found a warm reception,” the WaPo reported. “No senator disclosed plans to oppose his nomination.”

• Chris Wright, secretary of energy: “[T]he confirmation hearing for Chris Wright, a literal fracking executive, for Secretary of Energy proved to be relatively low-key and collegial among senators from both parties, Heatmap reported. “Wright was introduced by his fellow Coloradan, Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper, was an early strong signal that will likely pass through confirmation with ease.”

Trump II Transition Tidbits

• Enemies List: President-elect Trump identified an enemies list of 11 people with whom any association he considers disqualifying to serve in his administration. They are all Republicans or former Trump I officials.

• Not Normal: Trump has invited a slew of far-right and nationalist politicians from around the world to his inauguration.

• RIP Jimmy Carter: Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) joined with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) in directing U.S. flags at the state Capitol in Sacramento be raised to full height for Inauguration Day after Trump complained about them being lowered to honor the late President Jimmy Carter.

Biden Warns Of Rising Oligarchy In America

While he is largely sideline and ignored, President Biden took the opportunity of farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office to warn of rising oligarchy and a “tech-industrial complex” that both threaten fundamental freedoms – an extraordinary warning from a sitting president.

You can read the full text of Biden’s farewell address.

Elon Musk Watch

• NYT: Musk Said to Have Intervened to Help Free Italian Jailed in Iran

• WSJ: SEC Sues Elon Musk Over Twitter Stock Buys

• NYT: Elon Musk Is Expected to Use Office Space in the White House Complex

Aileen Cannon Demands Jack Smith Report

Ahead of Friday’s hearing on whether the Attorney General Merrick Garland can release to select members of Congress a redacted version of Volume II of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report on the Mar-a-Lago case, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon ordered the Justice Department to provide her with a copy of the report, not an unreasonable demand considering defense counsel have already seen it. A hearing in which everyone but the judge has seen the document in question would be off kilter.

Meanwhile, House Judiciary Democrats are calling for Garland to drop the charges against the remaining defendants in the Mar-a-Lago case so that Smith’s Volume II can be released publicly before Trump takes office and not get buried forever. Dropping viable criminal charges in return for a special counsel’s report seems like a pretty lopsided bargain, especially if it spares Trump and his new attorney general from having to follow through on their corrupt plan to drop the case.

Rudy G Back In Court

A trial gets underway today in federal court in Manhattan to determine the disposition of some of Rudy Giuliani’s most prized assets as he tries to fend off Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss from executing on their $148 million defamation judgment against him.

Still Grappling With Historic Hurricane Helene

At the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society this week in New Orleans, the director of the National Hurricane Center provided an assessment of the impacts of Hurricane Helene, which came ashore in Florida’s Big Bend and devastated portions of the Carolinas and Georgia:

Thanks For Coming Out Last Night!

We did the TPM podcast in front of a live audience for the first time last night. Josh Marshall and Kate Riga did their thing in DC with nearly 200 TPM members and supporters looking on. It went off without a hitch, and we were super pleased with the results.

I got a chance to visit with Morning Memo readers, renew some old acquaintances, and make some new connections. It would have been a good evening regardless, but considering the circumstances – a cold January night less than a week before Trump second inaugural – it really was fantastic.

Thanks for coming out. We deeply appreciate your support. There’s no doing this without you.

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