College professor and MSNBC contributor Jason Johnson cautioned that President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for attorney general should alarm the left, as she may be well-positioned to effectively implement his agenda. On Thursday evening, Trump announced his nomination of former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to lead the Justice Department. Bondi’s selection follows the withdrawal of former Florida Representative Matt Gaetz, who stepped aside earlier that day, citing the “distraction” caused by allegations of paying underage women for sex.
Speaking with MSNBC host Ari Melber, Johnson described the nomination as troubling news for those wary of Trump’s plans. “Occasionally, attorneys general try to behave like they are not the personal lawyer of the President of the United States. That is completely out the window. Pam Bondi is exactly what I was saying in the last segment that we should all fear, because she’s competent,” he said.
“We may not agree with her ideologically, but she actually knows how to do this job,” Johnson told Melber, adding, “So if anyone on the Democratic side or anyone who cared about liberty or justice was thinking ‘Well maybe Matt Gaetz will screw this up and that will give us time,’ no. Pam Bondi knows what she is doing.” He explained to the news host that her ties to Florida’s government show she knows how to leverage state power to achieve conservative goals.
Pam Bondi
“She knows what she’s doing about immigration. Remember, Florida is one of those states that has been very aggressive about migrants and deportation and moving people to different states and everything else like that. Florida has enacted all sorts of rules and laws to curtail students and what they can do on campuses and finding legal justifications for manipulating education money,” Johnson said. He continued, “She is a dangerous and effective pick, and that’s frankly worse than what we would have got with Matt Gaetz, even with the deplorable moral background that he has.”
As Johnson indicated, he had previously warned about the idea of selecting a more experienced candidate, claiming it would be a much more daunting choice for those apprehensive about Trump’s agenda. “It is, but I guess I’m from the perspective of, I never necessarily thought that Matt Gaetz was a sincere pick. Trump can call all he wants, but I suspect there were many, many people lined up to come after him who won’t be as offensive, who might actually be more effective,” he said, adding: “So while it might be a loss in the battle, I don’t necessarily think it’s a victory in the war against what may be an AG that ushers in an authoritarian type of presidency that affects the fundamental rights of American citizens.”
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