Bondi is OUT — and Trump already has a replacement in mind

President Donald Trump has officially fired Pam Bondi from her post as attorney general, and another administration official is expected to replace her.

Several reports indicated that Bondi's firing was imminent after months of prolonged scrutiny, particularly over her mishandling of the Epstein files, which quickly became an Achilles' heel for the administration. An administration official told Blaze News that EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is Trump's top pick to replace Bondi after the two met and discussed the role on Tuesday.

'We love Pam.'

Bondi is expected to become the second Cabinet official to leave the administration, following the departure of former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

"Pam Bondi is a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend, who faithfully served as my Attorney General over the past year," Trump announced in a Truth Social post. "Pam did a tremendous job overseeing a massive crackdown in Crime across our Country, with Murders plummeting to their lowest level since 1900."

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"We love Pam, and she will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector, to be announced at a date in the near future, and our Deputy Attorney General, and a very talented and respected Legal Mind, Todd Blanche, will step in to serve as Acting Attorney General," Trump added. "Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

Tensions over the attorney general's performance reached a fever pitch after Bondi apparently failed to adequately comply with the law, which Trump himself signed, requiring the release of all Epstein files, prompting calls for her removal.

RELATED: Trump makes big appearance in Epstein files — just not the way Democrats may have hoped

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Critics noted that the release of these files was repeatedly delayed and that the files had been at times improperly redacted to protect potential co-conspirators while revealing the identity of alleged victims. In a heated House Oversight hearing back in February, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.) ripped into Bondi over the Epstein files rollout, saying it was "literally the worst thing you could do to the survivors."

During this hearing, Bondi also attempted to argue that the Epstein files were just another Democrat ploy to distract from Trump's accomplishments, infamously noting that the Dow Jones had surpassed 50,000 points.

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