US President Donald Trump has fired his attorney general Pam Bondi and designated his former personal lawyer Todd Blanche as her acting replacement at the head of the Justice Department.
The move follows mounting frustration with her performance, including her handling of investigative files related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Mr Trump had also reportedly grown frustrated that Ms Bondi was not moving quickly enough to prosecute critics and adversaries who he wanted to face criminal charges.
Bondi "will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector," Trump announced on his Truth Social platform.
"Our Deputy Attorney General, and a very talented and respected Legal Mind, Todd Blanche, will step in to serve as Acting Attorney General."
During her tenure as the top US law enforcement official, Ms Bondi was a combative champion of Mr Trump's agenda and dismantled the Justice Department’s longstanding tradition of independence from the White House in its investigations.
But it was repeated criticism over the Epstein files, including from Trump allies and some Republican lawmakers, that came to dominate her tenure.
Ms Bondi was accused of covering up or mismanaging the release of records on the DOJ’s sex trafficking investigations into Epstein, a financier who cultivated ties with an array of wealthy and powerful figures.
The issue created political headaches for Mr Trump and drew renewed scrutiny of his past friendship with Epstein, which he has said ended decades ago.
Her departure could lead to a shake-up in strategy at the Justice Department and, potentially, a renewed push to deploy the U.S. legal system against Mr Trump’s targets.
Ms Bondi is the second senior Trump official to be ousted recently. Mr Trump removed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on 5 March following criticism of her management of the agency and Trump’s immigration agenda.
Ms Bondi, a former Republican state attorney general in Florida, said she worked on restoring the Justice Department’s focus on violent crime and rebuilding trust with Trump’s supporters after federal prosecutors twice criminally charged Trump during his years out of power.
Ms Bondi also faced criticism over the removal of dozens of career prosecutors who worked on investigations disfavoured by Mr Trump, with critics accusing her of abandoning the DOJ’s traditional focus on even-handed justice.
Ms Bondi defended the rollout of the Epstein files, saying the Trump administration had been more transparent on the issue than previous presidents and that DOJ lawyers worked on a compressed timeline to review reams of material.
During a combative hearing before a House of Representatives panel in January, Ms Bondi responded to criticism with political attacks directed at lawmakers. She refused to apologise or look at Epstein victims and their relatives who attended the proceedings.
Ms Bondi early last year played into fevered speculation about the Epstein files, saying a client list was on her desk for review. But after an initial release included material that had largely already been public, the DOJ and FBI declared in July that the case was closed and that no further disclosures were warranted.
The move prompted an eruption of criticism and eventually a bipartisan law passed in November requiring the Justice Department to release nearly all of its files.
The release of roughly 3 million pages of records still did not quell the controversy, as lawmakers criticized redactions in the files and the disclosure of the identities of some Epstein victims.
The Republican-led House Oversight Committee voted to subpoena Bondi and she was set to testify on 14 April.
Washington planning commission approves Trump's ballroom project
US President Donald Trump's White House ballroom project has been approved by Washington planning authorities, two days after a judge ruled work cannot proceed without Congress' approval.
The National Capital Planning Commission, which is chaired by one of Mr Trump's former lawyers, deliberated and then voted to approve the "East Wing Modernisation Project".
The Republican president says the $400 million, 8,400-square-meter ballroom will be a privately financed defining addition to the White House and a lasting symbol of his presidency.
The ballroom is part of Mr Trump's broader push to reshape Washington's monumental core, which also includes plans for a 250-foot arch and a multi-year renovation of the Kennedy Center performing arts complex.
He has also ripped out and replaced the White House Rose Garden and added a wide array of gilding to the Oval Office.
"I believe that, in time, this ballroom will be considered every bit as much of a national treasure as the other key components of the White House," said Will Scharf, who chairs the commission and is Mr Trump's former personal lawyer.
Mr Scharf, who was appointed by Mr Trump, said that many of the negative comments the commission had received on the project dealt with issues beyond its scope, including negative comments on the private funding of the ballroom, the demolition process and opinions about Mr Trump.
