U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi was ripping things down on her very first day on the job.

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She told Lara Trump on the latter’s new Fox talk show (The View with Lara Trump) that upon entering her new office, she was faced with portraits of former President Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and Former AG Merrick Garland.

She promptly pulled them off the wall, lugged them down the hall, and deposited them in front of a staffer, who informed her that “maintenance is really slow here.”

Bondi’s reply, “Well, it took me about 30 seconds to get them off the wall.”

Seems like Pam Bondi shares an affinity for action with her new boss.

In fact, the President wasted no time naming her for AG once former nominee Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration. A couple hours after the embattled former representative stepped down on Nov. 21, President Trump announced his choice of Bondi for top lawyer.

It was four days after Bondi’s 59th birthday.

Conservatives and critics of the Biden Department of Justice (DOJ) are hoping for a gift in this nomination, too.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said prior to Bondi’s vote, “When confirmed, Ms. Bondi will take the helm at a turbulent time and of a Justice Department infected with political decision-making, and its leaders refusing to acknowledge that reality – in other words, political decision making on the 7th floor of the Hoover Building.”

Bondi’s record bears out her conservative credentials.

She is a registered Republican and has spoken at GOP conventions, including the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).

A fourth-generation Floridian, Bondi cut her teeth as a prosecutor in Florida’s 13th circuit, battling domestic violence, murder, and drug running.

Determined to have a larger impact, in 2010, Bondi ran for Attorney General in Florida. Though it was her first foray into politics, she was not entirely unfamiliar with the process..

Her father, Joseph Bondi, was a city council member and mayor of her hometown, Temple Terrace, Florida, near Tampa.

Bondi became the state’s first female Attorney General.

She won reelection in 2014 and served through 2019, when term limits prohibited another immediate run for the office.

In her position as top law gun in Florida, Bondi waged war on the illicit opioid trade that had earned the state the dubious moniker, “the pill mill capital of the United States.”

She secured hard-hitting legislation that shut down 98 top opioid dispensaries. She tracked dangerous synthetic drugs and ultimately helped draft a bill that enables law enforcement to enforce bans against such drugs.

The Florida Police Chiefs Association recognized her for “efforts to reduce prescription drug abuse and strengthen Florida’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program through additional legislation via the ‘pill mill’ bill.”

In 2014, when gay marriage advocates sued Florida for not recognizing certificates from other states, Bondi fought, citing the fact that 62% of the state’s residents defined a marriage traditionally. The June 2015 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Obergefell v. Hodges rendered the issue moot.

As Florida’s AG, Bondi fought for constituents, securing significant settlements in a range of fraud and other consumer cases.

Bondi is certainly qualified to be America’s top lawyer.

She holds a Bachelor’s of Science in criminal justice from the University of Florida (1987) and a Juris Doctorate from Stetson Law School (1990).

Bondi has served as Chair for the Center for Litigation, and Co-Chair of the Center for Law and Justice at America First Policy Institute. AFPI is peopled with many who served in President Trump’s first administration and who align with his views.

Her list of achievements is long.

More recently, Bondi has been a lobbyist for Ballard Partners, of which Chief of Staff Susie Wiles has been a partner. There she has been able to act upon her passion to end human trafficking by lobbying on behalf of a Christian anti-trafficking organization.

Skeptics acknowledge Bondi’s credentials and charm but worry about her connections.

Some of Bondi’s other lobbying clients — such as Qater and Kuwait — cause eyebrows to go up.

But the biggest red flag for many are her tight ties to the Trumps — in particular Lara Trump, the President’s daughter-in-law.

Though Bondi did not serve in an official capacity in the first administration, she did step in to litigate for President Trump in his first impeachment trial. She also supported President Trump in the disputes about the 2020 presidential election.

She and the Trump organization first connected during her stint as Florida AG. Though not herself implicated, some question her involvement as Florida AG in the Trump University settlements about alleged fraud.

But Bondi has a strong support network.

She attends Radiant Church in Florida and included her pastor in the group of friends and family who attended her swearing in ceremony.

In a video interview, her pastor said Bondi’s faith undergirds her work.

Bondi is now married to John Wakefield, who has three children from a prior relationship, after two earlier divorces.

Bondi has no children of her own, but she loves dogs. Her staff recall that she often brought canine friends to office meetings to encourage their adoption.

Prior to being tapped by President Trump, she was considering running again for Florida Attorney General having sat out the required amount of time. She told Ms. Trump, “I love helping people, and that was my plan.”

Bondi faces immense challenges at the DOJ.

Among them:

• Restoring credibility to the politicized agency, including releasing the Epstein files and other documents promised to the American people.
• Ending the weaponization of the justice system against Catholics and other people of faith.
• Fairly enforcing the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) act.
• Countering the many lawfare suits sprouting up to block President Trump’s agenda.
• Considering appropriate legal action against the President’s enemies, without succumbing to politicization herself.
• Taking a hard line on the fentanyl crisis and other illicit drug issues.
• Working with diverse people across the political divide, a skill she demonstrated as Florida AG.
• Leading a taskforce to “eradicate anti-Christian bias” in the federal government.

Bondi needs our prayers.

Please pray:

• For the Armor of God to be activated in all ways.
• For wisdom (James 1:5).
• For favor (Psalm 90:17, ESV).
• For persistence in prayer (Luke 18:3).
• For effectiveness (Col. 3:23-24).
• For protection (Psalm 91).
• For reliance on God (Psalm 20:7-8).
• For blessing (Numbers 6:24-26).

How are you praying for Pam Bondi?

New York City–based Joyce Swingle is an intercessor and a contributing writer for IFA. With her husband, Rich, also a contributing writer for IFA, Joyce shares the gospel of Jesus Christ around the world through theater, speaking, writing, and film. Prior to going into full-time ministry, Joyce worked for about 20 major magazines and now works in pastoral ministry and Christian counseling. www.Richdrama.com. Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America – Pam Bondi, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=160559071.