(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) The surprise firing of former Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday has triggered considerable tongue-wagging in political circles over to the reason for her departure.
President Donald Trump reportedly expressed his growing frustration with the “ineffective” Justice Department head as far back as last September.
Trump publicly criticized Bondi over the failed prosecutions of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, two of the political enemies who waged conspiratorial lawfare campaigns against him in between his two presidential terms.
Some theories indicated that a less-than-optimal DOJ showing during Wednesday’s Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship may have been the final straw in a strained relationship that first soured over the botched investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein files.
However, Fox News cast doubt on that scenario, speculating that Trump and Bondi may have discussed the shakeup en route to the high court.
🚨 NEW: Fox’s Peter Doocy REVEALS “it was during this ride in the Beast to and from the Supreme Court yesterday that President Trump and AG Bondi talked about the possibility of her leaving the DoJ…” pic.twitter.com/rWbcN60sfD
— TV News Now (@TVNewsNow) April 3, 2026
Meanwhile, another report from the Daily Mail indicated that Bondi may have tipped off Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., regarding an FBI investigation in to his past indiscretions with a Chinese honey-trap spy, Christine Fang.
“The White House wasn’t pleased she was intervening due to her personal friendship with Swalwell,” the Daily Mail said, citing an anonymous inside source.
NEW: Pam Bondi was fired, in part, because President Trump believed she had tipped off Eric Swalwell, according to the Daily Mail.
Trump reportedly believes Bondi had tipped off Swalwell about the FBI's effort to share investigative documents about his relationship with an… pic.twitter.com/ULpH0Lm8Y6
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 2, 2026
But that theory was dismantled by analysts at the “Last Refuge” blog who noted that even if Bondi had the motive, there would have been no need to leak to Swalwell.
“Without discussing the motive or background, the story itself just doesn’t make sense,” said the blog.
Swalwell, who is currently running for California governor, recently hired former FBI counterintelligence operative Joe Pientka — one of the anti-Trump agents who helped to oversee the phony “Crossfire Hurricane” operation, along with Peter Strzok.
“Because of his former role, Joe Pientka has deep ties to senior agents inside the current FBI, the type of agents who would know the inside details of any Swalwell investigative activity,” the Last Refuge wrote. “… FBI Director Kash Patel couldn’t start to review (or re-review) Swalwell activity without triggering one of those inside contacts aligned with Pientka.”
Another theory, that Trump intended to replace Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard with Bondi, also has been sidelined for now, following a post from Bondi that she planned to go into the private sector.
Still, others said that the departure may be an attempt to circumvent a House subpoena that was seeking to compel Bondi’s testimony over the release of the Epstein files.
We promised you answers.
We promised you transparency.
We promised you justice.We are working. Every. Single. Day. To deliver.
We just subpoenaed AG Pam Bondi, more to come.
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) March 4, 2026
With the DOJ indicating that it had completed its full release of the files in compliance with a congressional mandate, it was unclear whether lawmakers would still pursue Bondi’s appearance.
But Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who spearheaded the subpoena effort, suggested that Bondi still would be on the hook.
Pam Bondi will soon leave her job as the Attorney General.
My subpoena still stands. When the Oversight Committee moved to subpoena Bondi, I did it by name, not by or not as the sitting Attorney General of the U.S.
RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES.
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) April 2, 2026
Meanwhile, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who has maintained an adversarial relationship with Trump while championing full transparency on the Epstein matter, threatened interim Attorney General Todd Blanche that legal action may be forthcoming.
“Congratulations AG Blanche. Now you have 30 days to release the rest of the files before becoming criminally liable for failure to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act,” Massie wrote on X.
Congratulations AG Blanche. Now you have 30 days to release the rest of the files before becoming criminally liable for failure to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. https://t.co/LOcytrTXJV
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 3, 2026
Ben Sellers is a freelance writer and former editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/realbensellers.
