The Senate confirmed Donald Trump’s pick for the top law enforcement official in the land over complaints from some gun-rights advocates on Wednesday.
In a 54-46 vote, the upper chamber of Congress approved Pam Bondi’s ascension to Attorney General, with Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman as the only crossover vote in support. Her confirmation came despite opposition from some gun-rights activists over her mixed history on gun policy. Gun Owners of America expressed a willingness to work with Bondi but also skepticism about her intentions.
“Gun owners have seen firsthand how an anti-gun Attorney General can abuse their power to undermine the Constitution,” Erich Pratt, the group’s senior vice president, said in a statement. “Pam Bondi’s confirmation is a stark reminder that we must stay vigilant to ensure she defends, rather than dismantles, our God-given rights.”
Bondi will now oversee gun law enforcement across the federal government and determine the Trump Administration’s legal strategy in gun-rights challenges to those laws. Criticism from groups like GOA and the National Association for Gun Rights failed to deter Republican Senators from voting in lockstep to approve Bondi or even garner a question on her past support for stricter gun laws. Her confirmation means their concerns may take a backseat to other priorities under Bondi’s tenure.
Bondi did not give a detailed explanation of how she plans to handle gun cases during her confirmation hearing. Democratic Senator Alex Padilla briefly asked her about her views on gun control. In response, she said she’d “always been pro-Second Amendment.” However, she also said she’d focus on enforcing America’s gun laws.
“I am an advocate for the Second Amendment, but I will enforce the laws of the land,” Bondi said.
When Padilla followed up to see whether she would support raising the minimum age for firearm purchases, implementing “Red Flag” laws, and passing universal background checks, she didn’t commit one way or the other. She did promise to discuss those restrictions with him, though.
“I would be glad to meet with you and review any legislation you have, Senator,” Bondi responded.
Bondi’s history of supporting age restrictions and “Red Flag” laws, as well as vigorously defending Florida’s other gun restrictions during her time as the state’s Attorney General, are the root of the gun-rights groups’ criticisms against her. Some of her most controversial comments came in the wake of the Parkland shooting when she was invited to the White House by Donald Trump to discuss potential legislative responses to the killings. She, like Trump, advocated for new mechanisms to remove guns–at least temporarily–from those deemed by a judge to be a danger to themselves or others.
“I’ve had my solicitor general on it for three days now working on it,” she told him at the time. “We’ve been rewriting it, and we’re going to bring in something called the gun violence restraining order.”
In a later interview with Fox Business, she defended then-Governor Rick Scott (R.) pushing for several other new gun restrictions. Those restrictions included a bump-stock ban and a measure raising the minimum age for gun purchases to 21.
“In a time of crisis, it’s about finding common ground, and that’s what Governor Scott’s done,” she said. “That’s why nothing ever gets done in Congress, in my opinion. People are so polarized to one side or the other. We just experienced a traumatic school shooting in Florida, and it’s finding common ground, something both sides can agree on.”
Gun-rights advocates had a back-and-forth relationship with Bondi throughout her tenure in Florida, including well before her push to expand the state’s gun laws after Parkland. She initially earned an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association during her 2010 campaign but later clashed with the group over several legal cases. In 2013, Florida Carry labeled her anti-Second Amendment during a legal battle over open carry.
“We have not seen a Florida Attorney General take such drastic anti-Second Amendment positions since 1987 when Bob Butterworth fought tooth and nail against concealed carry licensing,” Sean Caranna, the group’s executive director, said at the time.
She rarely discussed gun policy after leaving office in 2019. However, she was a vocal proponent of Kyle Rittenhouse during his trial for the fatal shooting of two men and wounding of another amidst the 2020 rioting in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
“People have to understand out there that this was a war zone,” Bondi told Fox News’ Sean Hannity during a September 2020 interview. “You’ve got a 17-year-old trying to protect his state.”
In her confirmation hearing, Bondi described her gun views as an outgrowth of her experience responding to mass shootings.
“I am pro-Second Amendment. I have always been pro-Second Amendment,” she said. “I will follow the laws of my state of Florida and our country, of course. Regarding any gun laws, I worked that shooting, meaning I was there when 17 family members were notified–I was there–that their children were murdered. Also, Pulse Nightclub. I also went to Nevada to help with the MGM shooting. The Attorney General at the time asked me to come out there. I believe over 60 people were murdered there.”
