Bondi out as AG and Hegseth ousts Army Chief of Staff

President Trump has dismissed Pam Bondi as US Attorney General, effective immediately. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will serve as acting AG until a permanent replacement is named and confirmed by the Senate. Reports were circulating yesterday that Trump was considering ousting Bondi and that he has been seeking advice about who could replace her. Bondi has drawn a great deal of criticism from both Republicans and Democrats for her handling of the Epstein files. She did not perform well in her last Congressional hearing on the subject, and is due to appear again before Congress on April 14. The lawmakers who subpoenaed her say they still intend to compel her to appear.

Other reports indicate that Trump believed that Bondi had tipped off Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell (CA) about plans by the FBI to publish records of a decades old investigation into Swalwell’s former relationship with Christine Fang, a suspected Chinese spy. Swalwell is a leading contender in the the upcoming California governor’s race. A few days ago, Swalwell’s attorneys sent FBI Director Kash Patel a cease and desist letter. The letter stated that releasing the files would be a blatant attempt to intervene in a political process since Swalwell was never accused of any wrongdoing where Fang was concerned.

Swalwell has denied that Bondi or anyone else tipped him off about the files release. Bondi and Swalwell have clashed publicly but the two are believed to have a friendly relationship.

Hegseth ousts Army Chief of Staff

According to US officials, War Secretary Pete Hegseth has forced the retirement of Gen. Randy George, the Army Chief of Staff and the Army’s highest-ranking uniformed officer. George was expected to continue serving in his role at least until summer 2027. George had served in the Army since 1982 and served command roles in some of the Army’s most important combat units.

Hegseth has previously forced out several high-ranking military officials. These dismissals have sometimes been accompanied by reports of disagreements over major operations (including the campaign against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean) and other times have been seen as a purge of the Pentagon to allow Hegseth to place loyalists in high-ranking positions. George’s rumored replacement is Gen. Christopher LaNeve, who previously served as Hegseth’s personal military aide.

Officials told Reuters that Hegseth has also ousted Gen. David Hodne, who leads the Army’s Transformation and Training Command, and Maj. Gen. William Green, head of the Army’s Chaplain Corps.

The reasons for these firings is not entirely clear, but the timing could not be more sensitive. Army units, including the 82nd Airborne, are currently gearing for a major ground operation in Iran.