Pam Bondi, President-elect Donald Trump‘s pick for attorney general, addressed questions about the so-called “enemies list” compiled by the potential next FBI director, Kash Patel, during her confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
While responding to questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee, Bondi assured that the dozens of names appearing in Patel’s 2023 book, Government Gangsters, would not be unfairly targeted by the Department of Justice under the Trump administration.
Newsweek has contacted Bondi, Patel and the Trump transition team for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Trump’s decision to tap Patel to replace Christopher Wray as FBI director has raised concerns that the president-elect might use the federal agency to target political opponents as an act of retaliation.
Patel, a former federal prosecutor and staunch Trump supporter, has publicly expressed a desire to confront the “deep state” in government.
Kash Patel speaks during a campaign rally for Donald Trump in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 24, 2024. Patel’s so-called “enemies list” was brought up during attorney general nominee Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing. Kash Patel speaks during a campaign rally for Donald Trump in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 24, 2024. Patel’s so-called “enemies list” was brought up during attorney general nominee Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing. Patrick T. Fallon / AFP/Getty Images
What to Know
Bondi, the former Florida attorney general, was questioned about Patel’s “enemies list” during her confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island asked whether Bondi would have hired someone to the Florida attorney general’s office if they had an “enemies list.”
Bondi pointed out the senator was referring to the dozens of names compiled by Patel in his 2023 book. Bondi stated she does not believe Patel has an “enemies list” and that such a list would never be enforced in the Department of Justice.
She added that no one will be prosecuted or investigated because they are a political opponent under the new administration.
Patel has mentioned targeting “conspirators” in government and the media during a December 2023 appearance on Steve Bannon‘s War Room podcast.
Patel wrote in Government Gangsters that his list of “members of the executive branch deep state” working against Trump was not exhaustive. The list includes longtime political opponents of Trump, such as President Joe Biden, 2016 election rival Hillary Clinton, and former FBI Director and “Russiagate” special counsel Robert Mueller.
Former Attorney General Bill Barr, who resigned in December 2020 after Trump continued to push false voter fraud claims even after the Department of Justice said there was no evidence, is also included in the list.
The 2023 list resurfaced in December when Trump announced Patel as his pick for FBI director.
On Monday, Democratic Representative Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania called on Biden to issue preemptive blanket pardons to those on Patel’s list during his final days in office.
Who Is on Kash Patel ‘Enemies List’?
- Michael Atkinson – Former Inspector General of the Intelligence Community
- Lloyd Austin – Secretary of Defense under President Biden
- Brian Auten – Supervisory Intelligence Analyst, FBI
- James Baker – Former FBI General Counsel and Twitter Deputy General Counsel
- Bill Barr – Former Attorney General under Trump
- John Bolton – Former National Security Adviser under Trump
- Stephen Boyd – Former Chief of Legislative Affairs, FBI
- Joe Biden – President of the United States
- John Brennan – Former CIA Director under Obama
- John Carlin – Former DOJ National Security Division Head under Trump
- Eric Ciaramella – Former National Security Council Staffer
- Pat Cipollone – Former White House Counsel under Trump
- James Clapper – Former Director of National Intelligence under Obama
- Hillary Clinton – Former Secretary of State and presidential candidate
- James Comey – Former FBI Director
- Elizabeth Dibble – Former Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy, London
- Mark Esper – Former Secretary of Defense under Trump
- Alyssa Farah – Former Trump Director of Strategic Communications
- Evelyn Farkas – Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense under Obama
- Sarah Isgur Flores – Former DOJ Communications Head under Trump
- Merrick Garland – Attorney General under Biden
- Stephanie Grisham – Former Trump Press Secretary
- Kamala Harris – Vice President under Biden
- Gina Haspel – CIA Director under Trump
- Fiona Hill – Former National Security Council Staffer
- Curtis Heide – FBI Agent
- Eric Holder – Former Attorney General under Obama
- Robert Hur – Special Counsel for Biden classified documents investigation
- Cassidy Hutchinson – Former Aide to Trump’s Chief of Staff
- Nina Jankowicz – Former Director of the Disinformation Governance Board under Biden
- Lois Lerner – Former IRS Director under Obama
- Loretta Lynch – Former Attorney General under Obama
- Charles Kupperman – Former Trump Deputy National Security Adviser
- Gen. Kenneth Mackenzie – Former CENTCOM Commander
- Andrew McCabe – Former FBI Deputy Director
- Ryan McCarthy – Former Secretary of the Army under Trump
- Mary McCord – Former DOJ National Security Official under Obama
- Denis McDonough – Barack Obama’s one-time Chief of Staff
- Gen. Mark Milley – Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Lisa Monaco – Deputy Attorney General under Biden
- Sally Moyer – Former Supervisory Lawyer at the FBI.
- Robert Mueller – Former FBI Director and Special Counsel
- Bruce Ohr – Former Associate Deputy Attorney General
- Nellie Ohr – Former CIA employee
- Lisa Page – Former FBI Counsel
- Pat Philbin – Former Trump Deputy White House Counsel
- John Podesta – Former Counselor to Obama and Biden Climate Adviser
- Samantha Power – Former Ambassador to the U.N. under Obama
- Bill Priestap – Former FBI Counterintelligence Official
- Susan Rice – Former National Security Adviser under Obama
- Rod Rosenstein – Former Deputy Attorney General under Trump
- Peter Strzok – Former FBI Official
- Jake Sullivan – National Security Adviser under Biden
- Michael Sussmann – Former Lawyer for the Democratic National Committee
- Miles Taylor – Former DHS Official under Trump
- Timothy Thibault – Former FBI Agent
- Andrew Weissmann – Former Mueller Investigation Deputy
- Alexander Vindman – Former National Security Council Director
- Christopher Wray – FBI Director under Trump and Biden
- Sally Yates – Former Acting Attorney General
What People Are Saying
Pam Bondi at Wednesday’s confirmation hearing: “There will never be an enemies list within the Department of Justice.”
Democratic Vermont Senator Peter Welch posted on X: “Pam Bondi promised me during our hearing today that ‘No one will be prosecuted or investigated because they are a political opponent.’ I’m going to hold her to that if she’s confirmed.
Kash Patel, during a December 2023 appearance on War Room: “We will go out and find the conspirators not just in government but in the media. We’re going to come after you whether it’s criminally or civilly. We’ll figure that out.”
Democratic Representative Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania in a January 13 statement: “Donald Trump and Kash Patel have made their intentions unmistakably clear. Patel’s so-called ‘enemies list,’ brazenly published in his own book, is a blueprint for political retribution against those who stood firm in defense of our democracy and the rule of law. This is no hypothetical threat—it’s a dangerous roadmap for the abuse of power.”
The FBI declined to comment.
What Happens Next
A date for Patel’s confirmation hearing for the role of FBI director has yet to be confirmed.
Bondi, who replaced former Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz as the attorney general nominee, is not expected to face significant issues securing Senate confirmation to lead the Department of Justice.
