Attorneys general from 20 states are urging the U.S. Senate to quickly confirm President-elect Donald Trump’s nominees for Attorney General, secretary of Homeland Security, and FBI director.
Attorney General Liz Murrill (R-LA) led 19 peers from around the country in a letter, obtained by Breitbart News, supporting Gov. Kristi Noem (R-SD), the DHS secretary nominee; Pam Bondi, Trump’s nominee for attorney general; and Kash Patel, who Trump tapped to lead the FBI.
“Even under ordinary circumstances, it is imperative that President Trump have his national security team in place on Day One. And we are not in ordinary times,” the attorneys general wrote in the letter dated January 15. “The events over the New Year holiday are a grim reminder of why any delay in confirming America First leaders to these important posts is unacceptable.”
The letter, addressed to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), adds that the Biden administration has endangered Americans.
“For four years, the Biden Administration has put Americans in danger. President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas’s reckless, open border policies have allowed millions of illegal immigrants to enter the country unchecked, unvetted, and unmonitored,” the attorneys general write, pointing to Laken Riley’s murderer and “suspected ISIS terrorists” as examples.
“The national security risks of a porous, unguarded border are obvious and alarming. Governor Noem is the person America needs to help President Trump restore security at the border,” the letter goes on to add.
The attorneys general then turned their attention to issues within the Department of Justice and the FBI in advocation for Bondi and Patel:
The Department of Justice and FBI are also in desperate need of reform. Violent crime has plagued American cities under President Biden. FBI crime statistics—which the FBI had to correct after falsely claiming there had been a decrease in violent crime—show a nearly five-percent increase in violent crime in 2022… This deterioration in the safety of American communities is not surprising. Instead focusing on getting violent criminals off the streets, President Biden’s DOJ and FBI have targeted concerned parents attending school board meetings as though they were violent extremists; labelled conservative Catholics as domestic terrorists; and attempted to weaponize the justice system against political opponents, including President Trump. General Bondi and Mr. Patel are who we need to get DOJ and the FBI back on track and focused on protecting Americans.
The signees include the following attorneys general:
- Murrill
- Steve Marshall (R-AL)
- Tim Griffin (R-AR)
- Ashley Moody (R-FL)
- Chris Carr (R-GA)
- Raúl Labrador (R-ID)
- Todd Rokita (R-IN)
- Brenna Bird (R-IA)
- Lynn Fitch (R-MS)
- Andrew Bailey (R-MI)
- Austin Knudsen (R-MT)
- Mike Hilgers (R-NE)
- Drew Wrigley (R-ND)
- Dave Yost (R-OH)
- Gentner Drummond (R-OK)
- Alan Wilson (R-SC)
- Marty Jackley (R-SD)
- Ken Paxton (R-TX)
- Derek Brown (R-UT)
- Jason Miyares (R-VA)
Bondi’s confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee began on Wednesday, while Noem’s hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is set for Friday. Trump will formally nominate Patel once FBI Director Christopher Wray resigns, which will happen at the end of the Biden administration.
