Bondi on the brink? – POLITICO
With help from Eli Okun, Ali Bianco, Irie Sentner and Makayla Gray
On today’s Playbook Podcast: Jack and Dasha pick over the bones of President Donald Trump’s primetime address to the nation last night, and what it meant for the global economy.
Good Thursday morning. This is Jack Blanchard. Get in touch.
WHAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT: Dasha last night confirmed those buzzy NYT and CNN scoops that Pam Bondi will likely soon be OUT as attorney general.
Bondi beached: A person close to the White House tells Dasha that when Trump met EPA boss Lee Zeldin on Tuesday to discuss last year’s California wildfires, Trump also discussed the potential of tapping him for the AG role. (CNN and the NYT last night both named Zeldin as the most likely successor.) A second person familiar with the situation tells Dasha that Bondi will be out imminently.
Epstein strikes again: Rumors of Bondi’s departure are hardly new, but it seems the mood has shifted against her in recent days. The AG has been under pressure since last summer over her ill-fated handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files inquiry, with even close ally Susie Wiles admitting Bondi “completely whiffed” her response. Trump has also long been frustrated over the DOJ’s failure to successfully prosecute his enemies, and readers will no doubt recall the infamous “Pam” message that Trump accidentally posted onto social media last year.
Zeld-IN? By contrast, Trump has repeatedly showered praise on Zeldin for his work at the EPA. Zeldin worked as a New York attorney in his 20s, and as a House representative during the first Trump administration became known for his hawkish support of Trump’s various legal battles and pursuits.
Non-denial denial: A statement issued to CNN and the NYT shows Trump voicing personal support for Bondi. “Attorney General Pam Bondi is a wonderful person and she is doing a good job,” the president said, which is hardly a guarantee of her future status. Bondi accompanied Trump to the Supreme Court yesterday morning and was in the audience for his address to the nation last night. Zeldin was also there.
In today’s Playbook …
— Trump speaks to POLITICO — with a message for NATO.
— Happy anniversary! How does Liberation Day look, one year on?
— And what’s making Jon Ossoff smile in Georgia? We got the juice.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Trump lays it out to NATO: “They gotta get guts and go in,” Trump told POLITICO’s Diana Nerozzi by phone last night, discussing U.S. allies’ concerns about the Strait of Hormuz. Trump’s advice for NATO nations was clear: “Just send your ships up there and enjoy it,” the president said.
Diana spoke with Trump immediately following his primetime address to the nation, which ultimately proved little more than a low-energy retread of his recent comments on Iran. There was neither a plan for a ground invasion, nor any clearer timeline for the end of the war, beyond the “two or three weeks” we’ve heard before. The reaction was instant: Oil prices rose sharply on the back of the address, with U.S. stock market futures tumbling fast.
What we did get was threats of a bombing escalation, with Trump vowing to send Iran — a nation of 93 million people — “back to the Stone Age, where they belong.” And there was no respite for those worried by rising oil prices, with Trump reiterating to allies that they will have to reopen the Strait of Hormuz on their own. (He also claimed the Strait will “open up naturally” after the war comes to an end.)
Not angry, just disappointed: The only good news for Europe was that Trump did not use his address to renew his attacks on NATO. “I don’t have any thoughts on NATO. I’m disappointed in them,” Trump told Diana. “I have no frustration. I couldn’t care less. I didn’t need them. But if I ever did need them, they wouldn’t be there. And we had a lot of money every year in NATO, so I learned a lot … So did America.”
All over? As POLITICO’s Jack Detsch and colleagues report, Trump would have to jump through any number of legal and congressional hoops to actually withdraw the U.S. from NATO, none of which are under serious discussion at this point. There’s “no sign it’s real,” one senior Senate aide tells them. But does that actually matter? NATO has only been effective these past 80 years because enemies never doubted the alliance was rock solid. “With Trump in office, NATO is worthless,” a German official said. “We might have NATO, but we no longer have an alliance.”
Lest there was any doubt, a Trump ally close to the White House spelled out the admin’s position on NATO in the most candid way possible to Dasha. “These motherf–kers always talk about Article Five, Article Five, Article Five, Article Five, Article Five. OK, well, Iran has been blowing up our soldiers and ripping their wings off for, you know, half a century, and we finally responded, and now they’re f–king going after all our major non-NATO allies and the United States — and you guys are like, not only saying we’re not going to help, you’re closing your airspace to us … Really?”
The brave new world: Unsurprisingly, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte will be dashing to D.C. next week for talks with Trump, per Reuters. But the truth is a de facto post-NATO alliance is already starting to form. The U.K. will today host a virtual conference with 35 allied nations to discuss the Hormuz crisis. The group taking part — which includes Europe’s major powers plus Canada, Australia, Japan and others — bears a striking similarity to the “coalition of the willing” that came together to support Ukraine last year. America was not involved in either.
But before Trump starts getting excited by today’s summit … don’t expect to see European battleships headed for the strait any time soon. “No Western nation is going to put naval vessels through the Strait of Hormuz against the declared opposition of the Iranians,” Peter Ricketts, the U.K.’s former national security adviser, told the BBC. Instead, he predicted Iran will continue rolling out shipping tolls — and plenty of nations will feel obliged to pay up.
Womp womp: Such an outcome would perhaps not be the strategic win Trump was looking for — though the president insists energy-rich America can simply walk away, insulated from any longer-term crisis. Not everyone is convinced. “He’s making it very clear to Iran that he’s desperate to get out,” one war-skeptical Republican close to the White House told POLITICO’s Megan Messerly. “They actually have the leverage now.” Asked whether the war will really be over in two to three weeks, this person replied: “Hell no — Iran gets a vote.”
Another war-skeptical Republican told Dasha they were “confused” by the president’s address last night, which neither accelerated the end of the war nor laid the ground for a military invasion. “It didn’t say anything,” a third White House ally complained. “It isn’t going to help with the public. But Mark Levin liked it.” Trump’s most loyal supporters insisted the address was necessary, however, because the president needs to make his case direct to the public. “It was a smart decision to address the American people,” former Trump spokesperson Mercedes Schlapp told Dasha. “The president provided clarity and an update on how close the U.S. military is to completing its objectives.”
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! Trump’s barrage of attacks on Iran — and his verbal attacks on NATO — have overshadowed another noteworthy date: the one-year mark since Trump’s “Liberation Day.” At the time, Trump’s reciprocal tariffs caused the FT’s editorial board to warn of “untold damage on households, businesses and financial markets across the world.”
One year on, Europe is a little non-plussed, POLITICO’s EU trade editor Douglas Busvine emails in, having neither retaliated with tariffs nor ratified its U.S. trade deal. “Trump’s tariffs have acted as a net drag on transatlantic trade,” Doug says. “But the bigger problem for the EU has been the glut of Chinese exports turned away by the United States that is now washing up on its shores.”
Here in the U.S., Trump’s promises of a manufacturing jobs boom has thus far failed to materialize, POLITICO’s Daniel Desrochers and Sam Sutton report. “Manufacturing payrolls actually declined slightly over the past year,” they write, “with 98,000 fewer jobs year-over-year based on the most recent data … There are 29,900 fewer auto manufacturing jobs and 18,000 fewer wood manufacturing jobs — both sectors the president has tried to protect with trade barriers.”
No wonder Dems are seeking to capitalize, with the DNC planning a “Liberation Day” news conference this morning featuring House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. “People may not have known what tariffs were in the past, but absolutely people do now,” Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash), chair of the DCCC, told Playbook’s Ali Bianco. “They see the impact it’s having when they go to the grocery store, on housing costs, in their community. We’re going to continue to highlight these issues.”
NOW READ THIS — The hidden cost of Liberation Day. Trump’s trade war didn’t just temporarily raise tariffs. It may have permanently broken the global system that lets technologies like Bluetooth work everywhere, writes POLITICO’s Emily Cadei.
SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN
WHITE SMOKE: Congress could pass a bill to reopen most of DHS as soon as today — but they probably won’t, leaving the record-breaking agency shutdown going longer still.
What will happen: The Senate is convening at 7 a.m., and leaders plan to send their bipartisan deal to the House for a second time, POLITICO’s Jordain Carney and colleagues report in this morning’s Inside Congress. The House then meets for a pro forma at 8:30 a.m. If the Senate successfully passes the deal, a House member could attempt to clear the bill by a voice vote. But given that just one House member could prevent it from clearing, GOP leaders aren’t expecting to pass the bill today. They’re holding a call with GOP members at 11 a.m.
That means the shutdown could go on for another two weeks until the House returns April 14. At that point, House GOP leaders are expected to vote first on the DHS funding compromise and then start working on a second reconciliation bill — which Trump demanded that Republicans use to pass years of immigration enforcement funding by a deadline of June 1. The reconciliation bill will be narrowly focused on immigration enforcement. And buckle in: House and Senate Republicans are keeping the door open for a third reconciliation package later this year to address the leftover priorities. Much more from POLITICO’s Inside Congress
Pain points: In the meantime, even as TSA workers got paid this week, the partial shutdown’s effects are still reverberating. Other unpaid staffers — at FEMA, CISA and civilians in the Coast Guard — felt gloomy at being left behind, NBC’s Doha Madani and Corky Siemaszko report. DHS is refusing to restart special TSA perks for lawmakers still, Semafor’s Lauren Morganbesser and Nicholas Wu scooped. And as voter anger spreads, politicians are laying low and avoiding town halls, The Atlantic’s Yvonne Wingett Sanchez and Russell Berman report.
TRAIL MIX
WHAT’S MAKING JON OSSOFF SMILE: “Inside the blame game roiling Georgia’s GOP Senate primary,” by POLITICO’s Alec Hernandez and Erin Doherty: “The party is grappling with a crowded field, no dominant front-runner, no endorsement from President Donald Trump — and the reality that the May 19 primary will very likely extend into an expensive, bruising mid-June runoff.” Republicans are pointing to a series of unforced errors that have opened the path up for Ossoff. “If Ossoff could write a playbook for how he wants this primary to go, this is exactly it,” one GOP operative said, adding that Georgia is like a “red-headed stepchild” not getting any attention from Washington.
CASH DASH: Iowa state Rep. Josh Turek scored a fundraising haul of more than $1.1 million for his Democratic Senate campaign in the first quarter of 2026, Playbook’s Adam Wren scoops. … Montana independent Seth Bodnar raked in nearly $1.4 million over the first four weeks of his Senate campaign, POLITICO’s Lisa Kashinsky writes in. His campaign says it’s the most money any independent candidate has ever raised in the state, though there’s a relatively slim list for comparison. … Michigan state Sen. Sean McCann’s Democratic campaign against GOP Rep. Bill Huizenga raised more than $1 million in Q1, Adam reports.
More big money in the Hawkeye State: Democrat Christina Bohannan pulled in a whopping $2 million for her rematch against Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa). In a neighboring district, Rep. Zach Nunn (R-Iowa) raised $1.2 million.
FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — Ad it up: Kentucky Senate candidate Nate Morris is launching a new statewide ad buy as he enters the final weeks of the crowded race against GOP rivals Rep. Andy Barr and Daniel Cameron, Adam reports. He hits on tariffs and illegal immigration. Watch it here
NEW THIS MORNING: Florida Republican Sydney Gruters today is launching a House campaign to succeed Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.), POLITICO’s Kimberly Leonard reports. Pre-endorsed by Trump, Gruters is a former congressional staffer and New College Foundation executive director who’s also married to RNC Chair Joe Gruters.
BATTLE FOR THE BALLOT: Trump’s executive order seeking to limit mail voting earned a lawsuit yesterday from all the Democratic Party’s top groups and elected leaders, per POLITICO’s Jacob Wendler and Aaron Pellish.
STRICTLY BALLROOM — Trump’s big plans for a White House ballroom and new East Wing go before the National Capital Planning Commission at 1 p.m. With White House staff secretary Will Scharf chairing the commission, the outcome today isn’t really in doubt. But that doesn’t mean the ballroom’s hurdles are over. If a federal judge’s ruling this week that the ballroom needs Congress’ approval holds up on appeal, the matter will fall to the Hill.
And there its future is no sure thing, POLITICO’s Hailey Fuchs and Riley Rogerson report this morning. Most Republicans on the relevant panels — already with plenty on their plates — haven’t weighed in. Mike Davis wants the ballroom included in reconciliation. And Democrats are licking their chops at the political fight.
TRAGIC NEWS — Coral Springs, Florida, Vice Mayor Nancy Metayer Bowen died in a shooting yesterday, and her husband is now in custody, Florida Politics’ Jesse Scheckner reports. Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) mourned her killing, saying Metayer Bowen “was about to announce she was running for Congress.” More from the Miami Herald on her legacy as a rising star for Haitian Americans
FOR THOSE KEEPING TRACK — “‘Haters gonna hate’: A top FEMA official defends his claim that he was teleported,” by CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski
MEDIA MOVES — Anne Flaherty is now national security editor for the WSJ’s Washington bureau. She previously worked for ABC and is an AP alum. … Erin Cunningham will be Jerusalem news director for the AP. She previously worked for WaPo.
TRANSITIONS — R.J. Lyman is now president of the Niskanen Center. He previously chaired its board of directors and is an attorney and a Bill Weld alum. … Rebecca Brubaker is now deputy student turnout projects director for digital and creative strategy at the Strategic Victory Fund. She previously worked for the Harris campaign in North Carolina and is a CAP alum. … Dustin Howard is joining the Taxpayers Protection Alliance as director of corporate and foundation relations. He previously worked at the Atlas Network.
ENGAGED — Nicole Rose, senior producer of events at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a POLITICO alum, and Will Hofer, manager at Baker Tilly U.S., got engaged over the weekend in Arlington.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) (favorite treat: blueberry pie) … DLA Piper’s Brian Janovitz … Evan McMullin … Tim Pataki of CGCN Group … Chad Banghart … POLITICO’s Nico Portuondo, Sophia Papan and Michael Warrick … Sander Lurie … Naji Filali of Percipient Strategies … David Shwiff … Julia Roig of the Horizons Project … Lynda Tran … Laura Henry of the National Stone, Sand, and Gravel Association … Grindr’s Joe Hack … Patrick Zimet … CNN’s Liz Brown-Kaiser … Alex Rosenwald … Andreessen Horowitz’s Colin Rom … Robby Zirkelbach … Dan Sallick of Subject Matter and Avōq … Edelman’s Ryan Kuntz … Rachel Pankuch … former acting AG Jeff Rosen … NYT’s Emily Steel … former Reps. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Ga.) and Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) … Tony Lake … Joe Nicholson of Rep. Mike Ezell’s (R-Miss.) office … Kelsey Carlson … Louise Nelson of Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez’s (D-Wash.) office
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