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Is Pam Bondi Auditioning for Fox News Gig?

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“Pam Bondi is still the attorney general of Florida, at least for another four months,” the Tampa Bay Times reports.

“But last week Bondi had a different job: co-host of Fox News’ The Five. She subbed on the news talk show not once, not twice, but three times, appearing as a panelist Wednesday through Friday.”

“The situation was so unprecedented for a sitting elected official that Bondi first sought guidance from the Florida Commission on Ethics, the government body that oversees conduct of public officials.”

Trump Distances Himself from Improper Donation

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Donald Trump “dismissed questions about his failure to disclose an improper $25,000 contribution in 2013 to a political group connected to Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who was at the time considering whether to open a fraud investigation against Trump University,” the Washington Post reports.

“The donation, made by the Donald J. Trump Foundation, violated federal rules that prohibit charities from donating to political candidates. Trump and his team also failed to disclose the gift to the Internal Revenue Service, instead reporting that the donation was given to an unrelated group with a similar name — effectively obscuring the contribution.”

Said Trump: “I never spoke to her, first of all. She’s a fine person, beyond reproach. I never even spoke to her about it at all. She’s a fine person. Never spoken to her about it, never,. Many of the attorney generals turned that case down because I’ll win that case in court. Many turned that down. I never spoke to her.”

Bondi Asked for Trump Donation Before Nixing Case

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Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) “personally solicited a political contribution from Donald Trump around the same time her office deliberated joining an investigation of alleged fraud at Trump University and its affiliates,” the AP reports.

“The money came from a Trump family foundation in apparent violation of rules surrounding political activities by charities. A political group backing Bondi’s re-election, called And Justice for All, reported receiving the check Sept. 17, 2013 — four days after Bondi’s office publicly announced she was considering joining a New York state probe of Trump University’s activities… After the check came in, Bondi’s office nixed suing Trump, citing insufficient grounds to proceed.”

Trump Donated to Attorneys General Who Dropped Case

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The AP reports that then-Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott (R) opened a civil investigation of “possibly deceptive trade practices” into Trump University but the probe “was quietly dropped” in 2010 when the school “agreed to end its operations in Texas. Trump subsequently donated $35,000 to Abbott’s successful gubernatorial campaign.”

In addition, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) briefly considered joining “in a multi-state suit against Trump University. Three days after Bondi’s spokeswoman was quoted in local media reports as saying the office was reviewing the New York lawsuit, the Donald J. Trump Foundation made a $25,000 contribution to a political fundraising committee supporting Bondi’s re-election campaign. Bondi soon dropped her investigation, citing insufficient grounds to proceed.”

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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