Durbin pushes for details on Bondi's past lobbying work

Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, is asking two agencies to turn over additional information on Pam Bondi to determine whether her past lobbying work for companies and foreign governments could post a conflict of interest if she is confirmed as attorney general.

During her tenure as a lobbyist, Bondi, a former attorney general for the state of Florida, registered as a foreign agent working on behalf of the Dominican Republic, Qatar, Zimbabwe and Kosovo.

She also worked for major companies such as Amazon, Major League Baseball (MLB) and Uber.

The Foreign Agents Registration Act leaves DOJ privy to a number of disclosures, including details on any written or oral contracts as well as money spent and received while lobbying.

“Ms. Bondi did not list any of these matters or clients as potential conflicts of interest on her Senate Judiciary Questionnaire. To understand the extent to which her work as a FARA-registered lobbyist may create potential conflicts of interest should she be confirmed as Attorney General, the Committee requires additional information from the Department of Justice that is not otherwise available,” Durbin writes.

The ranking member similarly asked the National Archives to turn over records on more than 25 companies Bondi lobbied for, including any communications with executive branch agencies.

A number of the companies Bondi lobbied for have had recent dealings with the Justice Department.

In recent years, the DOJ has questioned the scope of MLB’s exemption to antitrust laws. It also reached a settlement with Amazon regarding Alexa. The company is also currently facing an antitrust suit from the Federal Trade Commission. Other agreements were reached with General Motors and Carnival Cruises, two more companies Bondi lobbied for.

None of those dealings appear to have been underway while Bondi was representing the companies, but elsewhere Bondi disclosed some prior matters involving the DOJ that are ongoing.

In her disclosure forms, Bondi did not list any of her lobbying work as a potential conflict of interest, but she pledged to contact DOJ ethics officials should a matter arise.

“As Chair of the Center for Litigation and Co-Chair, Center for Law and Justice of the America First Policy Institute, I have provided legal services on behalf of clients as parties and as amici curiae in cases and other legal matters where the United States, its agencies, and officers are, or were, also parties,” she said.

“Some of these cases and matters are ongoing. In the event I am confirmed, I will consult with the appropriate Department of Justice ethics officials and act consistent with governing regulations with regard to these cases and legal matters.”

The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Durbin’s questions come just days ahead of Bondi’s two-day hearing before the panel.

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