Trump Picks a Female Attorney General

Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi stands on stage in an empty Mellon Auditorium while addressing the Republican National Convention on August 25, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Trump announced Thursday evening that he's nominating former attorney general of Florida Pam Bondi as the next attorney general of the United States. The latest cabinet pick replaces former Florida representative Matt Gaetz, who withdrew as nominee for attorney general on Thursday after the "distraction" his nomination had caused due to a swirl of allegations about paying underage women for sex.

Johnson told MSNBC host Ari Melber that this is bad news for those concerned about Trump.

"Occasionally, attorneys general try to behave like they are not the personal lawyer of the President of the United States. That is completely out the window. Pam Bondi is exactly what I was saying in the last segment that we should all fear, because she's competent," he said.

"We may not agree with her ideologically, but she actually knows how to do this job," Johnson told Melber, adding, "So if anyone on the Democratic side or anyone who cared about liberty or justice was thinking ‘Well maybe Matt Gaetz will screw this up and that will give us time,’ no. Pam Bondi knows what she is doing."

He went on to tell the news host that her association with Florida’s government indicates she knows how to use state power to accomplish conservative agendas.

"She knows what she's doing about immigration. Remember, Florida is one of those states that has been very aggressive about migrants and deportation and moving people to different states and everything else like that. Florida has enacted all sorts of rules and laws to curtail students and what they can do on campuses and finding legal justifications for manipulating education money," Johnson said.

He continued, "She is a dangerous and effective pick, and that’s frankly worse than what we would have got with Matt Gaetz, even with the deplorable moral background that he has."

As Johnson mentioned, he had warned about the concept of a more experienced pick in a previous segment, arguing it would be a far more frightening choice for those wary of Trump’s agenda.

"It is, but I guess I’m from the perspective of, I never necessarily thought that Matt Gaetz was a sincere pick. Trump can call all he wants, but I suspect there were many, many people lined up to come after him who won’t be as offensive, who might actually be more effective," he said. 

"So while it might be a loss in the battle, I don’t necessarily think it’s a victory in the war against what may be an AG that ushers in an authoritarian type of presidency that affects the fundamental rights of American citizens," Johnson added.