Pam Bondi's secret heartache she hid from colleagues... and 'paranoia' about fired AG that was eating Trump alive, revealed by White House insiders

By PHILLIP NIETO, US POLITICAL REPORTER Published: 23:22, 3 April 2026 | Updated: 23:24, 3 April 2026 Pam Bondi masked a private heartbreak as she stood inside the White House for Donald Trump's primetime address to the nation on Wednesday night.  Her face wore a tight smile as she mingled with her cabinet colleagues, concealing the inner shock of a career-ending blow delivered moments earlier. She and Trump had been friends for years, their bond forged in Florida's Republican circles long before he ever reached the White House.  But now the attorney general, 60, had just been fired by the President after months of scandal over her botched handling of the Epstein files.  Bondi begged Trump to keep her until the bitter end. She asked him for more time during their private White House meeting, pleading with him to reconsider - but Trump's mind was made up.  'She was unhappy and tried to change his mind,' a senior administration source told the Daily Mail. She had hoped to remain in the role until at least the summer, the source said, but Trump was increasingly frustrated - and even paranoid - about his attorney general.  WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Her face wore a tight smile as she mingled with her cabinet colleagues, concealing the inner shock of a career-ending blow delivered moments earlier The attorney general, 60, had just been fired by the President after months of scandal over her botched handling of the Epstein files  Donald Trump and Pam Bondi at Mar-a-Lago in March 2016. Bondi, Florida's attorney general from 2011 to 2019, first attached herself to Trump during the 2016 campaign, using her prosecutorial credentials to defend him on national TV  At the root of his anger was a belief that Bondi had tipped off Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell that the FBI was preparing to release a cache of documents related to his alleged relationship with a suspected Chinese spy.  'The White House wasn't pleased she was intervening due to her personal friendship with Swalwell,' our source said.  Bondi and Swalwell are understood to have maintained a friendly relationship despite the Democratic representative openly criticizing her since she took the AG position.  Just hours earlier on Wednesday, Bondi had been at Trump's side at the Supreme Court, watching proceedings in the birthright citizenship case - one of his signature battles. By evening, she was out.  She remained in place throughout the Iran address, seated in the front row between Scott Bessent and RFK Jr, her face not betraying that she had just lost the most important job of her life. The next morning she flew home to Florida, issuing a statement thanking Trump and pledging her continued loyalty.   Trump on Thursday praised her as a 'great American patriot and a loyal friend' in a Truth Social post, hailing the 'tremendous job' she did in bringing down the national murder rate. 'We love Pam, and she will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector, to be announced at a date in the near future,' Trump wrote. Donald Trump, accompanied by newly sworn-in US Attorney General Pam Bondi, speaks to member of the media in the Oval Office at the White House on February 5, 2025  IN THE BEAST TOGETHER ON WEDNESDAY: Just hours earlier, Bondi had been at Trump's side at the Supreme Court, watching proceedings in the birthright citizenship case - one of his signature battles. By evening, she was out  Trump's reasoning for the sudden dismissal comes in part because the President believes Bondi tipped off Eric Swalwell about the FBI 's efforts to release investigative documents related to his relationship with an alleged Chinese spy Bondi becomes the second Cabinet casualty in less than a month, brought down by months of MAGA fury over her handling of the Epstein files - a saga that has dogged Trump's Justice Department since Day One. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will serve as acting attorney general until a permanent nominee is confirmed. Reports have circulated that Trump is considering MAGA-aligned EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin for the role. 'Let's hope it's Zeldin,' one former Trump administration official told the Daily Mail. Bondi served as Florida's attorney general from 2011 to 2019 before attaching herself to Trump during the 2016 campaign, using her prosecutorial credentials to defend him on national TV. She went on to join his impeachment defense team in 2020, cementing her place in the loyalist inner circle - a loyalty that, in the end, could not save her. Swalwell, one of the leading candidates in California's gubernatorial race, flatly denied the leak claim. 'We had no heads-up by anyone in the administration. None,' he told the Daily Mail. 'These stories would be laughable if not so outrageous. An administration that is now at 33 percent approval is looking to blame anyone but the right people - themselves.' It is unclear whether the allegation will be pursued further. Bondi has not commented on it. 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