President Donald Trump on Thursday ousted Attorney General Pam Bondi, marking the second Cabinet departure in less than a month and signaling a renewed willingness to move quickly on personnel decisions that had troubled him for months.
“Pam Bondi is a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend, who faithfully served as my Attorney General over the past year,” Trump announced on Truth Social, adding that she would transition “to a much-needed and important new job in the private sector.”
The departure of the country’s chief law enforcement officer followed months of scrutiny over the Justice Department’s handling of files related to the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation and failed efforts to please Trump through unsuccessful efforts to build criminal cases against prominent foes, investigations that in some cases have been rejected by judges or grand juries.
In a September social media post that appeared intended as a private message, Trump pressed Bondi directly: “We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility. JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!”
Multiple sources told CNN that Trump had grown “increasingly impatient” with the pace of investigations into figures including former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Democratic Senator Adam Schiff. Career prosecutors warned internally that some cases lacked sufficient evidence, but Trump’s pressure campaign continued.
But Bondi is unlikely to be the last. The firing comes barely a month after Trump ousted Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in early March, replacing her with Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin.
Who Comes Next?
Trump’s first term was defined by constant Cabinet churn. Press secretaries cycled through in months. National security advisers clashed openly. By late 2024, as Trump prepared for his return to the White House, aides spoke privately about avoiding that chaos. The second administration would be different, they suggested.
That promise lasted until March. Noem was the first to go, followed quickly by Bondi on Thursday. The two departures in quick succession have shattered expectations of a disciplined, stable Cabinet and raised urgent questions about who comes next.
Prediction markets are already pricing in additional departures. On Kalshi, Cabinet membership odds show Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard sits at 78 percent probability of remaining through year’s end. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and FBI Director Kash Patel are both at 71 percent.
While these platforms track sentiment among political bettors, their appearance in headlines signals broader concern within the administration.
Gabbard is at the center of those worries. According to The Guardian, Trump has privately asked Cabinet members in recent weeks whether he should replace Gabbard, frustrated that she declined to condemn Joe Kent, a former deputy whoresigned after arguing Iran did not pose an imminent threat to the United States.
But Gabbard is not alone in facing scrutiny. Patel has emerged as another focal point of Trump’s frustration, confronted with a confluence of controversies both self-inflicted and external. An Iran-backed hacker group leaked a decade’s worth of his personal and business emails this week, triggering a surge in activity on the prediction market Polymarket with odds on an early summer exit.
CNN has also reported that current and former prosecutors and investigators within the Justice Department have expressed deep concern that Patel’s mass firings of agents tied to Trump investigations have hamstrung counterintelligence operations. In February, NBC News reported that Trump conveyed displeasure with Patel over his behavior at the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, according to a person familiar with the conversation.
But Patel’s vulnerabilities extend beyond operational missteps. Like Bondi, he faced intense internal pressure over the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files. In July 2025, Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino came under scrutiny after years of promoting conspiracy theories about the case, only to suddenly align with the administration’s conclusion that no Epstein “client list” existed. The reversal angered Trump’s base and triggered internal conflict.
Under Scrutiny
Beyond the immediate circle of embattled officials, other Cabinet members remain vulnerable to sudden shifts in Trump’s favor or disfavor. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer carries unresolved baggage from a 2025 investigation into an alleged inappropriate workplace relationship with an employee. According to reporting from the New York Post and Politico, she has been accused of shirking duties at the Labor Department and drinking in her office.
On Kalshi prediction markets, Chavez-DeRemer sits at 76 percent probability of remaining in her post through year’s end, the lowest among embattled Cabinet members.
Hegseth presents a different case. Trump has not discussed removing him directly, but the Pentagon inspector general and military experts have raised mounting concerns about his judgment. According to CNN, a Pentagon inspector general report concluded in December that Hegseth risked endangering U.S. troops when he shared sensitive military operational details on the unclassified Signal app ahead of strikes in Yemen in March 2025.
Hegseth has also faced separate scrutiny for approving controversial strikes on suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean. It was the reported second strikes used to eliminate survivors that drew bipartisan outrage and prompted legal experts to suggest potential war crimes charges.
The pressure extends to the White House itself. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt has become an unexpected target of Trump’s frustration. On Tuesday, as Trump complained about receiving 93 to 97 percent negative press coverage, he turned directly to Leavitt and quipped, “Maybe Karoline is doing a poor job. You’re doing a terrible job.”
A White House spokesperson later said the remarks were made in jest. Trump appeared to soften the jab moments later, asking reporters, “Shall we keep her? I think we’ll keep her,” but the public exchange nonetheless signaled renewed doubts about her performance.