‘I wonder why they did that?’: Pam Bondi orders the dissolution of the foreign election interference task force

In one of her first major moves as Donald Trump’s Attorney General, Pam Bondi issued a directive ordering the disbandment of the foreign election interference task force.

The Foreign Influence Task Force was part of the FBI’s response to foreign interference in the 2016 presidential election, which worked in Trump’s favor. The Senate Intelligence Committee launched an extensive investigation into allegations that Russia tried to sway the 2016 presidential election by spreading disinformation about presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and promoting Trump, even going as far as hiring trolls to set up fake social media accounts to target conservatives. The committee, which received bipartisan support, also found that Russia allegedly orchestrated the hacking and leaking of Democratic emails and that Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, shared sensitive campaign information with Russian intelligence. However, there was not enough evidence found to charge Trump or his campaign with collusion, conspiracy, or obstruction of justice.

Still, the incident raised enough concerns for the FBI to form the FITF to identify and combat any foreign influence operations targeting America. In addition to working to combat interference in elections and voting, the FITF is tasked with ensuring adversaries aren’t targeting U.S. officials or illegally financing campaigns. Their work is still very relevant, considering there was evidence of Russian interference again in the 2024 election, while several right-wing influencers have been targeted and offered money by Russia to spread disinformation. However, Bondi and Trump have moved to dissolve the task force.

Pam Bondi disbands the FITF

After passing the senate, Bondi reported for her first official day as Attorney General on February 5. One of her first moves was to send out a directive disbanding the FITF and significantly scaling back enforcement of The Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). FARA is a decades-old law that requires individuals to publicly disclose if they are representatives of foreign interests. Individuals who want to lobby or advocate for foreign governments or individuals must register with the Department of Justice to disclose their relationships, activities, and financial compensation to promote transparency.

As one might suspect, the FITF and FARA have ties to Trump. As mentioned above, the FITF was part of the FBI’s response to Russian election interference in Trump’s favor in 2016, while FARA ensnared several players in the scandal, including Trump’s campaign chairman, Manafort. Bondi has now dissolved the FITF while ruling that FARA can’t be enforced except in cases of “more traditional espionage by foreign government actors.” Her explanation for the move was to free up resources for “more pressing priorities” and to “end the risk of further weaponization and abuse of prosecutorial discretion.”

TikTok reporter Aaron Parnas pointed out that the FITF was actually formed by a Republican FBI director, Christopher Wray, during the Trump administration. However, given that Trump turned on Wray over his impartial probes into him, it’s not surprising he has also now turned on the FITF for its investigations. The dissolution of the FITF and restrictions on FARA enforcement raise concerns that those found to be involved in foreign schemes will evade prosecution even if they pose security risks. In the comments on Parnas’ video, user Cass wrote sarcastically, “Yea [sic] I wonder why they did that?” After all, Bondi targeted a task force and law that could, and has, ensnared the Trump administration, raising suspicions about her motives.

During her Senate confirmation hearing, Bondi promised not to weaponize the DOJ. However, on the first day of her job, she may have targeted a task force and law simply because their investigations and enforcement happened to uncover or prosecute the actions of the Trump campaign.