Pam Bondi hits Biden over nepotism minutes before two of Trump's children speak at RNC

Ms Bondi, as Florida attorney general, dropped probe into Trump University following $25,000 donation from the future president

John T. Bennett
Washington
Wednesday 26 August 2020 04:35 BST
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Tiffany Trump claims in RNC speech that media and tech companies conspire to 'mentally enslave' Americans

Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi lashed out at Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden in her Republican National Committee address, criticising them for nepotism moments before two of Donald Trump's children spoke at his re-election convention.

Ms Bondi was first linked to the president in 2016, when, as the Sunshine State's top lawyer, she dropped Florida's probe into Trump University. Weeks prior to ending that investigation, Mr Trump donated $25,000 to her re-election campaign. All sides denied a quid pro quo.

The attack on the Bidens was the first of the RNC, months after Mr Trump responded to House Democrats' impeachment trial of his interactions with Ukraine's president by attacking Hunter Biden. He and his surrogates and legal team argued the younger Biden profited from his father's work against Ukraine corruption as vice president.

"Our party's theme tonight is America, the land of opportunity," Ms Bondi said. "But for Joe Biden, it's been the land of opportunism, not opportunity. As a career prosecutor and former attorney general of Florida, I fought corruption and I know what it looks like, whether it's done by people wearing pinstripe suits or orange jumpsuits.

"At the Democrats' convention, we were told to look at Joe Biden as the model of integrity. You look at his 47-year career in politics, the people who benefited are his family members not the American people," she said.

But Donald Trump Jr spoke at length on Monday night, giving a primetime defence of his father's term, followed by equally long remarks on Tuesday night by two of his siblings: Eric Trump and Tiffany Trump.

Eric Trump closed his remarks by speaking straight to his father, presumably watching at the White House: "I love you so much."

"My father built a thriving economy once, and believe me, he will do it again," she said.

Tiffany Trump said the 2020 election is a "fight for freedom versus oppression, for opportunity versus stagnation."

"I urge you to make your judgement based on results," she said, "and not rhetoric."

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