Trump administration profile: Pam Bondi

 By Emma Rose Brown

President-elect Donald Trump nominated Pamela J. Bondi to lead the Department of Justice on Nov. 21, just hours after Trump’s original pick, former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), withdrew his name from consideration over alleged sex crimes and drug-related misconduct. 

Who is she? Bondi, a corporate lobbyist and former two-term attorney general of Florida, is a longtime Trump loyalist who served on his first impeachment team. She falsely claimed he won Pennsylvania in 2020, and she stumped for Trump in late 2024. 

Trump administration profile: Pete Hegseth

 By Charlotte Ehrlich

President-elect Donald Trump nominated Pete Hegseth to be secretary of defense on Nov. 12, 2024, a choice that caught many in Washington off guard. Hegseth, 44, is a Fox News personality, author and Army National Guard veteran who deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. 

While he is celebrated for earning two Bronze Stars, Hegseth’s political and financial controversies have raised concerns ahead of his Senate confirmation.

Baltimore Media ‘Create a False Impression That Youth Are Responsible for a Lot of Very Dangerous Crime’: .

By Janine Jackson 

Janine Jackson interviewed the Sentencing Project’s Richard Mendel about coverage of youth crime for the December 20, 2024, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript.

Janine Jackson: Some listeners may know the Sentencing Project for their work calling out racial disparities in sentencing associated with crack versus powder cocaine, and mandatory minimums. A recent project involves looking into another factor shaping public understanding and public policy around criminal justice—the news media. In this case, the focus is young people.