WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed Pam Bondi as U.S. attorney general Tuesday evening, putting a longtime ally of Donald Trump at the helm of a Justice Department that has already been rattled by the firings of career employees seen as disloyal to the Republican president.

The Republican-led U.S. Senate confirmed Pam Bondi as the new U.S. attorney general on Tuesday, propelling one of President Donald Trump's staunchest political allies to the top perch of American law enforcement.

Although the department historically has insisted on remaining independent of the White House, Bondi made clear that she was working to overhaul a DOJ that Trump has insisted is both biased against him and against political conservatives in general.