Pam Bondi, Donald Trump's pick to be attorney general, is a staunch ally of the former president, defending him against impeachment during his first term and pushing his false claims of election fraud as he sought to cling on to the White House. The 59-year-old former Florida attorney general, if confirmed by the Senate, will now serve as the top law enforcement official in a second Trump administration. "For too long, the partisan Department of Justice has been weaponized against me and other Republicans -- Not anymore," Trump wrote on his Truth Social network. "Pam will refocus the DOJ to its intended purpose of fighting Crime, and Making America Safe Again." Bondi's nomination means the top ranks of the Justice Department will be filled by Trump loyalists, as the president-elect has named three of the lawyers who defended him in his multiple criminal cases to its other high-ranking roles. Trump tapped Bondi to be attorney general on Thursday after his first pick, firebrand ex-Florida lawmaker Matt Gaetz, dropped out amid sexual misconduct allegations and doubts that he could obtain Senate confirmation. A graduate of the University of Florida with a law degree from Stetson University, Bondi served as a prosecutor for 18 years before being elected attorney general of the "Sunshine State" in 2010, the first woman to hold the post. Bondi, a native of Trump's adopted home state of Florida, was reelected to a second term in 2014. As attorney general, Bondi notably fought opioid addiction and human trafficking while taking a tough stance on crime and supporting the death penalty. She sued BP for the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and obtained more than $2 billion in economic relief for Florida, according to her biography page at Ballard Partners, a powerful lobbying firm where she has worked after leaving office. More from this section While serving as attorney general, Bondi was drawn into a controversy involving Trump when she declined in 2013 to join a multi-state prosecution accusing Trump University of fraud. It emerged later that Bondi's reelection committee had received a $25,000 donation from the charitable Trump Foundation. Both Trump and Bondi denied any wrongdoing. Bondi joined Trump's legal team during his first impeachment trial, in which he was alleged to have pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to find political dirt on his 2020 election opponent, Democrat Joe Biden. Trump was impeached by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives but acquitted by the Republican-majority Senate. After the 2020 election, Bondi made television appearances on behalf of Trump and pushed to de-legitimize vote counting in battleground states as part of the push by the former president to overturn the results of the vote. Bondi has also criticized the criminal cases brought against Trump, appearing in solidarity at his New York trial, where he was convicted of falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to a porn star. At Ballard Partners, Bondi has done work for Amazon, General Motors and Uber and as a registered lobbyist for the oil-rich Gulf nation of Qatar, according to press reports. She is also a member of the America First Policy Institute, a Trump-aligned right-wing think tank. cl/dwd'phileo 。

MISSING Hannah Kobayashi made two mystery Venmo payments to a man and woman that her family says are being investigated by police as they continue to search for her. The 30-year-old from Hawaii vanished after missing a connecting flight from Los Angeles to New York on November 8 and was last seen three days later. And on November 9, the day she was supposed to arrive in New York City, she made two payments using the Venmo app. One was at 6:25 pm to a woman named Veronica Almendarez for an undisclosed amount, with the description showing only a bow and arrow emoji. The second payment was made less than an hour later at 7:19 pm to a man called Jonathan Taylor with the description, "Reading." Sources claim it was for a tarot card reading, something the "spiritual" Kobayashi is interested in. Hannah Kobayashi Insiders say Taylor has been approached by those searching for Kobayashi through his TikTok account and has since turned it private. Taylor did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Reddit users also alleged Taylor went live on social media to claim he introduced Hannah to a mystery man and doesn't know where she is now, but these claims have not been substantiated. Kobayashi's aunt, Larie Pidgeon, confirmed to The U.S. Sun on Tuesday that the family has seen the payments and allegations she met with a scammer. Most read in The US Sun "We have been made aware and so have the LAPD. It's in their hands," she said. "We are still focused on Downtown LA. Even though it's been 15 [days] we still have hope. "We are also now encouraging people from across the nation to keep an eye in case she has been taken outside of California. "We are looking at all possibilities, hotels, metros, bus, train stations." TWIN FLAMES & PARANOID TEXTS Online sleuths on Reddit have also mentioned the fact Kobayashi was following Twin Flame accounts related to the love cult Twin Flames Universe and went missing on 11/11, which is often interpreted as a significant sign in the spiritual community. It is said to be a reunion number for Twin Flames that signals new beginnings and a connection to a higher source. HANNAH Kobayashi, 30, has been missing since she missed her connecting flight to New York. Friday, November 8: Kobayashi leaves her home in Maui and arrives in Los Angeles for her connecting flight to New York City. She has 42 minutes to make the flight at 11 pm. Saturday, November 9: Kobayashi is meant to land at JFK airport in New York City at 7 am but never arrives. Sunday, November 10: Kobayashi sends a message saying she's scared and worried about someone trying to steal her money and identity, alongside several other cryptic texts. She's later seen at an event at The Grove in Los Angeles, about an hour away from LAX. Monday, November 11: Kobayashi's phone puts her back at LAX. She posts a picture on her Instagram account. Her phone is then off. Wednesday, November 13: Family files missing person's report. Thursday, November 14: A YouTube video of the Nike event at The Grove is posted, placing Kobayashi in Los Angeles. Sunday, November 24: Family say she was last seen at Pico Station, and Hannah's dad Ryan found dead in a Los Angeles parking lot. One text from Kobayashi revealed by her family also said she "got tricked pretty much into giving away all my funds ... for someone I thought I loved." "We have asked all tips to be turned in to the LAPD so they can follow up," Pidgeon said of the bizarre theory. "If we chased every rumor that's out there we would go crazy. The internet is going wild with conspiracy theories." She added, "It's our job as her family to keep the search going and focus on the facts." Police have reportedly classified her as a "voluntary missing person" and have not released any statements about the case. The family is also said to have viewed surveillance footage showing the aspiring photographer with her suitcase and a backpack at LAX, despite most luggage being transported to a person's final destination. Kobayashi's other aunt, Geordan Montalvo, who she was due to visit in New York, previously said her niece decided to explore Los Angeles after missing her flight and was spotted at a bookshop and a Nike event at The Grove shopping mall. But she grew concerned after receiving worrying text messages a day later from her about being hacked and someone stealing her funds. It is not known where she was staying at night, and her family claims she didn't know anybody in the city. "She got paranoid. She started saying, 'How do you know it's me?'" Montalvo said. "And that's when we were like, 'Hannah, what is going on, are you okay? What's happening?’" One of her texts read, "Deep Hackers wiped my identity, stole all of my funds, & have had me on a mind f*** since Friday," adding later that it was a "long story." Montalvo went on, "Then we spoke on the phone, she sounded paranoid. I said, 'Are you with people?' She said 'yes'. But it was vague. "I said, 'Do you feel safe?' She said, 'I think so.' "She said she was going back to LAX to see if she could reschedule her flight and talk to American Airlines. She said, 'I love you', I said 'I love you too.' "I was giving her instructions." One of Kobayashi's last text messages read, "Hi loves. I just finished a very intense spiritual awakening. I'm charging my phone and heading back to the airport to get to NYC. I might need some help getting there, it's a long story. I'll keep you posted. I think I still have my hotel room." But Kobayashi never rebooked her flight and instead was seen getting off the metro at Pico Station in downtown Los Angeles around 10 pm on November 11. Her family has not heard from her since, and her phone now goes straight to voicemail. They are afraid she may have been kidnapped or trafficked after claiming police told them she was seen with an unknown person at the station in surveillance footage. Pidgeon added on Tuesday, "We can't comment on the footage but are hoping the police release it to help us in the search." The family previously said that authorities did not question them or help with the search for 10 days. The LAPD would only confirm to The U.S. Sun that they are now investigating her disappearance. The family said the situation is "out of character," and Kobayashi had been excited about her trip to New York, where she had booked a $2,000 hotel room and landed a photography gig. COMPOUNDED FAMILY TRAGEDY Meanwhile, the family was dealt a huge blow this week as her heartbroken father Ryan Kobayashi took his own life, days after flying from Hawaii to Los Angeles to look for his daughter. "This is every parent's nightmare," he exclusively told The U.S. Sun at a rally Downtown on Thursday last week. "We don't know where to start. It's very traumatic." Ryan's death was confirmed by his family, who described the incident as a "devastating tragedy." "This loss has compounded the family's suffering immeasurably," they said in a Facebook post. MUSICAL AWAKENING The U.S. Sun can also reveal Kobayashi wrote of her travel plans after becoming a fan of the EDM music scene recently on a trip to Chicago . In September, she replied to a user on Threads who spoke of wanting to connect with like-minded, friendly people who are "into music and raves and adventure." Kobayashi responded, "You sound like my kinda people! I recently went to Chicago for the first time to experience true house music @ the source. "Every trip moving forward rn for me is based off exploring the epicenters of music & what speaks to me. Read More on The US Sun "Chicago was so incredible & inspirational, esp all the local talent/ intimate afters. "I just secured my ticket for movement in Detroit & I will be flying solo exploring NYC soon & diving into all kinds of music experiences. Super ready to dive deeper with sound..."Cowa LLC Purchases 2,102 Shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL)No. 2 Ohio State takes control in the 2nd half and runs over No. 5 Indiana 38-15