Attorney General Pam Bondi says the Department of Justice was on "high alert" Monday due to a group of Iranian nationals who entered the country during the Biden administration. Her comments come as tensions remain high between the U.S. and Iran following the U.S.'s attacks on the country's nuclear sites and a ceasefire with Israel that is only a few hours old.
Bondi warned of the alert Monday during a House budget hearing in which bipartisan lawmakers argued that proposed funding cuts to the Justice Department, including the FBI, may be unwise due to unrest in the Middle East.
Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, asked if the attorney general knew how many Iranians who reportedly entered the country unlawfully during the Biden administration had been convicted of crimes. Bondi said she was unsure, but that more than 1,000 entered the country in the previous administration.
"And I can tell you, we are on high alert, and everyone is looking at that very closely," Bondi said.
Bondi's remarks are similar to a notice issued a day prior by the department she leads. The notice said that the Iran conflict "is causing a heightened threat environment in the United States," citing the possibility of extremists in the country "independently mobilizing to violence" if Iranian leaders were to call for it. The department also said cyberattacks and incidents of antisemitism could increase.
The Texas Congressman also asked Bondi about the threat of "sleeper cells," to which she said she could "not talk about that in this setting."
Bondi was testifying before a House Appropriations subcommittee on the DOJ's budget request proposing $33.6 billion for fiscal year 2026— a $2.5 billion or roughly 7% decrease compared to the current year. About one-third of the total request would support programs directed at reducing violent crime. The difference in funding year over year would also represent a reduction of about 5,000 positions. During the hearing, lawmakers showcased their hesitation at cutting the department's funding.
"When the DOJ submitted their budget, the United States was a nation at peace, and now we're a nation at war," Gonzales said. "I want us to, as much as we can, get ahead of it to give you the resources, the instruments that you need to go out and make sure that we're preventing things from happening, not waiting until after the fact."
Interestingly, Bondi was cautious about sharing her opinions on any budget changes. Instead, she used her opening statement to urge Americans to "pray for our troops in Qatar." Iran's attack on the U.S. base in the country did not cause any casualties.
"Of course, you can always do more with more, but we're doing more with less," the attorney general said. "It's a frightening time in which we live right now but President Trump is committed to keeping all Americans safe."
Nevertheless, Democratic Reps. Glenn Ivey of Maryland and Frank Mrvan of Indiana urged Bondi to take another look at her department's budget in light of recent events.
"Taking FBI agents off the street now... there isn't a worse possible time you could do it," Ivey said.
The Trump administration carried out airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend, leading to Iran launching a missile attack on a U.S. military base near Doha, Qatar, on Monday. Trump said the Iranians gave "early notice" of the offensive and that no casualties occurred as a result of the attack.
Later Monday, Trump announced that a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. Following uncertainty resulting from an Iranian attack after the time of the ceasefire began, Trump urged Israel to not retaliate with force, leading Netanyahu to conduct a symbolic strike.
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