Bondi pressed on Epstein files, political retribution by Justice Department
WASHINGTON- American Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi repeatedly clashed with lawmakers Wednesday as she came under pressure over the Justice Department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and faced demands for greater transparency in the high-profile case.
Bondi accused Democrats and at least one Republican on the House Judiciary Committee of engaging in “theatrics” as she responded to questions about drafting errors made by the Justice Department when it released millions of records related to the Epstein case last month.
The attorney general acknowledged at one point that mistakes were made as the Justice Department tried to comply with a federal law that required it to review, redact and release millions of records within 30 days. Given the enormous task at hand, she said “the error rate was very low” and fixes were made when problems were encountered.
His testimony on the Epstein files, however, was mostly punctuated by dramatic clashes with lawmakers — exchanges that took place as eight Epstein survivors attended the hearing.
In one instance, Bondi refused to apologize to the Epstein victims in the room, saying she would not “fall into the gutter” with Democrats’ partisan demands.
In another exchange, Bondi declined to say how many perpetrators linked to the Epstein case are under investigation by the Justice Department. And at one point, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said the Trump administration was engaging in a “cover-up,” prompting Bondi to tell him he was suffering from “Trump derangement syndrome.”
The episodes highlight the extent to which the Epstein saga has upset members of Congress. That has long been a political stick for Democrats, but after millions of files were released earlier this month, offering the most detail yet about Epstein’s crimes, Republicans, once reluctant to criticize Trump administration officials, are growing increasingly testy, as was on full display during Wednesday’s hearing.
Beyond the Epstein files, Democrats have expressed major concerns that the Justice Department is increasingly investigating and prosecuting the president’s political enemies.
Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said Bondi had made the agency “Trump’s instrument of vengeance.”
“Trump orders lawsuits like pizza and you deliver every time,” Raskin said.
As an example, Raskin cited the Justice Department’s failed attempt to indict six Democratic lawmakers who urged the military not to comply with illegal orders in a video released last November.
“You tried to convince a grand jury to indict six members of Congress who are veterans of our armed forces for seditious conspiracy, simply for exercising their rights under the 1st Amendment,” he said.
During the hearing, Democrats criticized the Justice Department’s prosecution of journalist Don Lemon, who was arrested by federal agents last month after covering an anti-immigration protest at a Minnesota church.
Bondi defended the charges against Lemon.
“They were preparing for resistance,” Bondi testified. “They met in a parking lot and drove in a caravan to a church on a Sunday morning while people were praying.”
The protest took place after federal immigration agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis.
Six federal prosecutors resigned last month after Bondi asked them to investigate Good’s widow. Bondi later said on Fox News that she “fired them all” for being part of the “resistance.” Lemon then hired one of those prosecutors, a former U.S. Attorney. Joe Thompson, to represent him in this matter.
