The Epstein files took center stage in Bondi’s probation hearing. Here are 3 big moments
Pam Bondi did not want to talk about the Trump administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
The attorney general faced intense scrutiny at a congressional hearing on Wednesday, as Democratic lawmakers fielded a barrage of questions about the Justice Department’s multiple releases of documents related to convicted sex offenders and whether additional investigations would follow.
You left a lot unanswered. Instead, she is He launched personal attacks on DemocratsSaying that she would not “get into the gutter” with them. Bondi condemned Epstein’s criminal activity, but focused most of her attention on accusing previous administrations of failing to act on the case. She repeatedly accused Democrats of “theatrics” while ranting herself.
“They screamed, ‘They boycotted me,'” she said of Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee. “They want to ask a question and they don’t want answers because they want to distract from all the great things” that President Donald Trump and his administration have done.
Republicans largely praised Bondi and blamed previous administrations, including her predecessor Merrick Garland, for not doing more. They also turned their attention to immigrant crime, the Dow Jones Index, and, at one point, Flavored vapes Made in China.
Meanwhile, a group of Epstein survivors watched in the hearing room as Bondi spent more than five hours answering questions about her role in the case.
Here are three key takeaways from Wednesday’s session.
Bondi has evaded calls to apologize directly to Epstein’s survivors for the administration’s handling of the case
Watch the clip in the player above.
Many survivors A letter was issued He accepted Bondi’s testimony criticizing the Justice Department’s recent release of the Epstein files for its redactions and indiscriminate disclosures, calling them “reckless and dangerous.”
“This puts survivors at risk, sends a frightening message to others, and confirms the worst fears of many: reporting abuse will not protect you, it will only expose you,” the letter said.
In her opening remarks, Bondi addressed the survivors, saying she was “deeply sorry for what any victim has gone through,” “particularly as a result of that monster.”
After the hearing twice, Democrats asked the attorney general to apologize for how the Justice Department handled the case.
Rep. Brammell of Baramal, D-Wash. Bondi asked If she turned to the survivors behind her and apologized for subjecting them to a “completely unacceptable release of the Epstein files and their information.”
Representative Hank Johnson, Democrat of Georgia, Bondi asked If you apologize for “revealing” them in the DOJ document releases.
“How many lives have been derailed because your administration was either sloppy and incompetent or deliberately trying to intimidate and punish those women who come forward?”
Both times, Bondi’s conversations with Democratic lawmakers turned into back-and-forth, prompting Representative Jim Jordan, the committee chairman from Ohio, to bang his gavel. Bondi did not offer an apology.
Bondi received a rare Republican rebuke
Watch the clip in the player above.
While Democrats have attacked Bundy in the Epstein case, Republicans have often stayed away. Except for Rep. Thomas MassieHe is an outspoken critic of Trump.
The Kentucky Republican was a co-sponsor of the Epstein Files Transparency Act and the first GOP lawmaker to try to hold Bondi accountable during the hearing into the Justice Department’s handling of the document.
While the agency released millions of pages of documents, photos and letters related to Epstein, it exceeded its deadline by more than a month. Massey reiterated this, along with pointing out instances where victims’ names were not concealed in bulletins. To him, that Reached “fiasco” To comply with the law that President Donald Trump signed into law in November. At the same time, the names of conspirators emerged, such as businessman Leslie Wexner Total darkness In the documents.
“Who’s in charge?” Macy asked. “Are you able to track down who in the organization caused this massive failure and publish the names of the victims?”
The prosecutor said that the congressman suffers from “Trump confusion syndrome,” a name she applied to more than one representative during the session, and described him as a “hypocrite.”
In a much less heated moment, Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, questioned why the names of survivors had not been properly redacted. Bondi said the Justice Department “did the best it could” given the “tight” time frame.
Roy also followed up with Bondi on a question Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., attempted to ask: Will anyone else be charged?
Bondi said there are pending investigations and did not provide further details.
More scrutiny of Trump officials’ ties to Epstein
Watch the clip in the player above.
Trump’s name, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Democrat of Maryland, told Axios in an interview on Tuesday “everywhere” In Epstein’s unredacted files.
There is no direct evidence that Trump committed a crime, but his inclusion in the files raises more questions about his awareness of it Being around Epstein’s activities.
Besides Trump, who has maintained that he was not involved in Epstein’s criminal activity, there are other high-ranking administration officials whose names or correspondence have appeared in hideouts that have already been made public. Among them is Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick He downplayed his relationship with Epstein In a separate hearing with senators Tuesday.
Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vermont, who said she had seen some of the unredacted files, asked Bondi whether the Justice Department had investigated Epstein’s ties between Lutnick and other senior Trump officials — Navy Secretary John Phelan and Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg, specifically — whose names appear in the documents.
Lutnick “addressed these relationships himself,” Bondi said.
Bondi said she was “astonished” that the congresswoman wanted to talk about Epstein and not the US Border Patrol agent who was shot dead in 2025.
The stock market soon collapsed.
“I’m not asking trick questions here.” said an angry Balint. He added: “The American people have the right to know the answers to this question. These are senior officials in the Trump administration.”
“This is no game, Minister,” Balint said.
“I’m the attorney general,” Bondi corrected the congresswoman.
“My apologies, I can’t say that,” Balint responded.
