What began as oversight quickly spiraled into open warfare.
According to the New York Post, Attorney General Pam Bondi faced sharp questions Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee as lawmakers grilled her over the Justice Department’s release of millions of files tied to Jeffrey Epstein.
Several victims were seated in the room as the contentious hearing unfolded.
Democrats accused the Department of Justice of mishandling the document dump — alleging that some victims’ identities were revealed while names of wealthy and powerful figures connected to Epstein were redacted.
Bondi pushed back forcefully, clashing with House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) during a tense exchange.
“You can let her filibuster all day long, but not on our watch — not on our time, no way,” Raskin said. “And I told you about that, Attorney General, before you started.”
“You don’t tell me anything,” Bondi fired back, before calling Raskin a “washed-up, loser lawyer — not even a lawyer.”
Bondi also sparred with Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), accusing him and other Democrats of previously targeting President Donald Trump.
“You said the president conspired, sought foreign interference in the 2016 election. Robert Mueller found no evidence, none, of foreign interference in 2016. Have you apologized to President Trump?” Bondi asked.
“You all should be apologizing. You sit here and you attack the president, and I am not going to have it. I’m not going to put up with it,” she added.
Bondi further argued that Democrats had shown little interest in Epstein during the previous administration.
“None of them asked [former Attorney General] Merrick Garland, over the last four years, one word about Jeffrey Epstein. How ironic is that? You know why? Because Donald Trump.”
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) at one point asked victims or their family members present to stand if they had not been able to meet with the Justice Department.
Bondi, staring forward, responded: “Why didn’t she ask Merrick Garland this twice when he sat in my chair? I’m not going to get in the gutter for her theatrics.”
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) also criticized the DOJ’s handling of the files, presenting documents he said were “emblematic of the massive failure of the DOJ to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.”
“If any man’s name was redacted that should not have been, we will of course unredact it,” Bondi said. “If a victim’s name was unredacted, please bring it to us, and we will redact it.”
When pressed further, Bondi accused Massie of having “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and labeled him a “failed politician.”
Bondi also used her time to highlight past associations between Epstein and prominent Democrats, noting that some connections predated his 2019 arrest and followed his 2008 guilty plea.
