House Democrats are escalating their fight with former Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing her of defying a congressional subpoena and stonewalling an investigation into the handling of Jeffrey Epstein-related government files. The fight amplified this week after the Department of Justice said Bondi would not appear before the House Oversight Committee. This is because she no longer holds the position.
Pam Bondi called out for refusing to appear in Epstein hearing
Lawmakers in the United States House of Representatives have called on Pam Bondi to address a committee. It is to probe how the government handled files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. On April 9, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee accused Bondi of stonewalling Congress’s oversight powers and defying a subpoena for her testimony.
The Department of Justice said one day earlier that Bondi would not testify since she was fired from the attorney general role on April 2. Democrats rejected that reasoning outright. “It is shameful that Pam Bondi is still trying to protect powerful men and their connections to Jeffrey Epstein,” the Democrats said in a social media post. “She must come before our committee and answer our questions.”
Bondi received the subpoena last month to testify about the release of the Epstein files. Those records became subject to disclosure under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which passed in November. As attorney general at the time, Bondi held responsibility for ensuring the documents were published as required by law.
Congressman Robert Garcia warned during an interview with MS NOW that Bondi could face serious consequences if she refuses to appear. “Legally, at the end of the day, if somebody is under subpoena, it doesn’t matter if they change jobs or if they have a job or if they don’t. They’re still expected to appear before the Congress,” Garcia said. “If she doesn’t come forward under her legal subpoena — which still stands, by the way — then we will hold Pam Bondi in contempt.”
The Epstein hearing dispute has drawn rare bipartisan attention (via Al Jazeera).
Originally reported by Devanshi Basu on Mandatory.
