Democrats walked out of Pam Bondi’s briefing on the Epstein files about complying with the subpoena
House Democrats broke out of a closed-door hearing with Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday when she briefed lawmakers on the Epstein files a day after she was called to testify in mid-April.
Democratic members of the House Oversight Committee told reporters that Bondi, who was joined by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, would not commit to complying with a subpoena he sworn in on April 14 to answer questions about the DOJ’s handling of records related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the panel, said Bondi “has repeatedly refused to commit to following through on subpoenas.”
After the briefing, Bondi told reporters that he “made it clear that I will follow the law,” when asked if he would comply with the subpoena.
X Republicans’ account of the committee said “Bondi said he would follow the law regarding his subpoena.”
The committee voted 24-19 this month to subpoena Bondi, with five Republicans joining Democrats in favor of the move.
Committee chairman James Comer, who voted against the effort, announced Tuesday that the subpoena had been sent. He resigned on Wednesday when he was asked if the committee could hold Bondi in contempt of Congress if he did not agree.
“Well, we’re going to have to, we’re going to have to talk about that,” said Comer, R-Ky., before criticizing Democrats.
Rep. Summer Lee, D-Pa., told reporters that she asked Comer if he would force Bondi to attend the April hearing and continue to hold him in contempt if he refused.
“Instead of answering like an adult, he said I was biting, which again, is something that would not be allowed if we were working under the rules of this committee, because engaging with humanity is actually something we cannot do,” said Lee.
Comer confirmed Lee’s formation in their exchange.
“I’ve never seen members come out of a briefing with the attorney general, and all the leaders of the Department of Justice are there to answer questions, and they don’t ask a single question,” Comer added.
A DOJ spokesman on Tuesday called Bondi’s subpoena “absolutely unnecessary” and said the attorney general “continues to have phone calls and meetings with members of Congress regarding the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which is why the Department has notified the committee.”
At a House Oversight Committee hearing last month, Bondi praised the Justice Department’s efforts to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which ordered the public release of much of the information in the millions of pages of Epstein investigation files.
Many of Epstein’s survivors and members of Congress have criticized the Justice Department’s handling of the case, some of which included multiple reversals upon his release. The survivors stated that some details of those who may have been with them were redacted, while other details about the victims were left untouched when they should have been closed.
“We’re proud of the work we’ve done on this,” Bondi said Wednesday.
