Attorney General Pam Bondi‘s appearance before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday (February 11) devolved into heated exchanges and personal attacks as Democrats grilled her about the Justice Department’s handling of Jeffrey Epstein files and alleged targeting of President Trump’s political opponents.
The contentious hearing featured Epstein survivors sitting behind Bondi as lawmakers questioned her department’s approach to redactions that critics say protected powerful men while exposing victims’ private information.
“Your department has shown a pattern of redacting the names of powerful predators,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Washington Democrat, who asked victims in attendance to raise their hands if they had been unable to meet with the Justice Department. According to Jayapal, every survivor raised their hand.
Bondi repeatedly defended herself against Democratic accusations, at one point calling Rep. Jamie Raskin – a former constitutional law professor – a “washed up loser lawyer” during a particularly heated exchange. She told victims she was “deeply sorry” for their suffering but largely avoided directly answering questions about the department’s handling of the files.
The hearing came just one day after a federal grand jury rejected the Justice Department’s attempts to indict Democratic lawmakers over a video urging military service members not to follow “illegal orders” – a development Democrats cited as evidence of weaponized justice.
Rep. Thomas Massie, one of the few Republicans to address the Epstein files, pressed Bondi on why names were redacted in FBI documents listing potential co-conspirators. When Massie questioned why billionaire Les Wexner‘s name had been redacted as a co-conspirator in one document, Bondi acknowledged the redaction but said it was corrected within 40 minutes.
Throughout the hearing, Bondi’s tone and responses varied dramatically between parties – cooperative with Republicans while combative with Democrats – prompting Rep. Hank Johnson to accuse her of doing a “Jekyll and Hyde kind of routine.”
The hearing also touched on threats against lawmakers, with Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell highlighting threatening messages he had received. Bondi assured him that investigations into threats were “very active” and expressed that no lawmakers or their families should face such intimidation.
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