Attorney General Pam Bondi appeared before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday for a contentious hearing focused on the handling of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein.
The session was marked by numerous confrontations between Bondi and committee members from both political parties.
The hearing became particularly heated when Bondi exchanged harsh words with Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland. Raskin accused the attorney general of filibustering during her responses to committee questions.
Bondi responded sharply to Raskin’s criticism. “You don’t tell me anything. You washed-up loser, you’re not even a lawyer,” she stated.
Democratic Rep. Becca Balint of Vermont abruptly departed the hearing room following an exchange with the attorney general. Balint had questioned whether the Department of Justice investigated connections between Trump administration officials and Epstein.
During their exchange, Balint referred to Bondi as “secretary,” prompting the attorney general to correct her.
“I’m attorney general,” Bondi responded.
Balint replied with “My apologies, I couldn’t tell.”
The confrontation escalated when Bondi referenced Balint’s voting record.
“With this antisemitic culture, she voted against a resolution condemning…” Bondi began, before Balint interrupted her.
Balint is the first Jewish member of Congress to use the term “genocide” when describing the Gaza conflict, according to media reports.
“You want to go there? …. You’re talking to a woman who lost her grandfather in the Holocaust,” Balint responded before leaving the hearing room. She pushed her chair forcefully into the dais as she departed.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington asked Bondi to apologize to Epstein victims who were present in the hearing room.
“Will you turn to the survivors now and apologize for what your DOJ has put them through with the absolutely unacceptable release of the Epstein Files and their [private] information?” Jayapal asked.
Bondi declined to comply with the request. “I’m not going to get in the gutter with her,” she told committee chairman Jim Jordan. She directed criticism toward former Attorney General Merrick Garland instead, stating he failed to release the files during the previous administration.
Raskin opened the hearing with strong criticism of Bondi’s handling of the Epstein documents.
“This performance screams cover-up,” he stated. “As attorney general, you’re siding with the perpetrators, and you’re ignoring the victims that will leave your legacy unless you act quickly to change course.”
“You’re running a massive Epstein cover-up right out of the Department of Justice,” Raskin said.
In her opening statement, Bondi addressed the document release process.
“To address the Epstein files, more than 500 attorneys and reviewers spent thousands of hours painstakingly reviewing millions of pages to comply with Congress’s law,” she explained.
“We’ve released more than three million pages, including 180,000 images, all to the public, while doing our very best in the timeframe allotted by legislation to protect victims,” she continued.
Bondi stated that any victim names inadvertently released were immediately redacted upon notification.
“All members of Congress, as you know, are invited to visit the DoJ to see for yourself,” the attorney general added.
The attorney general addressed survivors present at the hearing.
“I want to take a moment to acknowledge the Epstein survivors who are here today,” she said, adding that “the FBI is waiting to hear” from victims. “I want you to know that any accusation of criminal wrongdoing will be taken seriously and investigated,” Bondi stated.
Bondi then shifted focus to economic matters.
“They are talking about Epstein today. This has been around since the Obama administration… The Dow is over $50,000 right now… Americans’ 401 (k) s and retirement savings are booming. That’s what we should be talking about,” she noted.
