Bondi Skips Epstein Deposition; Democrats Threaten Contempt

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not appear for a scheduled deposition with the House Oversight Committee on April 14 regarding the Justice Department's handling of Jeffrey Epstein's case. The committee issued a subpoena for Bondi last month, which was approved by a bipartisan vote.

The DOJ stated that Bondi is no longer required to testify as she is no longer serving as Attorney General. However, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee accused her of stonewalling Congress’s oversight powers and defying the subpoena for her testimony. They have threatened contempt charges if she does not appear.

Bondi was subpoenaed to testify about the release of the Epstein files, which was compelled under the November passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act. As attorney general at the time, Bondi was in charge of seeing the records published in accordance with the law.

The committee has expressed concerns about the DOJ's compliance with the statutory deadline to release the files and the redaction of some documents. A bipartisan group of legislators pushed for the Epstein Files Transparency Act to be passed, including Democrat Ro Khanna and Republican Nancy Mace, who were among those calling on Bondi to testify.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has taken over Bondi's role and expressed his willingness to serve permanently if asked by President Trump. He praised Bondi's leadership but did not speculate on the reasons for her removal. The DOJ is currently investigating thousands of fraud cases, with a new National Fraud Enforcement Division being established.

The House Oversight Committee will contact Bondi's personal counsel to discuss the next steps about scheduling the interview. Some Republicans who had joined Democrats to subpoena Bondi said they would insist on having her appear before the committee. Rep. Nancy Mace, who initiated the motion to compel her appearance, stated that 'Bondi cannot escape accountability simply because she no longer holds the office of Attorney General.' The top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Robert Garcia of California, also said he would push to enforce the subpoena and threatened to press for contempt of Congress charges if she does not appear.