Pam Bondi to testify earlier than Congress after admitting errors have been made in dealing with of Epstein recordsdata: Live updates
Attorney General Pam Bondi is set to face questioning from lawmakers Wednesday over the Justice Department’s handling of the release of records related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee are expected to probe Bondi on how the Justice Department determined what should and should not be made public under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
The act set off a 30-day deadline for the complete release of the DOJ’s files on Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial.
Only a small portion of the files were released by the December 19 deadline. Another batch was released on December 23, and five weeks later, a third, larger group consisting of three million pages of documents was released. The DOJ then said it had fulfilled its obligations under the act.
However, the DOJ has been met with scrutiny over its handling of the case, with many Democrats and even some Republicans saying it has over-redacted some documents, while inconsistently redacting others and exposing survivors.
A group of Epstein survivors spoke out about the mishandling of the files, running a TV spot during Super Bowl LX Sunday that called for the publication of the remaining documents, telling Bondi, “It’s time to tell the truth.”
Bondi has faced significant backlash over her handling of the Epstein files, and this week admitted in a letter to federal judges that mistakes were made in the case. As a result, the Justice Department “has temporarily removed thousands of documents from the DOJ Epstein Library for further review — including approximately 9,500 documents subject to the Protective Orders in the Maxwell case,” she wrote.
The attorney general is also likely to be pressed by lawmakers about investigations by the Justice Department and the FBI into the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good by federal immigration officers in Minnesota last month.
The hearing is set to begin at 10 a.m.
Massie floats contempt charges for Pam Bondi if she tries to dodge Epstein questions at Congressional hearing
Rep. Thomas Massie suggested holding Attorney General Pam Bondi in contempt, a day before she is set to testify before the House Judiciary Committee.
Massie, who co-authored the legislation forcing the release of the files, made the suggestion during an interview Tuesday with CNN’s The Source, according to Mediaite.
“The quickest way, and I think most expeditious way, to get justice for these victims is to bring inherent contempt against Pam Bondi,” he said.
The lawmaker, a Republican from Kentucky, said the option is on the table if Bondi does not own up to the mistakes made — and confirm more files will be released.
“You know, it’s hard to refer to a contempt [charge] or things like that on an attorney general to the attorney general. This is the problem that you run into,” he said. “And so it’s going to be very difficult. But we can compel other people to come testify.”
Source: independent.co.uk
