Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not appear before the House Oversight Committee next week as part of the panel’s investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
She will not comply with a subpoena to sit for a closed-door deposition, the Justice Department informed the committee Wednesday, because the subpoena is disputable. It sought her testimony as attorney general, but President Trump fired her last week, replacing her with the deputy, Todd Blanche.
“The Department of Justice has stated Pam Bondi will not appear on April 14 for a deposition since she is no longer Attorney General and was subpoenaed in her capacity as Attorney General,” a spokesperson for the committee said in a statement. “The Committee will contact Pam Bondi’s personal counsel to discuss next steps regarding scheduling her deposition.”
Ms. Bondi was expected to be questioned about the Justice Department’s handling of the investigation into Epstein and the release of its files, which were mandated to be made public after Congress passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act last year.
The Justice Department released roughly 3 million documents in a series of releases related to its Epstein investigation. As it withheld some information, such as redacting certain names, it provoked the frustration of critics and some of Epstein’s victims who were unsatisfied with the department’s inconsistency in using its black ink.
The Justice Department asked Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, Kentucky Republican, to “confirm that the subpoena is withdrawn” and argues “compulsory process is unnecessary in light of our demonstrated willingness to voluntarily assist your oversight efforts,” according to a letter reported on by The Hill.
“Ms. Bondi no longer holds that office. As a result, because Ms. Bondi no longer can testify in her official capacity as Attorney General, the Department’s position is that the subpoena no longer obligates her to appear,” Assistant Attorney General Patrick Davis wrote.
Mr. Blanche, acting head of the department, declined to say whether Ms. Bondi would comply with the subpoena.
“What happens now that she’s the former attorney general and there’s the subpoena out there. … I think I’ll leave to Chairman Comer and others to figure out — I don’t have an answer to that,” he said Tuesday.
Rep. Nancy Mace, South Carolina Republican, and Rep. Ro Khanna, California Democrat, urged Mr. Comer to enforce Ms. Bondi’s obligation to testify.
Ms. Mace proposed the subpoena, and Mr. Khanna introduced the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
“The removal of Pam Bondi as Attorney General does not diminish the Committee’s legitimate oversight interests in seeking her sworn testimony or the need for accountability and information about files withheld from the public by the DOJ. On the contrary, it makes her sworn testimony even more important, especially with respect to actions she took as Attorney General, matters already under investigation, and decisions made under her leadership,” the two wrote in a letter to Mr. Comer.
Mr. Comer previously threatened a vote to hold former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress when they did not comply with subpoenas relating to the committee’s investigation into the Epstein files. The couple eventually sat before the panel for questioning.
Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the committee’s ranking Democrat, argued that because she was subpoenaed by name, it is binding.
“Now that Pam Bondi has been fired, she’s trying to get out of her legal obligation to testify before the Oversight Committee about the Epstein files and the White House cover-up,” he said in a statement. “Our bipartisan subpoena is to Pam Bondi, whether she is the Attorney General or not. She must come in to testify immediately, and if she defies the subpoena, we will begin contempt charges in the Congress. The survivors deserve justice.”
