House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) issued a subpoena to Attorney General Pam Bondi on March 17, ordering her to testify over “possible mismanagement” of the investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and files related to him.
Besides potential mismanagement, the committee is reviewing the circumstances and investigations surrounding Epstein’s death, the extent of his sex-trafficking rings, and how the federal government can combat them, Comer wrote in a letter to Bondi on Tuesday. Lawmakers are also probing how both Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell “sought to curry favor and exercise influence to protect their illegal activities,” and any potential ethics rules violations of elected officials.
“As Attorney General, you are directly responsible for overseeing the Department’s collection, review, and determinations regarding the release of files pursuant to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and the Committee therefore believes that you possess valuable insight into these efforts,” Comer wrote.
“The Committee may use the results of this investigation to inform legislative solutions to improve federal efforts to combat sex trafficking and reform the use of non-prosecution agreements and/or plea agreements in sex-crime investigations.”
It also followed a heated House Judiciary Committee hearing last month, where Bondi sparred with lawmakers from both parties and declined to answer questions about her handling of the Epstein files.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) asked Bondi why the Justice Department released unredacted files of victims’ names but continued redacting the names of alleged Epstein co-conspirators.
“I have several questions for you. Who’s responsible? Are you able to track who in your organization made this massive failure and released the victims’ names?” Massie asked.
The Kentucky Republican has become a frequent critic of the Trump administration and pushed to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act in Congress last year alongside Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.).
“This subpoena is completely unnecessary. Lawmakers have been invited to view the unredacted files for themselves at the Department of Justice, and the Attorney General has always made herself available to speak directly with members of Congress,” a Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement to The Epoch Times.
“She continues to have calls and meetings with members of Congress on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which is why the Department offered to brief the committee tomorrow. As always, we look forward to continuing to provide policymakers with the facts.”
The House Oversight Committee has also subpoenaed former President Bill Clinton and former First Lady Hillary Clinton, as well as other prominent names mentioned in the files, as U.S. lawmakers continue their investigation into Epstein.
Both Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche will sit down for a private briefing with the committee’s lawmakers on March 18, according to a Tuesday statement.
Last month, Democrats said they had the votes to subpoena Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick after he admitted during a February Senate hearing that he had visited Epstein’s Caribbean island with his family in 2012.
Lutnick has defended the trip and denied any knowledge of the convicted sex offender’s crimes. The commerce secretary has not been personally accused of any wrongdoing in Epstein-related investigations.
Comer said that he recently communicated with Lutnick about a potential hearing date and was hoping to see both him and Bondi testify soon.
Kimberly Hayek contributed to this report.
