House Oversight Committee Democrats are demanding that former Attorney General Pam Bondi still testify under oath about how she oversaw the Justice Department's release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Axios reported Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., saying on the Capitol steps that Bondi "must answer for her mishandling of the Epstein files and the special treatment she has given Ghislaine Maxwell."
The Oversight Committee voted 24-19 to subpoena Bondi to answer questions on April 14 about why millions of Epstein‑related pages were withheld or heavily redacted even after Congress passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
The Associated Press detailed that five Republicans joined Democrats in pushing the subpoena through.
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., told NBC News that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle want "meaningful answers" about the slow, inconsistent rollout of the Epstein records and that frustration with Bondi's handling grew beyond party lines as the public learned more about the files.
Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., wrote the subpoena by saying his panel is probing "possible mismanagement of the federal government's investigation" into Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell and wants sworn testimony from Bondi about why the department failed to meet its legal obligations.
CNN Newsource reported that the Justice Department called the subpoena "completely unnecessary" while agreeing to offer only an informal briefing.
In closed‑door sessions before she was fired, Bondi repeatedly declined to say outright that she would comply with the Oversight Committee subpoena, leaving lawmakers frustrated by what Fox News reported was evasive language that did not explicitly commit her to testifying under oath.
Bondi's time as attorney general was dogged by the Epstein files, including an incident covered by ABC News in which she appeared to claim she had an "Epstein client list" on her desk only to later acknowledge no such document existed, a flip‑flop that enraged critics and some allies.
At a February House Judiciary Committee hearing on the Epstein records, Bondi defended the department's work by saying she was "deeply sorry for what any victim, any victim, has been through" while pushing back hard at Democrats' questions.
NPR covered her forceful exchanges where she rejected narratives that the Justice Department was acting in bad faith.
President Donald Trump fired Bondi on Thursday after months of criticism over the files and other politically charged cases, calling her "a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend" in his Truth Social announcement even as The Guardian and the Los Angeles Times reported that frustration within the White House over her performance helped drive the decision.
Epstein survivors and advocates reacted by saying the fight over accountability is bigger than any one official.
People magazine quoted survivors saying the government's handling of the files exposed systemic failures that go beyond Bondi's departure.
Even after her dismissal, lawmakers, including Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., insisted that Bondi's firing "does not get her out of that bipartisan, lawful subpoena" and said they fully expect her to sit for sworn testimony as part of their oversight of how the Justice Department handled the Epstein files, a position reflected in coverage across multiple national outlets.
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