During a tense exchange before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi refused to apologize to survivors of Jeffrey Epstein, dismissing a direct appeal from Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) as “theatrics” and repeatedly deflecting responsibility.
Jayapal used her time to highlight what she described as the Justice Department’s failure to meaningfully engage with Epstein survivors following the controversial release of the so-called Epstein files. She asked the survivors seated in the hearing room to stand and raise their hands if they had still not been able to meet with the DOJ under Bondi’s leadership.
“Please note for the record that every single survivor has raised their hand,” Jayapal said.
Bondi Outright Refuses To Face Epstein Survivors And Apologize To Them
Jayapal then urged Bondi to turn around and personally apologize to the survivors for what she called the department’s “absolutely unacceptable release of the Epstein files.” Bondi did not do so. Instead, she shifted the focus to her predecessor, asking, “Why didn’t you ask Merrick Garland this?
Jayapal pressed again, emphasizing that the issue was not about past administrations but about Bondi’s responsibility as attorney general.
“Will you turn to the survivors?” Jayapal asked. “This is not about anybody that came before you—it is about you taking responsibility for your Department of Justice and the harm it has done to the survivors, who are standing right behind you and are waiting for you to turn to them and apologize.”
Bondi again declined, repeating her criticism of Garland rather than addressing the survivors directly. The exchange quickly escalated, with Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-MD) stepping in as the hearing grew increasingly chaotic.
“I’m not gonna get in the gutter with this woman,” Bondi told Jordan, referring to Jayapal. “She’s doing theatrics.”
Jayapal continued over interruptions, accusing the administration of using the Epstein files as a political talking point and then failing to follow through.
“Donald Trump made the release of the Epstein files the center of his political campaign because he thought it would benefit him,” she said. “Then you got into office, claimed to have a client list, only to then say, ‘there was no list.’ Your deputy, Todd Blanche, met alone with Ghislaine Maxwell and transferred her to a minimal security prison, and now you continue the cover-up.”
Jayapal concluded: “And I wish that you would turn around to the survivors who are standing right behind you, and on a human level, apologize to them on what you have done.”
This heated moment underscored the central tension of the exchange: Jayapal’s request was not a legislative demand or a partisan maneuver, but a simple appeal for basic acknowledgment of the survivors’ suffering. Bondi’s refusal to even face them, coupled with her decision to characterize the request as political “theatrics,” left the impression of a department more concerned with deflection than accountability.
