Pam Bondi confronts Democrats over Epstein files and accuses them of attacking the president: 'This is so ridiculous'

Attorney General Pam Bondi compared on Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee in a hearing that quickly devolved into multiple clashes with Democratic lawmakers over the handling ofJeffrey Epstein's files, as Congress faces the possibility of a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security(DHS).

The exchange came after the Department of Justice (DOJ) released a new batch of documents late last month with strong redactions. Earlier this week, congressmen reviewed unredacted versions, raising new questions about the process. The hearing also unfolded under the pressure of a Feb. 13 deadline to avoid a DHS shutdown.

DHS shutdown warning.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer stated that his caucus will not support a short-term resolution to fund DHS. He claimed that Republicans have not taken negotiations seriously and noted that his party will not support an extension that maintains the status quo.

Crossover with Pramila Jayapal

Rep. Pramila Jayapal used her time to question the DOJ for protecting the identity of alleged Epstein associates while, she said, releasingnames or victim data that should have been protected by law. Jayapal asked 11 victims present to stand and noted that all raised their hands as they indicated they had not met with DOJ.

When he asked Bondi to address them and offer an apology, the attorney general rejected the request and called the approach "theatrics."

More clashes

The tension escalated when Jamie Raskin asked Committee Chairman Jim Jordan to give Jerry Nadler his time back to continue with his questions. Bondi reacted immediately and characterized Raskin as a "washed-up loser lawyer."  You’re not even a lawyer."

He then turned to Nadler and recalled that he had argued in the past that the president had conspired and sought foreign interference in the 2016 election. He noted that special prosecutor Robert Mueller found no evidence of that and asked if he had offered an apology to President Trump.

"You all should be apologizing. You sit here and you attack the president, and I am not going to have it," Bondi said. He added that, for the past four years, none of the Democrats questioned then-Attorney General Merrick Garland about the Epstein case.

For his part, Rep. Ted Lieu accused Bondi of lying under oath in assuring that there is no evidence against Trump in the files. He showed images and a video in which Trump appears alongside Epstein and cited a document with unverified allegations.

Bondi responded that those allegations had already been investigated and were not considered substantiated, as the Justice Department has previously indicated. The attorney general rejected the tone of the questioning and accused Democrats of attacking the president.

"This is so ridiculous. They are trying to deflect from all the great things Donald Trump has done. There is no evidence that Donald Trump has committed a crime," he said.