Bondi Blocks Congressional Testimony on Epstein Files as DOJ Claims "Absolute Immunity"

Attorney General Pam Bondi will not comply with a congressional subpoena demanding her testimony about the Justice Department's refusal to release Jeffrey Epstein files, according to a letter from DOJ lawyers obtained by The Hill.

The Department of Justice is invoking "absolute immunity" to shield Bondi from having to answer questions under oath before the House Oversight Committee -- a sweeping claim of executive privilege that would prevent any meaningful congressional oversight of how DOJ has handled one of the most high-profile criminal cases in recent history.

House Oversight Committee Republicans issued the subpoena as part of their investigation into why the Justice Department continues to withhold documents related to Epstein's sex trafficking operation, his co-conspirators, and the institutional failures that allowed his abuse to continue for years. Survivors and their advocates have spent years fighting for transparency about who enabled Epstein and why so few have faced consequences.

The DOJ's refusal to make Bondi available represents a direct challenge to Congress's constitutional authority to conduct oversight of the executive branch. "Absolute immunity" claims have historically been used to prevent White House advisors from testifying about their direct communications with the president -- not to shield cabinet officials from answering questions about departmental policies and document handling.

This is not Bondi's first connection to the Epstein case. As Florida's attorney general from 2011 to 2019, she faced criticism for her office's handling of allegations related to Epstein's plea deal and his continued access to underage victims even after his 2008 conviction. Now, as the nation's top law enforcement official, she is blocking congressional efforts to understand why DOJ continues to keep Epstein files under wraps.

The House Oversight Committee has been investigating the Justice Department's pattern of withholding documents related to Epstein's trafficking network, including flight logs, communications with powerful associates, and internal DOJ assessments of the controversial 2008 non-prosecution agreement that allowed Epstein to serve just 13 months in a county jail with work release privileges.

That 2008 deal -- negotiated by then-U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta, who later served as Trump's Labor Secretary -- has been widely condemned as a miscarriage of justice that prioritized protecting Epstein's wealthy and politically connected associates over his victims. A federal judge later ruled the agreement violated the Crime Victims' Rights Act by concealing it from survivors.

Bondi's refusal to testify raises obvious questions: What is the Justice Department hiding? Why won't the nation's top law enforcement official answer questions under oath about her department's handling of files related to one of the most notorious sex traffickers in American history?

The "absolute immunity" claim is particularly rich coming from an administration that has repeatedly demanded transparency from its political opponents while invoking executive privilege to avoid accountability for its own conduct. If there is nothing to hide in the Epstein files, why is DOJ going to such lengths to prevent congressional oversight?

House Oversight Committee leadership has not yet indicated whether they will move to hold Bondi in contempt of Congress for defying the subpoena, though that option remains on the table. The committee could also seek a court order compelling her testimony, though such legal battles can drag on for months or years.

Meanwhile, survivors of Epstein's trafficking network continue waiting for answers about who enabled his crimes and why so many powerful men have escaped accountability. The Justice Department's refusal to cooperate with congressional oversight only deepens suspicions that officials are more interested in protecting the reputations of Epstein's associates than delivering justice to his victims.

Bondi's stonewalling fits a broader pattern of this administration treating transparency as optional and oversight as an inconvenience. But Congress has a constitutional duty to investigate executive branch misconduct -- and the American people have a right to know what their Justice Department is hiding about Jeffrey Epstein's enablers.