On Wednesday, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, and other high-level Department of Justice (DOJ) officials agreed to an after-hours, closed door briefing with the GOP House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (KY-01) and the House panel members investigating the Epstein files. The goal: for the DOJ Team to answer, at length, any questions the panel had about the Epstein documents, their handling, and the next steps in the investigation. This briefing followed a Monday subpoena issued by Comer for AG Bondi to appear for an April 14, closed-door deposition. However, this briefing should have had no bearing on that future deposition date — at least that is what was assumed; and we know what happens when one assumes.
The Democrats on the panel were most displeased that there would be no cameras present. This meant they could not get Bondi on the record about the subpoena. So, instead of using the time as intended, to actually ask all the questions they claimed they had prepared for Bondi, the Democrat panel members instead stormed out of the briefing, headed straight to the first available camera, and proceeded to make fools of themselves.
No oath
— Rep. Melanie Stansbury (@Rep_Stansbury) March 18, 2026
No cameras
No sworn statements
No real answers
No justice in the Epstein Case
Just more coverups and a sham briefing with the AG—refusing to answer if she’ll comply with her subpoena. pic.twitter.com/T8T2uR1lMi
This was probably their plan in the first place.
Democrats on the House oversight committee walked out of a closed-door briefing from attorney general Pam Bondi about the Jeffrey Epstein files on Wednesday, leaving what California congressman Robert Garcia called “an outrageous fake hearing” after Bondi refused to commit to honoring a subpoena to testify under oath.
The committee voted to subpoena Bondi earlier this month, with five Republicans joining Democrats to demand that the attorney general answer questions about the justice department’s failure to properly release files from the federal investigations into Epstein.
Bondi and deputy attorney general Todd Blanche went to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to try to quell bipartisan frustration over the justice department’s handling of millions of files related to Epstein’s sex trafficking investigation. But less than an hour into the briefing, Democrats walked out in protest of the arrangement.
Of course, the Republicans on the committee had a different perspective on the matter. Rep. Tim Burchett (TN-02) confirmed it was faux outrage.
NEW: Rep. Tim Burchett calls Democrats’ walkout of the Epstein files briefing with Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche “staged.” pic.twitter.com/Brfs3fwkuG
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 18, 2026
As did Rep. Lauren Boebert (CO-04).
.@AGPamBondi and @DAGToddBlanche have WILLINGLY come before the Oversight committee for a closed briefing to answer ANY and ALL questions Members have for them.
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) March 18, 2026
Democrats all just stormed out after refusing to ask questions because the cameras are off.
Nothing is ever good…
.@AGPamBondi and @DAGToddBlanche have WILLINGLY come before the Oversight committee for a closed briefing to answer ANY and ALL questions Members have for them.
Democrats all just stormed out after refusing to ask questions because the cameras are off.
Nothing is ever good enough for these theatrical fools.
AAG Dhillon also called the Democrats' out on their behavior and their lies.
You stormed out of the hearing before asking any questions. Do you actually want answers? https://t.co/xXNGg2WjQi
— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) March 19, 2026
Apparently not, at least not answers that can't be videoed and cut into sound bites for their convenience. Rep.Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03) had left the room, but followed the party narrative to the letter.
I was sitting behind @AGPamBondi at this briefing where she answered EVERY question asked by either side. This lady picked up her purse and stalked out without asking a single question. So much for getting answers! https://t.co/FdaFUFtYxv
— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) March 19, 2026
Bondi and Blanche spoke with reporters after the Democrat walkout. Their take was, of course, completely different from what legacy media reported.
Bondi gave this response to one reporter:
Let me be clear on this case. This case has spanned multiple administrations. It started under Bush, it went to Obama, it went to Biden. We were the only — no documents were released — only under the Trump administration. And we released three million documents.
Another reporter presented a winding question which detailed Bondi's actions and missteps in the release of the Epstein documents, and her February testimony before the House Oversight Committee where mostly Democrat House members screeched at her about her failure to release the documents in a way they wished. The reporter wanted to know if Bondi had any regrets over how she had handled the document distribution and if she would do anything differently. Bondi was visibly perturbed in her response.
Let me repeat what I just said: This has spanned FOUR administrations. Bush, Obama, Trump I, 45, where Jeffrey Epstein was prosecuted, and then, Joe Biden's administration, where ZERO documents were provided. We have provided three million documents. Three million documents, the height of the Eiffel Tower. Used 500 attorneys working around the clock. Have identified, either they self-identified or through their attorneys: 1200 victims who we did our very, very best to protect their identities, and so we're proud of the work we've done on this.
WATCH:
HOLY CRAP! Pam Bondi just said a Democrat SCREAMED in the briefing because @cspan cameras weren't in there.
— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) March 18, 2026
"They screamed C-SPAN wasn't there, one of them, and then they stormed out of the meeting."
Democrats hate it when the limelight isn't given to them for BS chrades. pic.twitter.com/YryVQjJAxl
It's like the game of telephone: what Bondi communicated to Comer and then what Comer communicated to the Epstein panel either got lost in translation or was deliberately misinterpreted by the Democrats.
We'll take "Deliberate Misinterpretation" for $500, Alex.
Bondi was clear that the DOJ Team came in good faith to carve out time for the Epstein House panel. From the Iran war, to prosecuting criminal illegals, to Somali fraud, to bloated voter rolls, to human trafficking, it's not as though the DOJ doesn't have more urgent cases and concerns. But the way these Democrats (and some Republicans) on this panel see it, Epstein is the only thing that matters.
We were there to answer questions. It's the evening, we came at their convenience. We gave them, really as much time as they wanted. And one Congresswoman screamed CSPAN wasn't in there, so she didn't want to ask questions. Yet, all day long they've been on social media saying they had all these questions. We sat there saying, anything you want to ask us, ask us anything you want to ask us. And they screamed, CSPAN wasn't there, one of them, and then they stored out of the meeting.
Rep. Summer Lee (PA-12) was identified as the one screaming about CSPAN. Of course, Lee is a Democrat. But she is also the Democrat who has filed articles of impeachment against Pam Bondi. Things becomes even more clear.
Because Lee, Democrat ranking member Robert Garcia (CA-42), and the other Democrat members on the panel did not get the televised audience they wanted, they stormed out and ran to the cameras.
Garcia admitted as much.
We just walked out of what has been, quite frankly, a complete disrespect of the process, of one of our members, and quite frankly the American public should be outraged at what is happening right now.
What we should be outraged about is that a sitting member of Congress doesn't know the difference between a formal deposition and a briefing. Instead of using that briefing time to ask Bondi and the DOJ team substantive questions about the Epstein files, Garcia and Lee wanted to force Bondi on the record about whether she would honor the subpoena. The briefing that Comer and Bondi agreed to present got turned into a sideshow. Totally on brand for the Democrats.
Garcia continued,
I want to just start by saying we opened up what was supposed to be a briefing by asking the attorney general, which I did multiple times, if she would commit to follow the subpoena that is in place that compels her to answer questions, that's under oath, transcribed, and then made available to the American people. And she refused on multiple occasions to commit to following the subpoena that Chairman Comer actually just put out.
WATCH:
DEM WALK-OUT: Democrats on the House Oversight Committee walked out of a briefing with Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on the Epstein files.
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 18, 2026
Rep. Garcia said lawmakers walked out because of "complete disrespect" for the process, saying the… pic.twitter.com/sATRnImN7L
Lee also showed her hand. Her demands of Bondi had absolutely nothing to do with the Epstein files or justice for his victims, and everything to do with gathering more fodder for Bondi's impeachment.
WATCH:
LEE: I asked Chairman Comer, if Pam Bondi did not come, would he force her to or if he would move for contempt hearings as he did for other people who did not respond to our subpoena? Instead of answering as an adult, he said that I was “bitching” pic.twitter.com/16sWBGQz8d
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 18, 2026
Lee really had no legitimate complaint. She just wanted to rant about Bondi being a tool of Trump.
Chairman Comer weighed in and responded to reporters' questions. His response to one of the questions hit the nail squarely on the head.
Comer said,
I want to talk to everyone. I personally don't see any reason for her to do a deposition. She's the sitting Attorney General, she's turning over documents. I think the Democrats want to do this to embarass her, I did not vote for the subpoena to bring her in for a deposition. I want to bring in the bad guys for the deposition, I want to bring in the men who have abused women. I want to bring in anyone who was involved in the prosecution or lack of prosecution of Epstein-Maxwell, and some of these other guys, So, that's where I think our time and energy should be spent. But, we had five Republicans vote with the Democrats. And again, the Democrats had an opportunity to ask questions. They didn't ask a single, pertinent question.
[...]
What I saw today, frankly, was the Democrats trying to embarass Pam Bondi. Get that clip for Rachel Maddow tonight on MSNBC, trying to somehow salvage their false narrative that there's some coverup and that Trump is guilty of crimes.
BDS on steroids. This is all they have.
The full slate of questions Comer responded to were illuminating, showing the contrast between the good faith aims of Comer and the Republicans on the committee versus the thinly-disguised witch hunt the Democrats want to continue to mount.
WATCH:
HOLY CRAP! James Comer said that Democrats didn't ask a SINGLE SUBSTANTIATIVE QUESTION to Pam Bondi or any of the DOJ officials who appeared for the briefing.
— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) March 19, 2026
"They did not ask any questions... does it LOOK like there's a cover up?"
The political charade is crumbling and they… pic.twitter.com/gRHKdYuFct
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