Pam Bondi, the Attorney General of the United States, defended Wednesday before a congressional committee the contested management of the Jeffrey Epstein affair by the Department of Justice that she heads, refuting the accusations of elected Democratic officials who accuse her of wanting to "cover up" the affair.

Published on: 02/12/2026 - 10:18 Modified on: 02/12/2026 - 11:38

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Democrats accuse the Attorney General of the United States of using the Jeffrey Epstein affair for the benefit of Donald Trump. Pamela Bondi, nicknamed Pam, defended, Wednesday February 11 before a congressional committee, the contested management of this explosive case by the Department of Justice that she heads.

Since the publication by his ministry of a new round of documents relating to the financier and sex criminal who died in prison in 2019, many elected officials, including Republicans, have criticized the extent of the elements redacted or concealed by the Department of Justice (DoJ), even though a law passed by Congress in November requires the disclosure of almost all of the documents in the file.

Pam Bondi reported "ongoing investigations", seeming to distance herself from the number 2 of the Department of Justice, Todd Blanche, who had ruled out that these documents could contain new elements likely to lead to additional indictments.

With this latest massive publication, the Trump administration fulfilled its obligation, imposed by a law adopted in November, to provide complete transparency on this explosive issue, Todd Blanche said.

“You are leading a massive cover-up of the Epstein affair from the Department of Justice,” Jamie Raskin, the main Democratic member of this commission, nevertheless told Pam Bondi.

“I have dedicated my entire career to advocating for victims, and I will continue to do so,” Pam Bondi said in her opening statement.

Several victims or relatives of victims of Jeffrey Epstein attended the hearing.

Concealment trial

Democratic elected officials, but also Republican Thomas Massie, co-author of the law, focused their criticism on the fact that the names of Jeffrey Epstein's possible accomplices had been redacted, contrary to what this law requires.

They were also outraged that the names and contact details, and even photos of Epstein victims previously not publicly identified, were disclosed at the end of January, before being removed.

The minister responded to her opponents with volleys of personal attacks, while defending the way in which her services published these documents given the “tight” deadline set by law.

“Our error rate is very low,” she assured, pledging that any erroneous redactions would be removed and ensuring that the privacy of victims was protected.

Democratic elected official Pramila Jayapal asked him to turn to the victims present to “ask for forgiveness” for what “this unacceptable disclosure of their contact details” caused them. But the minister refused, accusing him of “playing theater”.

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Trump in turmoil

During his 2024 campaign, Donald Trump promised, if elected, to publish the entire Epstein file. But his procrastination has earned him accusations of lack of transparency and even concealment, even among his own activist base.

Donald Trump, close to Jeffrey Epstein in the 1990s, claims to have broken up with him before he was concerned by the courts and to have had no knowledge of his sexual crimes.

But a transcript from a former Palm Beach, Florida, police chief in 2019 with the FBI, federal law enforcement, released in the recent trove of documents, casts doubt on that timeline.

This police officer, who was investigating the first accusations of sex crimes against minors against Jeffrey Epstein in 2006, recounts a phone call from Donald Trump in which the billionaire told him at the time: "Thank God for stopping him, everyone knew what he was doing."

Although the mere mention of a person's name in the file does not imply any reprehensible act a priori on their part, many personalities fear the shock wave of revelations about their past links with the sex criminal.

Also read: Epstein affair: Pandora's box? Let's talk about it with K. Gorjestani, H. Frade and P. Gervais

The Democrats also questioned the minister on the criminal proceedings initiated against targets designated by name by President Trump.

They nevertheless welcomed the fact that judges overturned them, as for former FBI director James Comey or New York Attorney General Letitia James, in November 2025, or that citizens' juries refused to indict them, notably on Tuesday in the case of six elected Democrats who had urged the military to disobey "illegal orders" from the administration.

“You have transformed the Department of Justice at the service of the people into an instrument of Trump's vengeance. Trump orders indictments like he would order pizza, and you comply,” mocked Jamie Raskin.

With Reuters and AFP

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