Washington — The GOP chairman of the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday subpoenaed Attorney General Pam Bondi for testimony on the Justice Department's handling of the investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The subpoena, issued by GOP Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, requires Bondi to appear for a closed-door deposition on April 14.
"As Attorney General, you are directly responsible for overseeing the Department's collection, review, and determinations regarding the release of files pursuant to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and the Committee therefore believes that you possess valuable insight into these efforts," Comer wrote.
The committee voted on March 4 to approve a motion to subpoena Bondi, with five Republicans voting with all Democrats to move ahead on the matter. The motion itself was introduced by GOP Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina. Republican Reps. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Michael Cloud of Texas and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania also broke with their party to support it.
Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche are also scheduled to brief the committee behind closed doors on Wednesday. In an attempt to fend off the subpoena earlier this month, Comer noted Bondi had offered to give private briefings to members about the Epstein investigation.
But lawmakers in both parties have been frustrated by the department's handling of the release of the files and sweeping redactions of many documents.
Only about half of the files in the Justice Department's possession appear to have been released. Blanche has said the department reviewed 6 million total pages. According to a CBS News analysis, the department has released about 3 million pages of documents in several batches. Tens of thousands of files, some of which contained explicit images or survivors' information, have been removed.
In November, Congress passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act that compelled the release of all Epstein-related materials that the Justice Department had in its possession by Dec. 19, 2025.
Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, accused Bondi of leading "a White House cover-up."
"Thanks to united Oversight Committee Democrats, along with the support of several Republicans, the Attorney General will now appear before our committee under oath," he said in a statement Tuesday. "No more lies. No more distractions. We want the truth — and justice for the survivors."
A spokesperson for the Justice Department said the subpoena is "completely unnecessary."
"Lawmakers have been invited to view the unredacted files for themselves at the Department of Justice, and the Attorney General has always made herself available to speak directly with members of Congress," the spokesperson said.
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