In Washington a development has begun that could become politically delicate for the government of Donald Trump. A central investigative body of the US House of Representatives has decided to compel Attorney General Pam Bondi to testify under subpoena. She is to explain under oath how the Department of Justice handled the investigations against Jeffrey Epstein and the release of the related files. The vote passed with 24 to 19. What is remarkable is less the result than the composition of the majority. Five Republican representatives joined the Democrats and thereby opposed their own party leadership. Nancy Mace of South Carolina had introduced the motion. She was supported by Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Michael Cloud of Texas and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania.
The House Oversight Committee has just decided to question Pam Bondi under subpoena and under oath regarding the Epstein investigations. 24 to 19 votes. Five Republicans voted against their own party.
The Republican chairman of the committee, James Comer of Kentucky, had previously tried to prevent the subpoena. He explained that Pam Bondi’s chief of staff had assured him the attorney general would voluntarily brief the representatives. But many members of the committee said that was not enough. They wanted a formal statement under oath. Under the rules of the body Comer is now required to issue the subpoena. The questioning is expected to take place behind closed doors. Unlike public hearings government officials there cannot as easily retreat to prepared answers. The conflict shows how much political explosive force the Epstein complex still carries. It is already the second time within a year that Republicans on the investigative committee have joined Democrats to push through measures related to Epstein. For the Trump government that is unusual. The Republican dominated Congress had until now mostly stood firmly behind the president.
The dispute was triggered above all by the publication of the so called Epstein files. After Congress passed a law requiring the release of the investigative records the Department of Justice published millions of pages of documents in December and January. The release was meant to create transparency. Instead it increased the political pressure. Representatives from both parties accuse the department of withholding parts of the files or delaying their release. There were also serious mishaps. On the website of the Department of Justice unredacted nude photos of young women temporarily appeared, possibly even minors. In addition several cases included information from which the identity of victims could be inferred. At the same time other documents were so heavily redacted that many lawmakers see this as a violation of the law requiring the disclosure of the files.
Democratic representative Robert Garcia of California explained before the vote that he supported the subpoena because Pam Bondi must directly explain how these decisions were made. At the same time the goal is to ensure that victims and survivors are protected.
At the same time another central figure of the government has come under scrutiny. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has agreed to testify before the committee about his contacts with Jeffrey Epstein. Lutnick once lived in Manhattan next to Epstein and has now acknowledged that he visited Epstein’s private island Little St. James in 2012. Previously he had publicly stated that his contacts with Epstein had ended in 2005.
See also our investigations:
Investigation shows: US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick Lied - Six Years of Business With Epstein
(Our article of February 24, 2025)
Howard Lutnick, US Commerce Secretary under Trump, has a major problem. And it grows with every document that surfaces from the Epstein files. Lutnick had consistently claimed that he and his wife cut off all contact with Jeffrey Epstein after 2005. At the time, they had become neighbors of his property in New York, Epstein had given them a tour of his house, and Lutnick later said he had sworn “never again to be in a room with that disgusting person.” It sounds like a clean break. It is not.
The released files and further investigations show however that contact continued for years after that. In an email exchange from 2012 Lutnick even spoke about a possible visit to the island. During a hearing in the Senate he later stated that he had met Epstein only three times over fourteen years and had no personal relationship with him. Democrats and some Republicans doubt this account and therefore want to examine his testimony closely.
The investigative committee has also requested conversations with several additional individuals. These include Microsoft co founder Bill Gates as well as Kathryn Ruemmler, who until recently served as chief legal officer of the investment bank Goldman Sachs.
While the Epstein complex occupies Congress, another central figure of the government came under pressure the same day. In a hearing of the Judiciary Committee the Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem had to face accusations that her department is systematically obstructing the work of the independent inspector general Joseph Cuffari.
US Representative Becca Balint, Democratic Party: “You believe you are protected from accountability. But I promise you one thing: One day he will no longer be president. He will no longer be in charge. And when that day comes we will still be here - and we will continue to demand accountability.”
Cuffari had informed Congress in a letter that his office had repeatedly been prevented from accessing databases and information systems of the department. These included among other things data on border crossings, investigations by the immigration authority ICE and security related programs of the transportation authority. In one particularly sensitive case a running criminal investigation was involved. The inspector general warned that the restrictions could endanger investigations. Kristi Noem rejected the accusations. The inspector general in principle has access to all information, she said. The only requirement is that he submit a so called audit document describing the scope and objective of the investigation. The office of the inspector general later publicly contradicted this representation and stated that such documents have been routinely sent for more than twenty years.
The conflict is politically explosive. President Donald Trump dismissed more than two dozen independent government watchdogs last year. Joseph Cuffari is among the few who remain in office. The hearing itself was also confrontational in substance. Democratic representatives questioned Noem among other things about fatal firearm incidents involving Renee Good and Alex Pretti. They demanded an apology after Noem had previously described both as “domestic terrorists.” Republican members of the committee focused instead primarily on criticism of the previous border policy of the Biden administration and referred to cases of violent crime committed by migrants without legal status.
Further questions concerned possible deployments of immigration officers at polling stations during the upcoming midterm elections. Noem explained that there are currently no such plans. At the same time she argued that the debate shows that Democrats assume that people without citizenship could participate in elections. A review ordered by the Trump administration has so far found no evidence of widespread election fraud by non citizens.
On the sidelines of the hearing personal attacks also occurred. Democratic representative Sydney Kamlager Dove asked Noem whether she had had a relationship with her adviser Corey Lewandowski. Noem sharply rejected the question and described it as “tabloid nonsense.”
At the same time the Department of Homeland Security is currently examining a contract for an immigration detention facility in El Paso. The center Camp East Montana has come under criticism for its living conditions and is simultaneously dealing with a measles outbreak among detainees. A spokesperson for the department said the facility is being reviewed and that regular inspections are conducted to ensure standards are maintained.
The events of this week show how many conflict lines are currently running simultaneously in Washington. The release of the Epstein files has reopened old questions. At the same time central government agencies are coming under political pressure because of the way they operate. For the Trump government this is an unusual situation. For the first time in a long while critical initiatives are emerging not only from the opposition but also from within its own ranks.
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