House Democrats announced on May 29, 2026, that they will pursue subpoenas for Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel after former Attorney General Pam Bondi declined to answer questions regarding the government's management of Jeffrey Epstein files during a closed-door interview. The request for subpoenas was made by ranking Democrat Rep. Robert Garcia, who indicated that Bondi had shifted responsibility for the investigation to Blanche. Rep. Maxwell Frost accused Bondi of obstructing the investigation and stated that Democrats would continue to seek testimony from Blanche and Patel if resistance from administration officials persisted.
During the interview, Bondi reportedly avoided discussing conversations involving former President Trump and emphasized that she did not personally oversee the review of Epstein-related records, delegating that responsibility to Blanche. She stated that the Department of Justice reviewed nearly 3 million pages of records as part of the Epstein Files Transparency Act signed by Trump. Democrats expressed frustration over Bondi's reliance on Blanche for answers and indicated that they need to hear directly from him and Patel.
The interest in subpoenaing Patel reflects concerns about the management of Epstein-related records by federal law enforcement agencies prior to the Trump administration. Despite extensive investigations into Epstein's activities, accountability was not achieved until the Trump administration. The hearing marks a continuation of Congress's efforts to obtain information about the handling of Epstein records, with Bondi defending the administration's actions and claiming that more material was released than by any previous administration. Rep. James Comer stated that anyone lying to lawmakers could face prosecution and promised the release of Bondi's deposition transcript.
