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Attorney General Pam Bondi’s first oversight hearing since taking office descended into a partisan battlefield Tuesday, as she deflected questions about weaponizing the Justice Department, stonewalled inquiries into the Epstein files, and launched personal attacks on Democratic senators—all while defending the Trump administration’s unprecedented deployment of federal forces to American cities.
The Senate Judiciary Committee hearing came at a precarious moment: former FBI Director James Comey faces indictment in what critics call political retribution, the government shutdown enters its seventh day, and questions mount about whether Trump is using the nation’s top law enforcement agency as a weapon against perceived enemies.
“I Wish You Loved Chicago as Much as You Hate President Trump”
The hearing’s most explosive moment came when Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, the committee’s top Democrat, pressed Bondi on whether the White House consulted her before deploying National Guard troops to American cities—including Chicago.
Bondi refused to answer twice, citing executive privilege. Then she pivoted to attack.
“As you shut down the government, and you’re sitting here, our law enforcement officers aren’t being paid—they’re out there to protect you,” Bondi fired back. “I wish you loved Chicago as much as you hate President Trump. And currently, the National Guard are on the way to Chicago. If you’re not going to protect your citizens, President Trump will.”
FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche were “on the way right now as we speak,” she added, turning what should have been a straightforward oversight question into a political broadside.
Durbin’s response was measured but pointed: “It’s my job to grill you. Investigating your agency is part of my responsibility on this committee. You may not like the experience, but others have weathered the storm, and they answered questions in a respectful manner.”
The Epstein Files: Deflection and Accusation
Bondi’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation has become a flashpoint. Despite Trump’s campaign promises to release the so-called “Epstein files,” the Justice Department declared in July there was “no basis” to release additional documents—sparking allegations of a cover-up to protect powerful figures who exploited young girls.
On Tuesday, Bondi defended that decision after claiming in February the files were “sitting on my desk.”
“I said it was sitting on my desk, along with JFK and Martin Luther King files,” she explained. “And I said I had not yet reviewed it… Our memo on Epstein clearly points out there was no ‘client list.'”
When Durbin asked about reports that the FBI was ordered to flag any Epstein-related records mentioning Trump’s name, Bondi shut down: “I’m not going to discuss anything about that with you, senator.”
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse pressed further, asking about “hundreds” of suspicious activity reports flagged by banks regarding Epstein’s finances—and whether the FBI found photographs “of President Trump with half-naked young women,” as public reporting has suggested.
Bondi didn’t answer the question. Instead, she attacked: “You sit here and make salacious remarks, once again, trying to slander President Trump, left and right, when you’re the one who was taking money from one of Epstein’s closest confidants”—a reference to tech entrepreneur Reid Hoffman, who has acknowledged and regretted past contact with Epstein.
Comey, Weaponization, and the Erosion of Norms
The indictment of James Comey loomed over the hearing. Trump publicly demanded Bondi prosecute Comey on Truth Social last month, and days later, a grand jury in Virginia indicted him on charges of lying to Congress—despite career prosecutors’ reservations about the evidence.
The move came only after Trump forced out the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Erik Siebert, who had resisted bringing charges. Trump then installed White House aide Lindsey Halligan, who secured the indictment.
Senator Amy Klobuchar asked Bondi directly: Did she consider Trump’s Truth Social post—where he wrote, “They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done”—a directive to prosecute?
Bondi’s answer was evasive: “President Trump is the most transparent president in American history, and I don’t think he said anything that he hasn’t said for years.”
When Senator Richard Blumenthal asked if Bondi discussed the Comey case with Trump at a dinner before the indictment, she refused to answer—then launched a personal attack, accusing Blumenthal of lying about his military service during the Vietnam War.
“I’m not going to be lectured about integrity by someone who lied about being in the military,” she said. “How dare you? I’m a career prosecutor. Don’t you ever challenge my integrity.”
What Bondi Refused to Answer
Throughout the hearing, Bondi stonewalled on key questions:
- Tom Homan investigation: She declined to explain why the DOJ closed a bribery investigation into Trump’s border czar after he allegedly accepted $50,000 in cash from undercover FBI agents.
- Venezuelan boat strikes: She refused to discuss the legal justification for U.S. military strikes on boats off Venezuela’s coast, which the administration claims were affiliated with drug cartels.
- DOJ firings: She wouldn’t address the mass exodus of career prosecutors, including those who worked on January 6 cases or resisted prosecuting Trump’s political opponents.
- National Guard deployments: She invoked executive privilege when asked about White House consultations on deploying troops to Democratic-run cities.
A Department in Turmoil
Bondi’s testimony comes amid unprecedented upheaval at the Justice Department. Nearly 300 former DOJ employees released a letter Monday describing her leadership as “appalling” and warning that the administration is “draining the Department of priceless institutional knowledge and expertise.”
Senator Blumenthal, speaking to reporters after the hearing, called Bondi’s performance “possibly a new low” for attorneys general testifying before Congress.
“Her apparent strategy is to attack and conceal,” he said. “I’ve been through close to 15 of these Attorney General accountability hearings, and I have never seen anything close to it in terms of the combativeness, the evasiveness and sometimes deceptiveness.”
The Stakes for Democratic Norms
What’s at stake here isn’t just political theater. It’s the independence of the Justice Department—a cornerstone of American democracy that has historically operated with some distance from the White House to prevent the kind of political prosecutions that define authoritarian regimes.
Bondi’s refusal to answer whether Trump directed her to investigate his enemies, combined with the Comey indictment and the closed Homan investigation, suggests that firewall is crumbling.
During her confirmation hearing in January, Bondi promised to end the “weaponization” of the Justice Department. But Tuesday’s testimony revealed a different reality: a department reshaped in Trump’s image, where loyalty trumps independence, and oversight questions are met with deflection and personal attacks.
As the government shutdown drags on and federal law enforcement officers work without pay, Bondi’s message to Congress was clear: Don’t question the president’s agenda. Don’t challenge the attorney general’s integrity. And if you do, expect a fight.