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Previously: Attorney General Bondi defended the redaction of Epstein files and political indictments. Now: House Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic lawmakers have condemned the Justice Department for tracking the search histories of members of Congress reviewing those files.
Read more: Bondi Defends Epstein File Redactions and Political Indictments in House Judiciary HearingSpeaker Johnson Joins Democrats in Criticizing DOJ Tracking of Lawmakers Reviewing Epstein Files
Key Facts
- 3.5 million pages of Epstein files have been released out of approximately 6 million.
- The Justice Department logs search histories of lawmakers reviewing unredacted files to 'protect victim information.'
- House Speaker Mike Johnson and Representative Jamie Raskin criticized the DOJ for tracking lawmaker search histories.
- Representative Ro Khanna identified six men from unredacted files: Leslie Wexner, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Salvatore Nuara, Zurab Mikeladze, Leonic Leonov, and Nicola Caputo.
- An August 2019 FBI document referred to Leslie Wexner as a 'coconspirator,' though his lawyers state he was never a target.
- Indictments against James Comey and Letitia James were dismissed due to an unlawful interim appointment; the DOJ is appealing.
- Attorney General Bondi called Representative Jamie Raskin a 'washed up loser lawyer.'
- Two U.S. citizens were fatally shot during immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota.
- Ghislaine Maxwell was moved from a low-security prison to a minimum-security prison camp in Texas.
- Representative Ted Lieu displayed a photo of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the Epstein files during the hearing.
Attorney General Pam Bondi defended the Justice Department’s handling of Jeffrey Epstein’s case files and high-profile political indictments during a House Judiciary Committee hearing that has since sparked a bipartisan dispute over the surveillance of lawmakers. Photographs from the hearing revealed that Bondi possessed a printout of Representative Pramila Jayapal’s search history from the department’s unredacted file database. House Speaker Mike Johnson called the tracking "inappropriate," joining Representative Jamie Raskin and other Democrats who characterized the monitoring as "spying" and requested an inspector general investigation. The Justice Department stated that it logs all searches on its systems to protect against the unauthorized release of victim information.
The hearing addressed the department's compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which has resulted in the release of 3.5 million of an estimated 6 million pages. Representative Ro Khanna and Representative Thomas Massie, who reviewed unredacted files, identified six men previously redacted, including billionaire Leslie Wexner and DP World CEO Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem. While an internal 2019 FBI document labeled Wexner a "coconspirator," his legal counsel stated he was viewed only as a source of information and not a target. Representative Ted Lieu also presented a photograph from the files depicting Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who faces pressure to testify regarding his association with Epstein.
Tensions escalated as Representative Jayapal accused the department of inadvertently releasing "nude images" of survivors while failing to meet with them directly. Bondi dismissed the questioning as "theatrics" but noted that any inadvertently released names are immediately redacted. The hearing also touched on the transfer of Ghislaine Maxwell to a minimum-security prison, which Bondi claimed she learned of only after the fact. Beyond the Epstein investigation, Bondi confirmed the department is appealing the dismissal of indictments against James Comey and Letitia James and addressed a surge in immigration enforcement in Minnesota that resulted in two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens.
Historical Context
The Epstein Files Transparency Act was signed into law in November 2025, mandating the public release of all unclassified documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019. The Justice Department has faced criticism for the pace and extent of redactions in the millions of pages of evidence gathered over two decades. Simultaneously, the department has undergone structural shifts, prioritizing immigration enforcement and drug trafficking, including the recent capture and indictment of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
Perspective Analysis
Sources: Associated Press · CNN · BBC · CNBC · The Hill
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