Latest / The Vault: The Epstein Files / The Pam Bondi Congressional Oversight Committee Epstein Related Transcript (Part 1) (6/6/26)

Transcript

The Pam Bondi Congressional Oversight Committee Epstein Related Transcript (Part 1) (6/6/26) · The Vault: The Epstein Files

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Speaker 1: What's up everyone, and welcome to another episode of the
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Epstein Chronicles. So the Pam Bondie transcript has been released,
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and in this episode we're going to begin taking a
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look at what she had to say about her part
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in the ongoing Epstein cover up. Mister Emmer, we will
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go on the record. This is a transcribed interview of
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former Attorney General Pamela Jay Bondi, conducted by the House
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Committee on Oversight and Government Reform under the authority granted
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in pursuant to the House Rule X. According to the
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House Rule X grants the Committee broad jurisdiction for the
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Committee to conduct investigations of any matter at any time.
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This interview was requested by Chairman James Comer as part
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of the Committee's investigation into the circumstances and subsequent investigations
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into the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein and Glenn Maxwell, the
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operation of sex trafficking rings and the ways for the
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federal government to effectively combat them, the ways in which
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mister Epstein and miss Maxwell sought to curry favor and
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exercise influence to protect their legal activity, and potential violation
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of ethics rules related to elected officials Can the witness
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please state her name and spell her last name for
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the record. Bondi sure, Pamela Bondi Bo and du Y
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Emmer thank you. My name is Jack Emmer and I'm
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the Chief of Council for Investigation for Chairman James Gomer.
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Under the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform rules, you're
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allowed to have one Council President to advise you during
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the interview. Do you have counsel representing you in a
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personal capacity present with you today? BONDI only as my
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when I was Attorney General for the United States, and
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that's har Meat Dylan. Another winner, another absolute moron, harm
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Meat Dylan Emmer. Will counsel please identify themselves for the record. Dylan. Yes,
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I'm Harmeat Dylon, the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights,
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and I'm here on behalf of the United States Department
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of Justice, as the former Attorney General was subpoenaed and
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disappearing here voluntarily in her official capacity only, and accordingly,
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I'm here to represent the interest of the DOJ and
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its interest in effectuating the Transparency Act, and solely to
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be here on behalf of the DOJ. I'm also accompanied
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by one of my colleagues, and he'll state his appearance
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as well. Mister Ginn, I'm Jonathan Ginn, Deputy Assistant Attorney
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General for Civil Division, and I'm here appearing in the
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same capacity as Miss Dylan. Mister Emmer, we have members
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of Congress here with us today. For the records, starting
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with the Chairman, can members please identify themselves for the record?
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James Comer, Chairman Kentucky, Mister Garcia, Ranking Member Robert Garcia,
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Congressman Sue has Submerennium, Yasimin and sorry, James Walkinshaw, Maxwell Frost,
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Melanie Stansbury, mister Emmer for the records. Starting with the
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Majority staff, Can the additional staff members please introduce themselves
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with their name, title and affiliation. Billy Grant, Deputy Chief
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Council for Investigations, Chairman Comer, Daniel Ashworth, General Counsel for
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Chairman Comber, Ryan Gaketty, Chief Council Chairman Comer, Ellison Tolan,
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Council for Chairman Comber, and the list goes on. We're
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going to pick back up with the conversation though, mister Emmer,
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thank you all. Attorney General BONDI, before we begin, I
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would like to go over the ground rules for the
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transcribed interview. The questioning will proceed in rounds. The majority
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will ask questions for up to an hour, and then
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the minority will have an opportunity to ask questions for
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an hour if they choose to the extent. Members have
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questions for the witness, they'll be propounded during their sides
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respective rounds. The clock will stop if you need to
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confer with counsel, your council speaking, and when members of
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staff are speaking. During the opposing sides rounds of questions,
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we will alternate back and forth until there's no more questions.
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Do you understand BONDI yeah, Emmer. There's court reporter taking
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down everything I say and everything you say to make
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a written record of the interview. For the record to
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be clear, please wait until the staff for questioning you
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finishes each question before you begin your answer, and the
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staffer will wait until you finish your response before proceeding
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to the next question. Further, to ensure that the court
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reporter can properly record this transcribed interview, please speak clearly, concisely,
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and slowly. Also, the court reporter cannot record nonverbal answers
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such as nodding or shaking your head, so it's important
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that you answer each question with an audible verbal answer.
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Do you understand BONDI? Yeah? Emmer exhibits may be entered
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into the record. Majority exhibits will be identified numerically, Minority
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exhibits will be identified alphabetically. We want you to answer
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our questions in the most complete and truthful manner possible,
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so we will take our time. If you have any
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questions or do not fully understand the question, please let
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us know. We will attempt to clarify, add context to,
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or rephrase our questions. If we ask about specific conversations
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or events in the past and you're unable to recall
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the exact words or details, you should testify to the
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substance of those conversations or events to the best of
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your recollection. If you recall only part of the conversation
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or event, you should give us your best recollection of
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those events or parts of conversations that you do recall.
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Do you understand BONDI yes? Question. Although you're here voluntarily,
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you're acquired by law pursuant the Title eighteen of the
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United States Code, Section one thousand and one to answer
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questions from Congress truthfully This also applies to questions posed
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by Congressional staff in the interview do you understand Bondy yes? Question?
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If at any time you knowingly make false statements, you
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could be subject to criminal prosecution. Do you understand Bondy yes? Emmer.
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This includes knowingly providing false testimony, but also stating you
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do not recall or remember something when in fact you do.
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Do you understand Bondy yes, Emmer. Furthermore, you cannot tell
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half truth or exclude information necessary to make statements accurate.
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You're required to provide all information that would make your
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response truthful. A deliberate failure to disclose information can constitute
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a false statement. Do you understand bond yes? Emmer. Is
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there any reason you're unable to provide truthful testimony in
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today's interview? Bondy no, Emmer. Please note that if you
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wish to assert a privilege over any statement today, that
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assertion must comply with the rules of the Committee on
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Oversight and Government Reform pursu into that committee. Rule sixteen
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C one states for the chair to consider assertions a
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privilege over testimony, your statements, witnesses or entities must clearly
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state the specific privilege be an asserted and the reason
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for the assertion, honor before the scheduled date of testimony
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or appearance. Do you understand, Bondy, yes, Emmer. Ordinarily we
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take a five minute break at the end of each
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hour of questioning, but if you need a longer break
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or a break before that, please let us know and
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we'll be happy to accommodate. However, to the extent that
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there's a pending question, we would ask you to finish
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answering the question before we take a break. Do you understand,
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bond Y, yes, Emmer. I would like to remind anyone
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here today that the taking of still photography and the
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recording of video of any part of today's proceeding is prohibited.
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Attorney General Bondi. Do you have any other questions before
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we begin? Bondy no, Emmer. Do you have an opening
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statement that you'll be reading into the record? Bond Y, yes, please, Emmer,
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you may proceed. Bondy, good morning. Before we start today,
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I want to reiterate what I've said many times regarding
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the Department's handling during my tenure as Attorney General of
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the voluminous materials that are now commonly known as the
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Epstein Files. I'm proud of the Department's record and commitment
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to transparency. Under my leadership, we demonstrated an unprecedented commitment
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to transparency in the department search for collection and review
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of the Epstein Files, producing nearly three pages of material,
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including thousands of videos and hundreds of thousands of images.
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These investigations span four administrations, dating back to the Bush
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administration and have gone on through the Obama administration, the
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first Trump administration, the Biden administration. The only time federal
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prosecutors were permitted to launch investigations against Epstein and Maxwell
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was when President Trump occupied the White House. Only under
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President Trump were three million Epstein related documents released. This
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was an enormously complicated and labor intensive process. To the
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best of my knowledge, the Department produced everything required under
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the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Our diligent and good faith
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effort to collect materials ensured that all potentially responsive documents
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that could be reasonably located would see the light of day.
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All Department components were directed to submit any potential responsive records,
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resulting in a comprehensive review of millions of documents. At
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the head of a large department with broad responsibility. I
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did not lead every aspect of this effort, nor conduct
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the document review myself. I delegated that oversight over the
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process to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. The team of
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professionals who were reviewed the material that we collected assured
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me the only material that were withheld were either non responsive, privileged,
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or duplicative. Although not required by the Act, the Department
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has given Congress access to unredacted duplicative material in the
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reading room in an effort to maximize transparency. There were
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redaction errors, but since day one of the process, the
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Department has been committed to accountability and transparency. Our stance
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has always been that the Department stands ready to review
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any potential evidence of criminal activity related to Ebstein and
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his associates, and would pursue the appropriate investigations or prosecutorial
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actions wherever the facts in law warrant. I would like
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to repeat what I shared before the House Judiciary Committee
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in February. I've spent my entire career fighting for victims,
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and I'll continue to do so. I am deeply sorry
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for what any victim has been through, especially as a
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result of that monster. If they have any information to
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share with law enforcement about anyone who has hurt them
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or abused them. The FBI is waiting to hear from them.
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The bottom line is justice and transparency in this matter
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have been delivered at the direction of President Trump and
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his administration. Thank you, mister Emmer, Thank you. We've had
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another member of Congress join. Can he please identify himself
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for the record, mister min Congressman Dave min Emmer. Attorney
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General Bondie, I just want to thank you again for
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participating in today's proceeding and for your years the public service,
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both to our country and the state of Florida. I
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want to recognize that you're currently undergoing cancer treatment, and
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I'll say that we will do our best to ask
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all the questions in the most efficient and timely way possible.
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So let's start by briefly discussing your education and experience.
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I understand that you've had a long career, but can
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you summarize it for the record. Bondie Sure. I went
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to the University of Florida undergraduate. I graduated from Stetson
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College of Law. I was a prosecutor in Hillsborough County,
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Florida for eighteen years. Prosecuting almost every kind of crime imaginable,
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from first degree murders all the way to domestic violence.
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I was Felony Bureau Chief there as well. I also
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be the Attorney General for the State of Florida, where
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I served for eight years, and then for the past
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year I was Attorney General of the United States. Question
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by Emmer, So let's talk about your time as Attorney general.
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You started in February of twenty twenty five. Is that correct? Answer? Yes,
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question by Emmer. And as it relates to Jeffrey Epstein, matter,
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when you assumed office, what was the DOJ doing? Answer
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when I assumed regarding Epstein Emer Yes, Bondie, when I
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assumed office, nothing to my knowledge and nothing had been released,
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and I don't know if it had been requested to
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be released. Emmer. Did you direct the Department to conduct
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a review of the Epstein and Maxwell investigation? Answer immediately,
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I mean within weeks of assuming office. Question can you
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describe for the committee what that looked like? Answer? Yes,
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I spoke to the FBI and we asked them to
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turn over all the documents in their possession related to Epstein. Emmer,
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and as far as the those documents What was the
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DOJ going to do with those documents? Bondy, provide transparency
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and release them to the public and the Congress, of course.
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Question by Emmer. And I believe you said that started
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immediately upon your assuming office. Is that right, Bondy, I
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believe within weeks Emmer. And as far as providing transparency,
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was there a specific timeline that you provided to the
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FBI to follow as far as releasing the documents? Bondi, yeah,
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it was prior to Director Bettel being confirmed. I believe
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when the process started and we received from the FBI
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approximately three hundred documents that were released. Emmer. And to
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be clear, you directed this internal review of the Epstein matter.
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There was no other review that was occurring prior to
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you assuming office. Answer not to my knowledge question. Also
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for the record, the Epstein and Maxwell investigation was considered
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closed upon you taking office answer to my knowledge yes.
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Question When were you first briefed on the Eptie Stein
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Maxwell matter? Answer by Bondi initially after we received again
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approximately three hundred documents and those were released, and I
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believe that was the tip of the iceberg, that that
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the FBI had not turned over all the documents. Director
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Patel eventually was confirmed, and I sent him a letter
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asking him to look into that and give us any
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other documents in the FBI's possession anywhere in the country,
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and ultimately we received much more. Question and for the record,
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who would have been briefing you on the Epstein matter
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as far as one you took office, Bondie Todd Blanche question,
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what specific concerns did the department have as it related
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to the Epstein and Maxwell matter when you assumed office?
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Answer that nothing was released And again to my knowledge,
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no one that spanned the Biden administration or previously had
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sought to release any of the information. And I believe
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it was within weeks of me assuming office that we
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asked for and demanded all these documents. Emmer, do you
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recall whether there were concerns that there was potentially unindicted
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co conspirators? Answer always yes. All right, folks, we're going
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to wrap up right here and in the next episode
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dealing with the topic, We're gonna pick up where we
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left off. All the information that goes with this episode
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can be found in the description box.