From PBS NewsHour.
Attorney General Pam Bondi says the Department of Justice has made “tremendous progress” in keeping Americans safe, citing President Donald Trump’s large-scale military actions in cities like Washington, D.C., and Memphis, where his administration has claimed that the presence of federal officers in these locations have lowered crime.
“I came into office with a goal of refocusing the Department of Justice on its core mission after years of bloated bureaucracy and political weaponization,” she said in her opening remarks Wednesday to lawmakers on the House Judiciary Committee.
Bondi said the president provided the agency with the resources and leadership to do its jobs well.
“President Trump’s policies have saved lives,” she said. “I cannot think of a policy outcome more important than protecting the lives of American citizens. Can you?”
The hearing offered an opportunity for lawmakers to question Bondi on a number of controversial issues involving the Justice Department, including around the Trump administration’s failure to meet a Congress-mandated deadline to release all of its Epstein files; the legal justification for the administration’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific; as well as prosecutions of perceived Trump political rivals like former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Bondi is seeking to revive both cases, which were already thrown out by a U.S. district judge.
The Department of Justice has released millions of pages of Epstein-related documents, photographs and messages. But it missed its deadline by more than a month, and the releases have been mired by missed redactions and accusations of key omissions. A bipartisan group of lawmakers has demanded more transparency, accusing the government of failing to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act passed in November, and survivors released a Super Bowl ad telling Bondi “it’s time for the truth.”
Bondi addressed Epstein survivors in the room, saying she’s spent her entire career fighting for victims. She apologized for what they have been through, “especially as a result of that monster.”
She then encouraged any survivors of abuse to come forward with information.
“The FBI is waiting to hear from you,” she said. “I want you to know that any accusations of criminal wrongdoing will be taken seriously and investigated.”
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