President Donald Trump has sought to calm growing divisions within his political base by defending Attorney General Pam Bondi and dismissing renewed scrutiny over the handling of Jeffrey Epstein-related documents.
Trump took to social media over the weekend and posted to support Bondi, writing that Bondi is “doing a FANTASTIC JOB!”
Trump claimed in his post that the Epstein “client list,” which has recently been claimed nonexistent by the Department of Justice (DOJ), was created by previous Democratic leaders.
“For years, it’s Epstein, over and over again. Why are we giving publicity to Files written by Obama, Crooked Hillary, Comey, Brennan, and the Losers and Criminals of the Biden Administration…” wrote the President.
“They created the Epstein Files, just like they created the FAKE Hillary Clinton/Christopher Steele Dossier that they used on me, and now my so-called ‘friends’ are playing right into their hands. Why didn’t these Radical Left Lunatics release the Epstein Files? If there was ANYTHING in there that could have hurt the MAGA Movement, why didn’t they use it?”
Trump also berated a reporter last week when asked about the handling of the Epstein documents, indicating that more important things were to be focused on than Epstein. “And are people still talking about this guy, this creep?” Trump questioned. “That is unbelievable.”
These statements from the President come shortly after a joint memo from the DOJ and FBI claiming that there is no evidence supporting conspiracy theories about Epstein’s death or the existence of a so-called “client list.”
However, the claims made by the FBI and DOJ directly contradict Bondi’s previous statement, in which she claimed to have the client list ready for review.
“It’s sitting on my desk right now to review. That’s been a directive by President Trump,” she said in February when asked about the client list.
Bondi has since attempted to clarify these comments, claiming that she meant to review more than just Epstein’s files.
“I did an interview on Fox, and it’s been getting a lot of attention because I said I was asked a question about the client list, and my response was, it’s sitting on my desk to be reviewed – meaning the file along with the JFK, MLK files as well. That’s what I meant by that,” she explained, per CNN.
Despite the attempt at clarification, many political activists have now called for changes within the Trump administration.
“Blondi [sic] has been very DAMAGING to the admin and she has damaged public trust in the DOJ. She is hurting President Trump and his staff/advisors,” wrote Laura Loomer on social media.
“She lied on national TV and needs to be held accountable for harming the Trump admin and public trust.”
Similarly, Tucker Carlson called out Bondi’s claims, adding that he now believes that the government does not have “much relevant information about Jeffrey Epstein’s sex crimes.”
“Rather than just admit that, Pam Bondi made a bunch of ludicrous claims on cable news shows that she couldn’t back up, and this current outrage is the result,” he explained during an interview with NBC News.
Currently, there has been no indication made by the White House about plans to move on from Bondi, with many expecting the attorney general to retain her role for the foreseeable future.