Pam Bondi blindsided the White House by sharing classified Epstein file binders: NYT
Former U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi arrives with her entourage, including Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, and a police escort for a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee interview as part of the committee's ongoing probe into the Justice Department's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 29, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Former Attorney General Pam Bondi sparked a crisis during a White House briefing with MAGA influencers on February 27 by distributing unapproved binders allegedly containing Epstein files, according to the forthcoming book “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump,” by New York Times reportersMaggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.
The New York Times reports Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were briefing popular MAGA influencers Mike Cernovich, Liz Wheeler, Collin Rugg, and DC Draino before Bondi arrived with boxes of materials not vetted by White House officials.
When staff opened the binders searching for President Donald Trump's name, they found it.
According to the report, one official said he found Trump's name a few pages in, right in the middle.
The crisis intensified because the White House was hosting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on the same day, and a premature Epstein file release would overshadow Trump's scheduled press conference, said the report.
White House aides hastily removed influencers, claiming content was embargoed. However, influencers posted selfies holding the binders on social media, creating the exact media firestorm the White House attempted to prevent.
