Bipartisan group of lawmakers floats plan to 'fine Pam Bondi every day' over Epstein files
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi attends a Mexican Border Defense Medal presentation in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 15, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) announced Sunday that he and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) will be moving to hold Attorney General Pam Bondi in inherent contempt of Congress over the Justice Department’s failure to release all files on Jeffrey Epstein by Dec. 19 with limited redactions, as was required by law.

Among the oldest powers of Congress, holding an official in inherent contempt allows for Congress to force compliance either with fines or detention, and in a manner that entirely bypasses the DOJ.

“We only need the House for inherent contempt and we're building a bipartisan coalition,” Khanna revealed Sunday during an appearance on CBS News’ “Face The Nation.”

“It would fine Pam Bondi for every day that she's not releasing these documents. I've talked to the survivors [about] why this is such a slap in the face; one of the survivors said they released her name accidentally, but they still have not released the FBI file about the people who abused her at her request!”

While the DOJ released thousands of files on Epstein Friday, it failed to produce all files on the disgraced financier, which critics say was a blatant violation of the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The agency also made redactions to the files it did release that critics say were unlawful.

Now, Khanna says that the only recourse is to hold Bondi directly responsible for her agency’s failure to adhere to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, something he believed would amass bipartisan support.

“The problem here is that there are 1,200 victims, there are rich and powerful people who either engaged in this abuse, covered it up, or were on this island, and what the American people want to know is who are these people,” Khanna said.

“And, instead of holding them accountable, Pam Bondi is breaking the law! I believe we're going to get bipartisan support in holding her accountable, and a committee of Congress should determine whether these redactions are justified or not.”

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