US politicians threaten legal action against attorney general over Epstein files release
Anger over the
US Department of Justice’s slow release of Jeffrey Epstein
documents is growing, with politicians threatening to launch legal action against Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“The DOJ needs to quit protecting the rich, powerful, and politically connected,” Representative Thomas Massie, a maverick
conservative Republican from Kentucky, said in a posting on X.
Massie and liberal Democratic Representative Ro Khanna a said they were working together on an effort to dislodge documents surrounding investigations of Epstein.
The two lawmakers said in an interview on MS Now that if
necessary, they would seek contempt of Congress charges in the
House of Representatives for Bondi next month.
They said that if
their demands were not met following a “30-day grace period,”
they would work to have Congress seek fines of up to $5,000 per
day until the documents are dispatched.
The justice department failed to meet its deadline of last Friday for
complying with a “transparency” law requiring broad release of
remaining Epstein files.
On Monday, a group identifying itself as survivors of abuse
by Epstein complained that the public so far had received “a fraction of the files” and that those were “riddled
with abnormal and extreme redactions with no explanation.”
They
added that some victim identities were left unredacted.
The Justice Department has said it is working to clear more
documents for release to Congress.