logo
Pam Bondi Faces Pressure From Conservatives In Epstein Files Fallout

Pam Bondi Faces Pressure From Conservatives In Epstein Files Fallout

Newsweek3 days ago
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Conservatives have taken to social media to back FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino in an apparent falling out between the FBI and Department of Justice following Attorney General Pam Bondi's defense of a memo regarding the alleged Epstein Files.
Bondi has taken fire for how she has handled both the lead up to, the announcement of, and the aftermath from the Epstein memo.
NewsNation earlier this week reported that Bongino and FBI Director Kash Patel wanted to unseal evidence months ago and release "every single piece of evidence they could, while protecting victims." Bongino has denied the allegation, but then on Friday CNN reported that Bongino was considering quitting his post over the dispute.
Far-right political activist Laura Loomer led the outcry on Friday over Bongino's possible departure - with some reports indicating it was contingent on whether Bondi quit as attorney general.
Loomer wrote on X that Bongino could leave unless Bondi left, and that "the MAGA base would like to see Trump FIRE Blondi. She is a massive liability to this otherwise great administration."
Conservative commentator Glenn Beck came to Bongino's defense as well, appearing in a video that has spread across X in which he argues that "America can't lose Dan Bongino."
"He has SO MUCH CREDIBILITY. Everybody knows him, loves him," Beck said in the video. "Pam Bondi has created so much DOUBT and CHAOS in this whole thing...either it's a MASSIVE COVER-UP or she's just FOULED IT UP...PLEASE, let's NOT LOSE DAN BONGINO...FIRE PAM BONDI and KEEP DAN BONGINO, please!"
Beck and Bongino both previously worked at Fox News, although their tenures did not overlap as Beck's show ran from 2009 to 2011, while Bongino joined the company in 2019.
Megyn Kelly, another Fox News alum, also backed Bongino, revealing on X: "Can confirm it's Bongino or Bondi - and the pick is obvious. Bondi must go."
George Santos, who was removed from office amid allegations of wire fraud and aggravated identify theft, wrote on X: "Fire Bondi! Keep Dan and Kash!"
This is a breaking news story. Updates will follow.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Fox News Trump Interview Resurfaces With Edited Answer on Epstein Files: ‘Kamala Should Sue'
Fox News Trump Interview Resurfaces With Edited Answer on Epstein Files: ‘Kamala Should Sue'

Yahoo

time16 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Fox News Trump Interview Resurfaces With Edited Answer on Epstein Files: ‘Kamala Should Sue'

A resurfaced clip from a Fox News interview with President Trump in 2024 has social media users calling for former Vice President Kamala Harris to follow Trump's lead and sue over election interference. The Trump administration has come under heavy fire over the last week, following the Justice Department's announcement that it does not have a 'client list' in its Jeffrey Epstein files. The announcement contradicted comments made by Trump attorney general Pam Bondi, who told Fox News in February that she had the long-rumored Epstein list sitting on her desk. MAGA supporters have called out Trump for failing to follow through on a campaign promise to release the files. More from TheWrap Fox News Trump Interview Resurfaces With Edited Answer on Epstein Files: 'Kamala Should Sue' 'Morning Joe' Says Trump's 1,000-Word Truth Social Plea to Stop Talking About Epstein Backfired: 'There's Real Anger Here' | Video Melissa Gilbert and Ellen DeGeneres Support Rosie O'Donnell After Trump Threat: 'Good For You, Rosie' JD Vance Met With Protestors, Boos and Some Cheers During Disneyland Vacation | Video Now, a clip from a Fox News interview with Trump last year has resurfaced. In the edited version, shared by both Fox News and Trump's supporters online, Trump is asked whether he would declassify the Epstein files and succinctly replies, 'Yeah, yeah, I would.' However, in the unedited version, which is going viral on social media, Trump says, 'Yeah, yeah, I would. I guess I would. I think that less so, because you don't know — you don't want to affect people's lives if it's phony stuff in there, because it's a lot of phony stuff with that whole world. But I think I would.' You can check out the clip yourself in the video below. The resurfaced, unedited version has sparked cries hypocrisy, as Trump successfully sued CBS for airing an edited version of an interview with his 2024 presidential opponent. Last year, CBS shared a version of an interview with Harris that edited down one of the Vice President's rambling answers into a succinct, confident response to the question. Trump sued CBS for election interference, which led to an early July settlement with CBS News parent company Paramount for $16 million. Now, the unedited version of Fox News' Trump interview has social media users online proclaiming, 'Kamala should sue.' Semafor political reporter David Weigel reshared the clip and wrote on X, 'As edits for broadcast go, this clearly did more good for Trump than the '60 Minutes' cut did for Harris.' The clip comes as Trump continues to receive massive pushback over his administration's handling of the Epstein files. On Monday, 'Morning Joe' co-host Jonathan Lemire told viewers, 'This is a rare moment, a very rare moment, where there is a real fracture in the president's base.' The post Fox News Trump Interview Resurfaces With Edited Answer on Epstein Files: 'Kamala Should Sue' appeared first on TheWrap.

Trump Gives Dems a Meatball Down the Middle
Trump Gives Dems a Meatball Down the Middle

Newsweek

time20 minutes ago

  • Newsweek

Trump Gives Dems a Meatball Down the Middle

Opinion | Tap here to get this newsletter delivered to your inbox. The Insider's Track Good morning, The White House has really stepped in it with this Jeff Epstein mess, huh? I don't want to re-litigate the whole saga as we spoke about it at length last week, but since then this fracture within his base has only deepened and President Trump is looking increasingly vulnerable. To recap, on Friday a new feud erupted at the DOJ when Dan Bongino, the deputy director of the FBI, apparently threw a fit and didn't go to work, with his camp leaking items to the media about how the whole mess was the fault of AG Pam Bondi, and Bongino was considering resigning from the FBI unless Trump fired Bondi. Influential voices on the right like Megyn Kelly then came to Bongino's defense, saying Bondi needed to go—but of course failing to mention that Bongino and his boss, Kash Patel, both signed off on the release of the most recent Epstein memo as well as a CCTV video of Epstein's prison cell door that was released with a minute of material missing. Nothing says "this should quell the conspiracy theorists" like releasing security footage that's been manipulated! (Aside: This is all so predictable when you hire completely unqualified people for important jobs. They immediately fold under pressure. You think something like this could ever have happened under Obama? Or Clinton? No, because they didn't hire their top deputies off of cable news). Trump, seeing the political danger here, started the weekend off by playing the hits, starting with a random threat to take away Rosie O'Donnell's citizenship. Amazing. Hey, you! You're a dumb guy, right? Easily distracted? Look over here! Remember Rosie, from the 90s? Can we talk about her please instead of this messy Epstein thing? When that obviously didn't work, POTUS followed it up by going back to the well with an epic screed about how, actually, it was the Democrats who "created the Epstein files"—specifically, Hillary, Obama and Biden, who conveniently make up the Big 3 of Trump's political enemies. The thing about playing the hits is there's a very fine line between pleasing the crowd and just looking desperate. And Trump is not pleasing his crowd. The Dems, meanwhile, have an interesting decision to make here. Do you double down on Epstein, trying to tie Trump to this mess of his own making at every possible opportunity? The salient aspect of this, the reason why it has staying power over any number of other Trump-related scandals, is because it cuts to the heart of the entire Trump mythos: that this person was handpicked by God to pull back the curtain on all the nefarious operations of the rich and powerful that we were promised are actually to blame for all our problems. What brings out the schadenfreude we're seeing is that Trump and his folks were more than happy to help manifest that mythology when he was out of power. But now they're the dog that caught the car. There are some Democrats who are trying to keep this story in the news, like Rep. Marc Vesay of Texas who will introduce legislation today that calls for the release of the entire Epstein dossier. Ro Khanna, who's eyeing 2028, is also trying to force a vote. The political risks of this strategy are twofold, I think: 1) Right now, Trump's base is tearing itself apart over this. Why get in the middle of that? Once the Dems unite against Trump, the forces of negative polarization will go to work and MAGA will re-coalesce in Trump's corner, the way the T-1000 does after the Terminator blows it to bits. 2) Why focus on Epstein, who did cavort with plenty of high-profile Dems (including, inconveniently for them, the Clintons), when there is a buffet of other scandals or outrages to focus on, such as the growing national backlash to the ICE raids? Here's my thought bubble if I were a Dem strategist. This is a meatball right down the middle: an opportunity to mercilessly attack Trump as just another craven politician who, once in office, will always choose his rich and powerful friends over his base. It's a potent line of attack. If we can just keep everyone in line and focused on whatever Trump is trying to keep hidden with Epstein, we've got a great opportunity to rally our own ba--- wait, what's that? Joe Biden? The former president has apparently chosen this exact moment to give a rare interview from retirement, granting a sitdown with the NYT to discuss at length how he used an autopen to sign all his clemency decisions. Brilliant timing as always, Joe. Trump is facing the first real test of his legitimacy from his own base, so let's bring the convo back to you and your incompetent administration! I love politics! The Rundown The European Union has readied a set of retaliatory tariffs totaling 21 billion euros on U.S. goods, officials warned on Monday. Italy's Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani said that the EU remains open to negotiations and is intent on avoiding a trade war with the U.S, but will respond with these substantial tariffs if a deal with the U.S. fails to materialize. The threat comes after President Donald Trump announced a new 30 percent tariff on Mexican and EU imports, set to take effect on August 1. Read more. Also happening: Russia-Ukraine war: The U.S. will send additional Patriot air defense batteries to Ukraine, President Donald Trump, as he repeated his criticism of Vladimir Putin's aggression. Trump said that the U.S. would be reimbursed partially by NATO for the cost of the batteries which Kyiv has said are required to defend against Moscow's missile and drone attacks. Read more. How Trump's near-assassination was downplayed: A year after the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, some political commentators are arguing the incident was minimized by the media, while marveling at how quickly the near-murder of the former and future American president has faded from public consciousness. Read the story. This is a preview of The 1600—Tap here to get this newsletter delivered straight to your inbox.

AOC Accuses Rapist Trump Of Withholding Epstein Files
AOC Accuses Rapist Trump Of Withholding Epstein Files

Buzz Feed

time21 minutes ago

  • Buzz Feed

AOC Accuses Rapist Trump Of Withholding Epstein Files

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D) torched President Donald Trump in an X post on Friday, calling him a 'rapist' over the administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. 'Wow who would have thought that electing a rapist would have complicated the release of the Epstein Files?' the congresswoman wrote. Wow who would have thought that electing a rapist would have complicated the release of the Epstein Files? — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 11, 2025 @AOC / Via Trump was found civilly liable in 2023 for sexual abuse and defamation of columnist E. Jean Carroll. He maintains his innocence. The Trump administration faces a slew of public backlash, including from its own fanbase, for going back on its promises of releasing the 'client list' that some believe Epstein, a convicted sex offender who died awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, used to blackmail powerful figures. Earlier this year, Attorney General Pam Bondi claimed the client list was on her desk. But her Department of Justice said in a memo with the FBI this week that there was no evidence Epstein had such a list. The memo also sparked outrage by stating that Epstein's death was definitively a suicide, contradicting theories popular with the MAGA base that foul play was involved. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino is reportedly threatening to quit after getting into an argument with Bondi over claims that he leaked stories to the media about his agency's dissatisfaction over the case being closed. The congresswoman's comments came over a month after billionaire and former Trump ally Elon Musk alleged the president was in Epstein's files in a fit of rage against his so-called 'Big Beautiful Bill.' Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, railed against Ocasio-Cortez's Friday remarks. 'AOC likes to play pretend like she's from the block, but in reality she's just a sad, miserable blockhead who is trying to overcompensate for her lack of self-confidence that has followed her for her entire life,' he said in a statement sent to The Daily Beast. 'Instead, she should get some serious help for her obvious and severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome that has rotted her pea-sized brain,' he added. Ocasio-Cortez previously called Trump a rapist at a rally in April, stating, 'When he talks about 'rapists and 'criminals,' he should look in the mirror.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store