Judiciary Democrats Demand Chairman Jordan Hold Public Hearing with DoJ and FBI Officials on Their Handling of the “Epstein Files”

Washington, D.C. (July 15, 2025)—Today, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, led Committee Democrats in a letter to Chairman Jim Jordan urging him to investigate the Trump Administration’s recent handling of the “Epstein files” and requesting the Committee invite—and if necessary, subpoena—Attorney General Pam Bondi, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel, and Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino to testify publicly regarding the Administration’s handling of the Epstein matter. To date, Judiciary Republicans have not invited a single official from the Trump Administration to testify before the Judiciary Committee on any matter, including this one.

“The Trump DOJ and FBI’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein matter, and President Trump’s suddenly shifting positions, have not restored anyone’s trust in the government but have rather raised profound new questions about their own conduct while increasing public paranoia related to the investigation. Only a bipartisan public hearing at which administration officials answer direct questions from elected representatives before the eyes of the American people can restore public trust on the matter,” wrote the Members. 

The Administration’s handling of the Epstein matter and President Trump’s abrupt shift has only raised new questions about their own conduct while increasing public paranoia related to the investigation. In the absence of facts and evidence related to the Epstein matter, the public will turn to conspiracy theories. Indeed, President Trump and his team have suppressed the release of information in their possession and, in doing so, fed more conspiracy theories that have undermined public trust in law enforcement. 

“We must submit to public scrutiny President Trump and MAGA’s longstanding claims about the ‘Epstein files,’ new questions as to whether President Trump himself has something to hide, whether he is keeping damaging information secret to protect other individuals or to maintain future blackmail leverage over public and private actors or, perhaps the simplest explanation, whether President Trump and his administration magnified and disseminated groundless Epstein conspiracy theories for purposes of political gain which they are now desperately trying to disavow and dispel. Regardless of what the answers to these questions are, holding a public hearing at which these officials testify should go a long way toward restoring some public trust in the integrity of federal law enforcement,” concluded the Members. 

On July 7, 2025, the Trump Administration Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI released an unsigned statement concluding its investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein matter, stating that it had no evidence Epstein kept a client list, blackmailed prominent individuals, or was murdered. The Administration’s conclusion—that “no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted”—has sparked widespread criticism from President Trump’s own supporters. MAGA supporters were promised the public release of the “Epstein files” by the President and his top DOJ and FBI leadership, who have spent years advancing Epstein-related conspiracy theories for political gain. 

The July 7 statement is the latest example of the Trump Administration falling short of public expectations they’d raised by hyping conspiracy theories and promising robust disclosures regarding the Epstein matter. In February, the DOJ and FBI came under intense public criticismfor releasing a so-called “first phase” of the “Epstein files” to MAGA influencers—a binder largely consisting of recycled information already available to the public.

Since the statement’s release, President Trump himself has reversed course and is now publicly disparaging the significance of the “Epstein files.” As some of his most vocal supporters have begun to criticize his administration, President Trump has responded to reporters’ questions with “[a]re you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein?” and released statements on social media urging his supporters “not [to] waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about.”     

Last week, Ranking Member Raskin and Rep. Dan Goldman led Judiciary Democrats in a letter to Attorney General Bondi, urging her to stop protecting her boss and release to the public any information that the DOJ and FBI have withheld, including any evidence in the “Epstein files” mentioning or referencing Trump.

Click here to read the letter.