Attorney General Pam Bondi declined to attend a speaking event at an anti-human trafficking summit hours after a bombshell report revealed she allegedly gave President Donald Trump a heads up that his name is in the files on Jeffrey Epstein.
Bondi was slated to speak at CPAC’s Summit Against Human Trafficking on Wednesday, when Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti delivered a statement on her behalf, citing a medical reason as to why she would not be in attendance, Fox News reported.
“Unfortunately, I am recovering from a recently torn cornea, which is preventing me from being with you,” she said in her statement. “I truly wish I was able to join you and support all of the work being done on this critical issue.”
The attorney general’s cancellation came hours after the Wall Street Journal published a report alleging that Bondi told Trump that his name was in the files, as well as several other prominent figures.
Though his name allegedly appearing in the files is not an implication that he committed a crime, the report comes as the Trump administration faces an intense effort to release the files. The Department of Justice and FBI were met with backlash earlier this month after releasing a memo declaring that Epstein killed himself and that there was no client list.
Since the report regarding Bondi and Trump, the attorney general and FBI Director Kash Patel have been targeted in demands from Democrats to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee for more transparency on the files.
“We need to bring Bondi and Patel into the Judiciary Committee to testify about this. Now,” California Sen. Adam Schiff said in a video posted on X.
Meanwhile, White House communications director Steven Cheung called the Journal’s report “another fake news story, just like the previous story,” referring to a previous report by the outlet alleging that Trump included a drawing of a naked woman in a birthday note to Epstein. Trump has denied these claims and filed a lawsuit against the publication.
Epstein was found dead in his cell in August 2019 after being arrested on federal charges of sex trafficking the month prior. He previously pleaded guilty in 2008 to solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of a minor for prostitution, and was registered as a sex offender.
Trump and Epstein were friends prior to Epstein’s first arrest. The two previously stated that they had a falling out, and Trump has since repeatedly bashed Epstein in various statements.
Originally published on Latin Times
