Bondi Standoff Stirs Mixed Reactions
The following article was first published on SHARYL ATTKISSON‘s free Substack
Public news has been scant in recent days about the Jeffrey Epstein files, documents tied to the financier’s and sex trafficker’s criminal past. Those documents could reveal details about his network and any high profile figures who patronized his entourage of minors.
Epstein was arrested in July 2019 for sex trafficking minors. He died in his prison cell a month later, officially a suicide, though speculation persists.
The files—court records, witness statements, and possibly videos from his private island—have been the subject of speculation for years, with many wondering why there have been no publicly announced revelations or prosecutions tied to them.
The Department of Justice initially released 200 pages of documents two weeks ago, mostly flight logs, distributing them to Internet influencers—a move some viewed as an “embarrassing misstep” due to the lack of significant content. That was followed by a public standoff between the FBI in Washington DC and the FBI field office in New York, when it was revealed that agents there had failed to turn over all of the documents they had been holding. Attorney General Pam Bondi accused the FBI New York office of non-cooperation and set a February 28 deadline for the documents to be handed over.
In one of the few statements on the results, Bondi told Fox News’ Sean Hannity on March 4 that the FBI New York office had produced a “truckload” of documents—thousands of pages.
“We did get a ton of documents,” she stated, noting they are “under review.”
More recently, White House Senior Advisor Alina Habba appeared on a podcast and answered lingering questions about the radio silence on the documents. She asked for “patience,” suggesting the FBI might be “saving the integrity” of potential prosecutions by staying quiet while the documents are scoured for information.
“The value of the American public to know immediately” is less critical than preserving the investigation, she said, also mentioning the need to protect minors’ names.
“Yes, they got the documents,” Habba confirmed. “Unfortunately, we have to wait a little bit to go through the documents, we are not machines, but I know that they are actively working on it.” Her comments point to ongoing work to find prosecutable evidence.
Meantime in the vaccuum, some insiders have found discouragement.
I spoke with six current and former FBI agents who believe the agency needs a major overhaul, citing longstanding incompetence, political influence, and corruption. They were highly optimistic when Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel took office in January, some describing their own initial enthusiasm as “almost manic.” However, that has waned, largely due to the Epstein files dispute.
They say that the New York office’s resistance—reportedly under orders from then-head James Dennehy to “Be the resistance, do not turn over the documents”—appears to have gone unpunished.
Dennehy retired on March 3, without being fired, as Bondi sought to enforce her document deadline.
Many suspect corrupt forces purged the most damaging Epstein material years ago, doubting it would remain accessible on public property for Trump’s team to uncover. But they view the whole Epstein document dispute as important because it was a symbolic battle that stood to define the new Dept. of Justice and FBI under Trump.
The dispute with the FBI’s New York office and lack of public accountability for those who defied a clear directive from Bondi “sends a message that [Trump’s new appointments] were defeated,” one insider said. “`This is like the Marines island-hopping in the Pacific during World War II [against Japan]. You can’t take the next one until you win the one in front of you. It’s a massive morale loss for people who wanted change.”
In the bigger picture, some agents question the “new blood” that has supposedly been put into place around FBI Director Patel, seeing some of them as establishment figures with “allegiance” to the FBI’s current state. One described the FBI New York office as still largely staffed by “Wray and Comey guys,” referring to former FBI Directors who were seen by some as opposing Trump and engaging in political weaponization of the FBI.
A signal of hope for some came when Donald Trump, Jr., who does not work inside the administration but obviously has connections, recently stated on his Rumble podcast that FBI agents who lost their jobs after blowing the whistle on alleged corruption and abuse in the agency will have the opportunity to get their jobs back. That hasn’t happened, yet.
Habba holds firm in her recent interview: “Transparency is 100% coming,” she says. One insider commented: “Right now, the momentum is with the status quo.”
Read Sharyl Attkisson’s five star bestseller: “Follow the $cience.”
Timeline: Epstein Files Standoff
- July 2019: Jeffrey Epstein arrested on federal charges of sex trafficking minors in New York.
- August 2019: Epstein found dead in his cell, officially ruled a suicide, sparking calls for release of his files—court records, witness statements, and potential videos.
- January 2025: Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel sworn in, igniting hope among agents for an FBI overhaul.
- Late February 2025: Bondi demands full Epstein files after the FBI’s New York field office withholds them; Department of Justice releases 200 pages (flight logs, etc.) to Internet influencers, widely seen as a flop with no significant revelations.
- February 28, 2025: Bondi’s deadline for the FBI to turn over the withheld documents.
- March 3, 2025: James Dennehy, head of FBI New York field office, retires amid claims he directed his team to resist Bondi’s demand with “Be the resistance, do not turn over the documents.”
- March 4, 2025: Bondi tells Fox News’ Sean Hannity a “truckload” of documents—thousands of pages—has been turned over by the FBI New York office as a result of her deadline push.
- Early March 2025: White House Senior Advisor Alina Habba appears on a podcast, saying “we did get a ton of documents” now “under review,” urging patience for potential prosecutions.”
Didn’t Kash Patel at one point claim he had seen the files? Pam Bondi said she had the files on her desk… 200+ victims. Bongino said an insider in the secret service asked to be reassigned because he was so disgusted by what he saw going on an aircraft going to Little St. James Island while on a detail protecting Clinton. Epstein was sent to prison… and ‘died’. Would they send an innocent man to prison if there were no evidence? Would all these people be lying? There is either nothing to see here or there is something here. If there is a “there” there, I am sure any evidence has long since been destroyed. The compromised will always protect themselves at any cost, even to the point of sacrificing The Republic itself. The Biden “Auto Pen” controversy highlights the extent of the undermining of The Constitution that is now so routine in D.C. We’re 37 trillion in debt. As if we can borrow our way out of debt. As a nation, we seemed to have turned our back on our Creator and the principles that guided our founding, and our Creator has since withdrawn His protection. In a sense, it reminds me of the story of Adam and Eve: Our Arrogance in the belief that we are so smart that we can decide for ourselves what ‘good’ is and what ‘evil’ is. Now we ‘disfigure’ our ‘weanlings’ in our arrogance. The only way back to the “Shining City on the Hill” is to eliminate, or shrink to the greatest degree possible, the unelected bureaucracy that runs our government and return some accountability to those we send there to represent us.
While I want the list of John’s and Jonette’s released, I prefer to see their names in the arrest columns of my local paper. Their details can some out during their trials.
I am interested in ONE influential person whose actions for the past 15 years indicate blackmail. I do not care about the Hollywood greats, until later, I want all who are or were in the US Government.
In the end, I want all the info made available, preferably at least 2 copies in books and safe from hacks on info posted online.
However, their may be other issues causing the problems. How many of the John’s and Jonette’s are in the media and will not want their crimes and perversions made public.
Both AG nominee Bondi and FBI nominee Patel overhyped the release of information but once confirmed neither made good on the rhetoric. Was it personal hubris or did they actually believe there would be no opposition to the release of Epstein files, or the JFK, RFK, MLK assassinations? Their credibility has been degraded and that is just a minor problem as the real tragedy here are the victims of the Epstein abusers who are still waiting justice!
As a longtime Trump supporter I have to say that the release of any and ALL of these files — especially the Epstein files — has been totally botched. They should have NEVER promised release until they were READY and/or INTENDING to release ALL of the files.
Now, this vague NONSENSE about not having released the files AND not being able (or willing) to specify WHEN the files will be released (if ever) is compounding inaction with incompetence and/or contempt for the public. It’s nothing less than a giant middle finger to those who’ve been waiting YEARS for release of these records.
Because of the way this has been repeatedly mishandled, many people will certainly never believe that all of the files have been released, and suspicion and mistrust will be perpetuated forever.
Bondi and Patel did not over-hype anything. The media and blog world were salivating for their own prurient voyeur interests. Agree, rather see them arrested and any info come out in a proper trial or kept confidential in a settlement, than keep dragging out this tabloid exploitation which has become very uncomfortable for me to keep hearing when there are so many really important issues this country needs to face .
Maybe this is because I am in the minority, but I do not think any of these young ladies were “victimized” either, other than in the technical statutory sense.. They knew the risks and more importantly the rewards they obtained engaging in this entire enterprise.
This is STILL a fraudulent comment section that engages is the same censorship as most or ALL of the other “news” sites, and for NO reason.