Attorney General Pam Bondi got into an intense verbal battle with Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Democrat, during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, following a question he asked her concerning an alleged photograph of President Donald Trump with young, scantily clad girls supposedly connected to the sick and twisted web of sexual abuse and underage prostitution perpetrated by deceased billionaire Jeffrey Epstein.
“There’s been public reporting that Jeffrey Epstein showed people photos of President Trump with half naked young women,” Whitehouse, a former federal prosecutor, asked Bondi during the hearing. “Do you know if the FBI found those photographs in their search of Jeffrey Epstein’s safe or premises or otherwise?” The question clearly irritated Bondi, who dropped the hammer on Whitehouse, leaving him openly humiliated.
“You sit here and make salacious remarks, once again, trying to slander President Trump, left and right, when you’re the one who was taking money from one of Epstein’s closest confidants I believe,” Bondi fired back at Whitehouse. “I could be wrong. Correct me. Reid Hoffman.” Whitehouse’s face flushed red immediately and he became visibly agitated by the attorney general’s comments.
Reid Hoffman is a big-time political donor for the Democratic Party who many within the GOP have stated is deeply connected to Epstein. Whitehouse later released a statement claiming that no one by that name had ever donated money to any of his political campaigns, according to a report published by The Providence Journal.
Democrats later accused Bondi of utilizing personal attacks as a means of stonewalling and avoiding questions concerning Epstein and President Trump’s relationship with the convicted pedophile. The report reveals that a photographer at the event captured an image of a manila folder that had a detailed attack plan against many of the individuals participating in the hearing, including Whitehouse.
The image reportedly showed an X post from July 2024 from Whitehouse that said, “no government official should be above the law,” before going on to demand an investigation be launched into Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Beneath his name was a list of bullet points that included the searing line, “You rail against dark money but you work with dark money groups” and “You are a total hypocrite.”
Conservative commentators have noted that the folder with retorts is simply preparation for battle and isn’t nearly the “gotcha” that Democrats are making it out to be. The folder also included some notes that contained points she used in her response to the Epstein question. While the GOP praised Bondi for how she handled the hearing, Democrats lobbed accusations at her of launching probes into Trump’s political enemies and trying to cover-up for his allies who are facing allegations of wrongdoing.
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Whitehouse wasn’t the only one on the receiving end of Bondi’s wrath. During the hearing, the attorney general referred to Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) as a “failed lawyer” and a “liar.” She then accused 77-year-old Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono of working with radical left-wing antifa protesters. When Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) questioned whether Bondi had politicized the Justice Department, Bondi wasted no time taking him down.
“I am not going to be lectured,” Bondi went on to say, talking over the senator, “about integrity by someone who lied about being in the military just to be elected a senator.” Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, also a Democrat, said, “I’ve never seen anything quite like that. These are oversight hearings. Some of the questions are pointed and tough, but her reaction was completely out of line, and her refusal to answer the most basic questions about the issues before the department really left a lot of us feeling that she’s not doing the job she was appointed to.”
WHITEHOUSE: “Jeffrey Epstein showed people photos of President Trump with half-naked young women”
BONDI: “You sit here and … slander President Trump left and right, when you're the one who was taking money from one of Epstein's closest confidants”pic.twitter.com/cd1E0dPiL9
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) October 7, 2025
Featured Image: screenshot from embedded video