If Pam Bondi's goal when testifying before Congress on Wednesday was to put to rest the controversy over her department's mishandling of the Epstein files, she failed badly.
But if the attorney general just wanted to impress Donald Trump, she probably succeeded.
In more than five hours of testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, Bondi defended the president, personally insulted lawmakers and literally kept her back turned on survivors of Epstein's abuse.
But here's the thing: The attorney general is not the president's personal consigliere, and the Department of Justice is not his personal law firm. Bondi works for the American people, and that role carries a fundamental obligation: to pursue justice.
In this case, that would mean finding out the full truth about what happened to the girls and young women who were trafficked on Epstein's island and the powerful men who participated in his depredations. This is a preview of Michael Steele's latest column. Read the full column here. For more thought-provoking insights from Michael Steele, Alicia Menendez and Symone Sanders Townsend, watch "The Weeknight" every Monday-Friday at 7 p.m. ET on MS NOW. |
