What happens when a fired official skips a congressional interview?

A former top prosecutor won’t show up for a House committee talk about Jeffrey Epstein files. The Justice Department says she doesn’t have to because she no longer works for the government. The committee wanted her to explain why some records were heavily edited when they were released. They also wanted to know why names of victims appeared in the files, even though a new law said most details should be public. The fired prosecutor, Pam Bondi, got a formal request to answer questions. But after she lost her job, the government argued the request no longer counted. Officials asked the committee to cancel the interview. A House spokesperson said they’ll now talk to Bondi’s lawyer instead to figure out what happens next.Behind this dispute is a bigger investigation into Epstein’s connections with powerful people. The House committee has been digging into how the Justice Department handled Epstein’s case and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Last month, Bondi and another official gave a private update to the committee, but Democrats walked out. They wanted answers under oath, not just behind closed doors. Not everyone agrees on who’s responsible. A Democrat on the committee accused Bondi of trying to avoid answering tough questions after getting fired. But the Justice Department insists it’s still working with the committee, even if the subpoena to Bondi is no longer valid. The fight shows how politics can complicate investigations. Even when laws are passed to make records public, disputes over what gets shared can slow things down. And when officials change jobs or lose their positions, their legal duties change too.