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Pam Bondi’s Approval Rating Plummets Amid Epstein Controversy—Poll
Public approval of Attorney General Pam Bondi has dropped off amid the Jeffrey Epstein controversy, according to a new Atlas Intelpoll that shows fewer than 30 percent of Americans now view her favorably.
Newsweek has filled out a contact request form on the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) website for comment on Saturday.
Why It Matters
Over the past few weeks, lawmakers, attorneys, and concerned voters, have pushed the Trump administration to release information related to the Epstein investigation, with many saying it is essential to restore public trust.
Epstein, a convicted sex offender, died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting further sex trafficking charges. The disgraced financier had well-documented connections to powerful figures, and his suicide has long prompted numerous conspiracy theories, particularly about a “client list” and the way in which he died.
Frustrated “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) supporters, as well as Democrats, have pointed to President Donald Trump’s past promise to make the materials public, as well as Bondi’s claim earlier this year that the list was on her desk.
What To Know
An Atlas Intel poll of 1,935 Americans conducted amid the heat of the Epstein controversy, between July 13 and 18, found that Bondi’s approval rating has dropped significantly since she was confirmed in February.
Previous polling by Atlas Intelshowed Bondi with a 49 percent approval rating during her first month in office, surpassing the 43 percent of respondents who viewed her unfavorably.
Over the past few months her disapproval rating has grown, reaching its peak 61 percent in the most recent poll. The new poll, which asked participants if they had a positive or negative view of Bondi, found 29 percent have a positive image of her. About 36 percent of the participants identify as Republican, 37 percent as independent, and 27 percent as Democrat.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
The poll follows intense scrutiny of the Trump administration’s handling of records in the Epstein case among MAGA supporters and Democrats. The backlash intensified after the DOJ and FBI released a joint two-page memo in July confirming that Epstein died by suicide and that the government does not possess an “incriminating” list of his clients.
The scrutiny then further intensified following a Thursday report from the Wall Street Journal citing an alleged 50th birthday letter from Trump to Epstein that included an outline of a naked woman, sketched in marker, and Trump’s signature.
“Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret,” the letter said, according to the report, which described the letter as “bawdy.”
Trump has since sued the newspaper, seeking at least $10 billion in damages and accusing them of “malicious” effort to “malign” him with a story based on a “nonexistent” letter.
A Quinnipiac University poll released on July 16 found that 63 percent of voters disapprove of the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein files. Only 17 percent said they approved of the administration’s handling.
The poll found that 32 percent of respondents approved of Bondi’s job performance, while 53 percent disapproved.
The poll of 1,290 registered voters was conducted between July 10 and 14. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.
Mounting public pressure has led the president to direct the DOJ to unseal grand jury testimony related to Epstein. However, critics say the transcripts alone fail to capture the broader trove of evidence that could illuminate Epstein’s ties to powerful individuals.
The criticism has also prompted the president to push back against some of his own supporters, referring to those opposing him as “troublemakers and radical left lunatics” in a Truth Social post on Saturday.
AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson
What People Are Saying
Quinnipiac University polling analyst Tim Malloy said in a recent Quinnipiac poll: “Epstein has been dead and gone for years but his tawdry legacy looms large in a country wanting to know more about who he knew and whether secrets have been buried with him.”
Andrei Roman, CEO of Atlas Intel, wrote in Saturday X, formerly Twitter, post: “This is perhaps the single most negative result for Trump in the Atlas poll on the fallout from the Epstein files.”
Conservative commentator Laura Loomer, who has called for Bondi’s resignation, said during a livestream last week: “Pam Bondi is a coward. She didn’t even sign her name to the memo. This isn’t transparency—it’s a cover-up.”
Representative Daniel Goldman, a New York Democrat and attorney, wrote in a Thursday X post: “Nice try @AGPamBondi. What about videos, photographs and other recordings? What about FBI 302’s (witness interviews)? What about texts and emails? That’s where the evidence about Trump and others will be. Grand jury testimony will only relate to Epstein and Maxwell.”
Conservative commentator Megyn Kelley wrote in a July 12 X post: “I’m sure it’s a relief for Pam Bondi to hear the president is still in her corner. Unfortunately, huge swaths of the party are not. She repeatedly misled on Epstein. Then didn’t have the courage to explain herself. Suddenly, she’s camera shy & no Qs allowed. Good luck!”
What Happens Next?
Bondi directed her top deputy, Todd Blanche, to submit the motion to unseal the Epstein transcripts on Friday. The release of information related to the grand jury testimony is expected to take weeks, possibly months, as there will likely be legal challenges in determining what can be safely disclosed without exposing victims or other sensitive details.
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