Massie partnered with Rep. Ro Khanna (D–Calif.) on theEpstein Files Transparency Act, which forced the Department of Justice (DOJ) to"to publish (in a searchable and downloadable format) all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in DOJ's possession that relate to the investigation and prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein."

But the "sloppiness" of the DOJ in redacting and releasing those files amounts to "criminal negligence" on behalf of Attorney General Pam Bondi, says Massie.

"It's criminal. She's broken the law," he adds.

Massie points to several documents posted on the DOJ'sEpstein Librarythat redact the names of alleged sexual predators while exposing the names of alleged victims as evidence that Bondi's DOJ has violated the law, which permits them to "withhold certain information such as the personal information of victims."

"They've been utterly incompetent. Incompetent to the point that it almost seems like you'd have to be doing this on purpose to be this incompetent," says Massie.

MassiegrilledBondi in a Congressional hearing today shortly afterReasonconducted this interview. During that exchange, Bondi accused Massie, currently serving his eighth Congressional term, of being a "failed politician" with "Trump Derangement Syndrome."

Massie toldReasonthat he hoped Bondi would explain to Congress why the DOJ would release a document entitled, "Victims' Names" with 31 of the 32 alleged victims' names unredacted.

The redactions are asymmetrical, protecting the accused while exposing the accusers, according to Massie. For example, in a document in which the FBI named Epstein financier Les Wexner as a possible coconspirator in a child sex trafficking case, Wexner's name was redacted until Massie and Khanna viewed the unredacted document, publicly named Wexner, andshamedthe DOJ into revealing his name.

The process of unveiling the Epstein files demonstrates how difficult achieving actual government transparency has become in an age of overclassification, a problem Massie's Kentucky colleague Sen. Rand Paul (R–Ky.)complainedofin 2023:

Executive branch officials from both political parties continue to arbitrarily overclassify government information to prevent oversight and withhold information from the public.

Source: Drudge Report