(NewsNation) — The Department of Justice has requested hundreds of additional lawyers to assist in reading millions of pages of documents related to the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, which a source told NewsNation has cost the department millions in taxpayer funds.
A source with knowledge of the situation told NewsNation that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has requested hundreds of lawyers over the week of Christmas to assist in reading those documents and redacting anything necessary, and the DOJ has found it difficult to accommodate this request.
Any government document that is being released for public consumption has to be reviewed in this process by the DOJ. The source added that the deadline set by lawmakers has cost them between $4 million to $5 million due to additional costs like overtime pay for attorneys.
The DOJ released about 300,000 documents and files earlier this month when the agency faced a Dec. 19 deadline to release all of the files linked to the investigation into the convicted sex offender. In a statement released by the DOJ at the time, officials said that the agency has more than 200 attorneys “working around the clock” reviewing each individual file.
Blanche posted on X on New Year’s Eve that “DOJ lawyers from Main Justice, FBI, SDFL, and SDNY are working around the clock through the holidays, including Christmas and New Years, to review documents in compliance with federal law.
“It truly is an all-hands-on-deck approach and we’re asking as many lawyers as possible to commit their time to review the documents that remain. Required redactions to protect victims take time but they will not stop these materials from being released. The Attorney General’s and this Administration’s goal is simple: transparency and protecting victims.”
Some of these documents also could be owned by multiple government agencies; for instance, if an email was sent between two agencies like the CIA and FBI, both agencies would have to go through the declassification process, which in turn is costly and time-consuming, the source explained.
Sources within the DOJ have told NewsNation this week that senior officials are worried about a possible impeachment in mid-January for United States Attorney General Pam Bondi over her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and files.
According to a DOJ official familiar with the situation, President Donald Trump is “pissed” at Bondi for her disorganized approach to the Epstein case, which is a stark contrast from how POTUS viewed his AG when she was first appointed. They said Trump is frustrated with her handling from “beginning to end, start to finish, including the uninformed ‘the list is on my desk’ Hannity appearance to being unable to comply with the release deadline.”
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said in December that he and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., are considering drafting articles of impeachment against United States Attorney General Pam Bondi for her handling of the Epstein files, and sources within the Department of Justice believe that could come later this month.
On December 21, Khanna announced on X, “@RepThomasMassie & I announce that we are bringing inherent contempt against Bondi. DOJ cowers & re-releases the 119-page document, now with ‘minimal redactions.’”
The DOJ did not respond to a request for comment at the time of this piece’s publication.