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Dan Bongino May Resign as FBI Deputy Director Before Trump’s Epstein Files Deadline

Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino is expected to announce his resignation amid fallout over the release of Epstein files tied to a Trump-signed law

By Tracey Ashlee
Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino is planning to resign from his post and has told colleagues he may make his departure public on December 19 — the deadline for releasing Jeffrey Epstein files under a law signed by Donald Trump. Bongino’s exit would mark a sharp turn for a leading Trump ally who once championed disclosure of the Epstein material. According to MS NOW, Bongino, a former Secret Service agent and conservative media figure, quietly informed senior FBI officials and some of his team that he intends to leave his role and will not be returning to headquarters. Apparently, personal items have been cleared from his office as part of preparations for his exit. Interestingly, the December 19 timing aligns with the deadline set by the Epstein Files Transparency Act. NBC News reports that the law, which was signed by Trump, requires unclassified Epstein-related materials to be released within 30 days of enactment. Bongino was appointed deputy director of the FBI by Trump in early 2025, a move that made him one of the few senior law-enforcement leaders with strong ties to the former president and the MAGA movement. Before joining the bureau, Bongino built a large audience as a pro-Trump radio host and podcaster, often urging full disclosure of Epstein’s records and questioning official accounts of Epstein’s death. “Listen, that Jeffrey Epstein story is a big deal,” Bongino told listeners in 2023, urging people not to let the matter fade. Once inside the FBI, Bongino’s position grew more complicated. After a long internal review by the Justice Department and FBI found no evidence of a secret “client list” of powerful figures linked to Epstein and confirmed he died by suicide in a federal lockup, Bongino publicly accepted the findings — a switch that frustrated many in his base. That review, and how the Epstein materials were handled, has been a source of internal tension inside the Trump administration. In July, Bongino and Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly clashed over the public release of the department’s conclusions about the files. NBC News at the time said the confrontation was tense and that Bongino was weighing whether to step down. At that point, Bongino took a day off work amid the dispute, and some insiders suggested he might not return. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche pushed back publicly, saying the FBI and Justice Department signed off jointly on the memo outlining the Epstein review’s conclusions. Bongino’s current plans, as reported by MS NOW, have him leaving the bureau early next year and not working at headquarters in December, even before his expected announcement. People familiar with his thinking said he has told associates he’ll formally declare his resignation on December 19. Bongino has unusual background for an FBI deputy, with no prior experience as an FBI agent. And his shift from media figure to senior law-enforcement official had many questioning his appointment. His departure would come just as the bureau and the Justice Department complete their work to comply with the Trump-signed transparency law, which set a firm deadline for disclosing unclassified records related to Epstein’s case.

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