Dan Bongino ‘Could Be Out Any Day’ as FBI Deputy Director: Report

(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

FBI Assistant Director Dan Bongino could be out of a job “any day,” according to reporting by journalist Rachel Bade.

Bade wrote on her Substack, “The Inner Circle,” that Bongino ran afoul of the Trump administration over his handling of the Epstein files, although it wasn’t clear whether Bongino might be fired or could just walk away.

According to Bade, Bongino left “senior staff complaining that he put his personal reputation with MAGA World ahead of the team’s best interests.”

Bongino had a “fiery confrontation” with Bondi over the release of a Department of Justice/FBI memo claiming that there was no Epstein client list and no evidence the deceased sexual predator was blackmailing “prominent individuals,” ABC News reported at the time.

Axios reported this summer that Bongino was so upset over clashing with Attorney General Pam Bondi over the files that he didn’t show up for work, leading some to question whether he had quit.

Bongino, a former Secret Service agent, made his name podcasting about the conspiracy theory that Epstein was murdered in prison — a claim that was shut down in the memo. Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.

“Since then, it’s been sour grapes where he’s concerned in the West Wing,” Bade wrote. “The expectation is that he’ll leave eventually; one person told me he’s told others he won’t be in the job much longer.”

Congress overwhelmingly passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act in November 2025 that was signed into law by President Donald Trump. That led to U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman ruling Wednesday to unseal secret grand jury transcripts related to Epstein. Two other judges ruled earlier this month to release similar material related to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, who was sentenced to 20 years on five federal sex trafficking charges.

Maxwell claimed that Trump was “not involved” in the sex-trafficking activities. Trump has maintained he did nothing wrong.