Fox News Panel Throws ‘Bombthrower’ Dan Bongino Under the Bus for Disappointing the Base on Epstein Files

On Friday night’s Special Report, guest host Aishah Hasnie presided over a surprisingly candid panel that hinted at a possible resolution to the growing tension inside Fox News: how to handle MAGA-aligned voices turning on institutions like the DOJ, while still shielding the Trump administration from direct blame.

How did a summer Friday panel of Fox News B-teamers resolve the tension? By blaming Dan Bongino.

Bongino, the former Secret Service agent and frequent Fox News contributor, drew scrutiny after reportedly issuing an ultimatum about his future within the Trump administration. Incensed over what he calls Attorney General Pam Bondi’s mishandling of the Epstein files, he told various reporters that he would leave his post as Deputy FBI Director unless Bondi resigns immediately.

The threat was the subject of discussion on Hasnie’s panel, where skepticism toward Bongino’s antics was unusually open. Fox News Radio analyst Josh Kraushaer was especially tough on the former host.

“Quite a bit of drama in the White House this week and it looks like not only is there a clash between the attorney general and the deputy director of the FBI, but only one of the two is going to remain if you listen to some of the people on all sides that are talking about this dustup,” he said.

“Look, Dan Bongino was learning the lesson that it’s a lot easier to be a commentator, a pundit, a bomb thrower on the outside… And then when he’s inside government, he disappointed a lot of those grassroots followers in saying there’s nothing to see here,” he added.

“And there’s a lot of skepticism still from a lot of the MAGA base… Pam Bondi is attorney general—she ranks above Bongino… she probably right now still has more standing in the White House than Bongino.”

RealClearPolitics’ Philip Wegman continued the not-so-subtle pile-on.

“If you take a step back, the MAGA base took [the Epstein conspiracy] seriously… Bongino took it seriously. Kash Patel took it seriously… My sense is that there’s serious frustration within the administration about the way the DOJ handled this.”

“Remember, there were all of the online influencers who had those binders outside of the White House… Then Bondi said that the FBI was allegedly withholding documents… I think the reason why this is, you know, stinging for the White House is that it is out of the norm… They promised transparency… but this is a bit different.”

The Bongino discussion segued into the broader issue of the Epstein Files—a topic that has stoked intense viewer frustration. Last week’s long-awaited document dump offered little of the explosive material many on the right had hoped for. The disappointment has left Fox News in an awkward spot: primetime hosts built up the Epstein file for months, but the network’s news division now struggles to explain the dud without admitting the hype fell flat.

Hasnie’s panel didn’t flinch from the awkward truth, but seemed eager to lay much of the blame for White House drama on the ex-Fox Newser, and  lead Epstein Truther turned FBI Deputy Director.

Fox News seems to be trying to get unstuck between a MAGA base demanding reckoning and its instinct to protect the Trump-era status quo.

Watch above via Fox News.