Nadler appears to fall asleep during Bondi hearing

The 78-year-old congressman appeared to have his eyes shut during Attorney General Pam Bondi's and Rep. Jamie Raskin's opening statements

By Natalia Mittelstadt

Published: February 12, 2026 10:02am

New York Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler appeared to fall asleep during opening statements for Attorney General Pam Bondi's hearing before the House Judiciary Committee.

Nadler, 78, appeared to have his eyes shut during Bondi's opening statement on Wednesday, Fox News reported.

LindellTV's DC correspondent, Alison Steinberg, posted on X a video of Nadler at the hearing, writing, "BREAKING: Rep. @JerryNadler falls asleep during @AGPamBondi opening statement at today’s DOJ hearing. Gets awaken by staffer."

The House Judiciary GOP posted sleeping emojis on X with a video of Nadler closing his eyes during Maryland Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin's opening statements, adding lullaby music to the clip.

When it was Nadler's turn to question Bondi, he sparred with her over the Justice Department's efforts to comply with a law requiring the release of all unclassified material related to Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking cases.

Nadler was previously the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, and announced in September that he would retire from Congress after 17 terms in office.

His office did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News.