Analysis: Friday’s spotty release signals move to bury Trump ties
Sam Levin
The Justice Department’s partial release of the Epstein files on Friday indicates how the agency used a variety of tactics to try to bury and obscure Donald Trump’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, he wrote. Sam Levin.
The release highlights how the Trump administration is trying to balance the demand to release the files — something largely encouraged by the MAGA rule — while also obfuscating through a slow stream of document dumps to prevent any embarrassment to Trump. Who were friends With Epstein for years before they fell out.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department will continue producing documents on a rolling basis in the coming weeks — a holiday period — a bet that Americans will simply ignore the story as it continues.
Read Sam’s full analysis here:
Main events
What are we hiding here? asks Virginia’s brother Geoffrey after releasing limited files
Virginia’s brother Geoffrey Skye Roberts He tells Reuters he has “mixed feelings” after the partial release of the Epstein files. “What are we hiding here?” he asks.
democratic Robert Garciathe ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, estimated that the trove of documents released yesterday included only about 10 percent From the materials in the department’s possession.
“Nothing that the Department of Justice does comes as a surprise,” adds Amanda Roberts, Giuffre’s sister-in-law. She claims she used the case as a “political game.”
“When rumors spread that the president might be named there, the story suddenly changed,” she says. After that, she adds, it was a “hoax” and there was “nothing to see.”
Trump was mentioned only sparingly in the files released yesterday, and has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.
Despite this, Skye Roberts told Reuters that his sister would have felt “a tremendous amount of joy for her surviving sisters” on Friday.
Democrats criticize partial release of Epstein files
Since the first batch of heavily redacted Epstein files were released yesterday, Democrats have lined up to criticize the Trump administration and the Justice Department, saying the partial release violates the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
In a post on X Last night, Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez “Now the cover-up is out in the open,” he said. “This is not over yet. Everyone involved will have to answer for this.” Pam Bondi, Cash Battlethe whole admin. Protecting a group of rapists and pedophiles because they have money, power and connections. “Bundy should resign tonight.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer He accused the Trump administration of violating the law: “Just publishing a mountain of blocked pages violates the spirit of transparency and the letter of the law… We need answers as to why.” In a post on X.
Co-author of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, Ro betrayed usposted a video on X arguing that the Justice Department’s version “does not comply” with the law.
“Our law requires them to explain the revisions. There is no single explanation,” Khanna said, adding that he would consider options such as impeachment, contempt or referral to the prosecution.
Analysis: Friday’s spotty release signals move to bury Trump ties
Sam Levin
The Justice Department’s partial release of the Epstein files on Friday indicates how the agency used a variety of tactics to try to bury and obscure Donald Trump’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, he wrote. Sam Levin.
The release highlights how the Trump administration is trying to balance the demand to release the files — something largely encouraged by the MAGA rule — while also obfuscating through a slow stream of document dumps to prevent any embarrassment to Trump. Who were friends With Epstein for years before they fell out.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department will continue producing documents on a rolling basis in the coming weeks — a holiday period — a bet that Americans will simply ignore the story as it continues.
Read Sam’s full analysis here:
Here are some of the photos published in the first batch of files released by the US Department of Justice.
A number of famous faces feature, including former US President Bill Clinton, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, billionaire Richard Branson, and musicians Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson.
Bill Clinton’s spokeswoman, Angel Urena, said the Epstein investigation was not about the former president.
“There are two types of people here,” he said. “The first group knew nothing and cut off Epstein before his crimes came to light. The second group continued their relationships after that. We are in the first group. No amount of stonewalling by the people in the second group will change that.”
See more photos at the link below:
Survivors of Epstein’s abuse condemn the Justice Department for partial release of files
Survivors of the late Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged sexual assault have expressed disappointment over a heavily redacted document dump that has only been partially released.
Epstein Survivor Liz Stein She told BBC Radio 4’s Today program that she believed the Ministry of Justice was “brazenly contravening the Epstein Files Transparency Act” – a law that requires all documents to be disclosed by Friday.
She says survivors are concerned about the potential for “the slow dissemination of incomplete information without any context.” The struggle for justice has spanned decades, spanning continents and political administrations, Stein says, adding: “We just want all the evidence of these crimes to be out there.”
While releasing the documents comes at a “significant cost” to victims, Steyn hopes it will be “the path to justice.”
Lisa Phillips She was in her 20s when she met the disgraced financier and said she suffered years of abuse from him and people associated with him.
She told CNN she believed the Justice Department was “protecting itself, not the victims,” after Trump officials released only partial, heavily redacted files.
She added: “I feel like they have a lot of information to start connecting the dots and for survivors to get justice. But as you can see, we keep stalling.”
Jennifer FreemanThe attorney representing Epstein’s survivor Maria Farmer In her lawsuit against the federal government, she told our colleague Victoria Bekembis that one newly released document was important: an FBI report from 1996, documenting Farmer’s efforts to report her abuse through… Epstein And Ghislaine Maxwell.
“Maria Farmer reported on the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in 1996,” Freeman said. “If the government had done its job, and properly investigated the Maria report, more than 1,000 victims could have been saved and 30 years of trauma avoided.”
Opening summary
Welcome. We resume our live coverage of the Department of Justice’s long-awaited release of federal investigative documents in Jeffrey Epsteinthe late sex offender who communicated with Donald Trump For more than 15 years.
The first cache of the “Epstein Files” was released on Friday evening after months of delays and stalling by the Trump administration. Deputy Public Prosecutor Todd Blanche He told Fox News that he expects the department to release several hundred thousand additional files in the coming weeks.
However, large portions of the files have been heavily redacted. The photos lack crucial context, including dates and locations. Moreover, the Ministry of Justice appears to have violated the law requiring their release everyone Epstein files by Friday’s deadline, according to the two congressmen who drafted the legislation. Ro betrayed usDemocrat from California, and Thomas MasseyRepublican from Kentucky.
Missing documents and “excessive redactions”:
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They betrayed us He said this afternoon’s “partial document dump does not comply” with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, he told CNN, adding: “The most important documents are missing.” These documents are a draft of a 60-count federal indictment outlining the charges against Epstein, and a detailed memorandum summarizing the evidence that the US Attorney ignored. Alex Acostawho instead chose to offer Epstein a very lenient plea deal.
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according to Fox News reportThe Justice Department redacted the names and identities of the victims and “the same redaction standards were applied to individual politicians and government officials.” Massey books On social media, Attorney General Pam Bondi could be convicted by a future Department of Justice of obstruction of justice if she violates a provision of the law by withholding the names of government officials. Massey noted that the law explicitly states that no documents may be “withheld, delayed, or redacted on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including that of any government official.” Blanche She later called Fox News to insist that the Justice Department “does not redact the names of any politicians.”
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Instead, the Justice Department said it may have “over-redacted” the Epstein files in order to “protect the victims.” Jay ClaytonThe US Attorney for the Southern District of New York said in court on Friday that he has blacked out the faces of almost every woman photographed with Jeffrey Epstein, citing cases determining who was a victim of child sexual exploitation. Clayton reportedly suggested that this approach may be “over-redacting,” but blamed that on the 30-day timeframe set by Congress for releasing the documents.
Who is in the Epstein files?
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The files that were viewable included photos of Epstein socializing with a range of high-profile figures, including artists such as Michael Jackson, Chris Tucker and diana ross, And the businessman Richard Branson. The photos also show a member of the former British royal family Andrew Mountbatten Windsor And his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
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Peter MandelsonHe, who was sacked from his job as UK ambassador to the US earlier this year, can be seen in a photo with Epstein being presented with a giant birthday cake.
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There were many pictures of Bill ClintonBut very little about President Trump in the portion of files released Friday. But one seemingly innocuous shot of Epstein’s bookcase included a reminder that he and Trump were once close. The photo showed Epstein’s copy of Trump’s 1997 book, Trump: The art of coming backwhich the New York Times Reported in July It included an inscription from Trump that read: “To Jeff – You are the greatest!”