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Admin Defends Partial Epstein Release 12/22 06:17
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Sunday defended the Justice
Department's decision to release just a fraction of the Jeffrey Epstein files
by the congressionally mandated deadline as necessary to protect survivors of
sexual abuse by the disgraced financier.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Sunday
defended the Justice Department's decision to release just a fraction of the
Jeffrey Epstein files by the congressionally mandated deadline as necessary to
protect survivors of sexual abuse by the disgraced financier.
Blanche pledged that the Trump administration eventually would meet its
obligation required by law. But he stressed that the department was obligated
to act with caution as it goes about making public thousands of documents that
can include sensitive information.
Friday's partial release of the Epstein files has led to a new crush of
criticism from Democrats who have accused the Republican administration of
trying to hide information.
Blanche called that pushback disingenuous as President Donald Trump's
administration continues to struggle with calls for greater transparency,
including from members of his political base, about the government's
investigations into Epstein, who once counted Trump as well as several
political leaders and business titans among his peers.
"The reason why we are still reviewing documents and still continuing our
process is simply that to protect victims," Blanche told NBC's "Meet the
Press." "So the same individuals that are out there complaining about the lack
of documents that were produced on Friday are the same individuals who
apparently don't want us to protect victims."
Blanche's comments were the most extensive by the administration since the
file dump, which included photographs, interview transcripts, call logs, court
records and other documents. But some of the most consequential records
expected about Epstein were nowhere to be found, such as FBI interviews with
survivors and internal Justice Department memos examining charging decisions.
Those records could help explain how investigators viewed the case and why
Epstein was allowed in 2008 to plead guilty to a relatively minor state-level
prostitution charge.
Trump, who was friends with Epstein for years before the two had a
falling-out, tried for months to keep the records sealed. Though Trump has not
been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, he has argued there is
nothing to see in the files and that the public should focus on other issues.
Federal prosecutors in New York brought sex trafficking charges against
Epstein in 2019, but he killed himself in jail after his arrest.
Democrat see a cover-up, not an effort to protect victims
But Democratic lawmakers on Sunday hammered Trump and the Justice Department
for a partial release.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., argued that the Justice Department is obstructing
the implementation of the law mandating the release of the documents not
because it wants to protect the Epstein victims.
"It's all about covering up things that, for whatever reason, Donald Trump
doesn't want to go public, either about himself, other members of his family,
friends, Jeffrey Epstein, or just the social, business, cultural network that
he was involved in for at least a decade, if not longer," he said on CNN's
"State of the Union."
Blanche also defended the department's decision to remove several files
related to the case from its public webpage, including a photograph showing
Trump, less than a day after they were posted.
The missing files, which were available Friday but no longer accessible by
Saturday, included images of paintings depicting nude women, and one showed a
series of photographs along a credenza and in drawers. In that image, inside a
drawer among other photos, was a photograph of Trump, alongside Epstein,
Melania Trump and Epstein's longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell.
Blanche said the documents were removed because they also showed victims of
Epstein. Blanche said that Trump photo and the other documents will be reposted
once redactions are made to protect survivors.
"It has nothing to do with President Trump," Blanche said. "There are dozens
of photos of President Trump already released to the public seeing him with Mr.
Epstein."
The thousands of Epstein-related records posted publicly offer the most
detailed look yet at nearly two decades worth of government scrutiny of
Epstein's sexual abuse of young women and underage girls. Yet Friday's release,
replete with redactions, has not dulled the clamor for information given how
many records had yet to be released and because some of the materials had
already been made public.
Justice Department has just learned the names of more potential victims,
Blanche says
Blanche said that the department continues to review the trove of documents
and has learned the names of additional potential victims in recent days.
The deputy attorney general also defended the decision by the federal Bureau
of Prisons, which Blanche oversees, to transfer Maxwell to a less restrictive,
minimum-security federal prison earlier this year soon after he interviewed her
about Epstein. Blanche said that the transfer was made because of concerns
about her safety.
Maxwell, Epstein's onetime girlfriend, is serving a 20-year federal prison
sentence for her 2021 conviction for sex trafficking crimes.
"She was suffering numerous and numerous threats against her life," Blanche
said. "So the BOP is not only responsible for putting people in jail and making
sure they stay in jail, but also for their safety."
Meanwhile, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., have
indicated they could draft articles of impeachment against Attorney General Pam
Bondi for what they see as the gross failure of the department to comply with
the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
"It's not about the timeline, it's about the selective concealment," Khanna
said on CBS' "Face the Nation," adding that the redactions in the released
files are excessive. He said he believes there will be "bipartisan support in
holding her accountable, and a committee of Congress should determine whether
these redactions are justified or not."
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York said on ABC's "This
Week" that there needs "to be a full and complete explanation and then a full
and complete investigation as to why the document production has fallen short
of what the law clearly required," but he stopped short of backing impeachment.
Blanche dismissed the impeachment talk.
"Bring it on," Blanche said. "We are doing everything we're supposed to be
doing to comply with this statute."
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