The Epstein Saga Continues

Donald J Trump and his then Slovenian girlfriend Melania Knauss partying at Mar-A-Lago with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell both of whom were later convicted of sex trafficking girls and young women. (Getty Images)

The House of Representatives is back from their nearly eight week paid vacation and were in session last week. Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ) was finally sworn in after Speaker “Little Mikey” Johnson declined to do so for more than seven weeks. It is widely discerned that he delayed her ascent to office to prevent her signature on a discharge petition that will bring a bill to the House floor for a vote on releasing the “Epstein Files.” The files in question cover the investigation and prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex trafficker that died in a New York prison deemed a suicide.

In a separate, but related development, the Epstein Estate turned over roughly 20,000 pages of documents and emails to the House Oversight Committee that released them last week. As a result, Trump is freaking out. He is also mentioned more than any other person in those files.

Nothing in the information released so far implicates Trump in doing anything illegal. Despite speculation and some embarrassing emails, no one else has yet to be implicated in any wrong doing or direct involvement in Epstein’s sex ring. Yet. Which is why there is such a clamor for more from the estate, but especially from the Department of Justice (DOJ) which is believed to have incriminating information. But on who? Or for how many rich and powerful individuals? The common perception is that there was long-standing and wide-ranging knowledge of Epstein’s sex ring among the rich and powerful but that they all worked to protect each other. That, it is believed, is why no information is yet forthcoming. In recent polls eighty one percent of Americans want the DOJ files released. Let the chips fall where they may. For his part, Trump calls the entire Epstein case a “Democrat hoax.” That he would say that only further punishes the estimated hundreds of women and girls that were abused for many years. It implies that the survivors are all liars or in cahoots with the Democrats. Trump is totally disrespectful towards them and further abuses them by claiming that it is a hoax. However, why would he tell Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Democrats mentioned in the documents if it is a hoax? Of course, logic is never Trump’s strongest trait.

Trump is freaking out and according to press reports is doing everything in his power to suppress the files and to make the whole thing go away. So far, no luck. Although only four Republicans joined all Democrats that signed the discharge petition, it is expected that as many as one hundred of them will vote in favor of the bill to release the files. The vote will be viewed in simple terms — do Republican Representatives support bringing pedophiles to justice or do they support pedophilia?

Trump finally realized last night that the bill was going to pass. Consequently, he announced on social media that Republicans should vote for the bill. Since many were going to do so anyway, it is a little like a military officer saying “there go my soldiers — I am their leader — therefore I must follow them.” No one has any misconceptions that Trump really wants the files released. We can openly speculate as to how they will continue to be suppressed even if the bill passes both the House and the Senate. Trump could veto it. DOJ could claim that since there is an ongoing investigation (see above) no information can be released. They could release only select portions that are favorable to Trump or damning to people he dislikes. The possibilities are endless. Passing the bill in the House of Representatives is an important first step. But only a first step.

What about Maxwell? She was sentenced to twenty years in prison. Trump’s personal attorney, now the Deputy Attorney General, Todd Blanche visited her to ask questions about Trump’s involvement with Epstein. A known liar (she was charged with perjury) who desperately wants to get a pardon or commutation to get out of prison, she was, after Blanche’s visit, transferred to a minimum security prison in Texas (commonly referred to as Club Fed — a play on the resort chain Club Med). Such a transfer is totally unheard of for a sexual predator. It is now reported that she gets custom meals delivered to her prison cell, a puppy, late-night private workouts, special accommodations to meet privately with friends and family and other perks not available to the other inmates. Reportedly, inmates or staff that complain about the situation are transferred or fired. It sure seems that somebody (could that be someone in the White House?) sure does not want Maxwell to get mad and tell the truth. When asked numerous times if he would pardon or commute Maxwell’s sentence, Trump dissembles and tries to change the subject. He never says that he will not pardon a convicted pedophile. Of course, he has pardoned a rogues gallery of hardened criminals already, so what’s one more pedophile if it keeps her quiet?

Trump denies, denies, denies. And, again, to date there is nothing that ties him to any illegal acts. However, whatever is in the files must really be bad given the full court press he is instrumenting to keep them secret. The available information to date suggests that he at least knew what was going on with Epstein, Maxwell and the underage girls.

“I’ve known Jeff [Epstein] for 15 years. Terrific guy, He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.” Donald J Trump in 2002

So let’s take a look at what we do know.

• The Access Hollywood tapes. In 2016 a video tape of Trump bragging about his approach to women included a description of his attempt to seduce a married woman. He then bragged that he might start kissing a woman that he and his interviewer were about to meet saying, “I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. … Grab ’em by the p***y. You can do anything.”
• In 2018 a story broke about Trump’s alleged one night stand with an adult film star named Stormy Daniels in 2006 while his wife was recovering from the birth of their son. It included a 2016 conspiracy to cover up the incident to protect his presidential campaign and resulted in a $130,000 payment to Ms. Daniels. Trump was indicted and later convicted of 34 felony counts related to the conspiracy and his illegal business activities.
• In 2023 Trump was found guilty at trial of sexual abuse of E. Jean Carroll, a journalist and author and was ordered to pay her five million dollars. In a separate case in 2024 Trump was ordered to pay Ms. Carroll 88.3 million dollars in a defamation law suit.
• While still married to his first wife Ivana, he took his wife on a ski trip and had his then girlfriend Marla Maples stay in the same hotel at the same time. Ivana and Trump later divorced. Trump married Ms. Maples and soon divorced. He is now on his third wife.
• Trump owned the Miss Universe Pageant organization for nearly two decades until he sold it in 2015. The franchise included the Miss Teen USA and Miss USA pageants. Multiple contestants related how he would enter the dressing areas where the girls and young women were in various stages of being undressed. But don’t take their word for it, here is Trump explaining his activities in his own words on the Howard Stern Show, “Well, I’ll tell you that the funniest is that before a show, I’ll go backstage and everyone’s getting dressed, and everything else, and you know, no men are anywhere and I’m allowed to go in because I’m the owner of the pageant and therefore I’m inspecting it. You know, I’m inspecting because I want to make sure that everything is good. You know. The dresses. ‘Is everyone okay?’ You know they’re standing there with no clothes. ‘Is everybody okay?’ And you see these incredible looking women, and so, I sort of get away with things like that.”

The Guardian has documented nineteen credible accusations in addition to those above, that Trump forced himself on young women in various locations from the 1980s to 2013.

Need I go on? Whether he joined or not, with such a track record is it totally inconceivable that Trump knew nothing about anything having to do with Epstein’s pedophile ring?

It is going to get worse for him and for us before it gets better. He will try every gambit that he can to change the subject or to obscure his involvement by creating a barrage of other major news developments. To me, the most likely will be military activity in South America, primarily against Venezuela.

Think about that. It is straight from the Autocrat’s Playbook. If you find yourself in trouble domestically, create a military distraction to try and rally the public and to give the autocrat “emergency” powers to suppress press reports and to use extraordinary powers to prosecute the war. Meanwhile, our Sailors, Marines and Airmen are being put in harm’s way for a manufactured crisis involving fantasy narco-terrorists “attacking” the U.S. Nonsense. But dangerous nonsense. Just the word “narco-terrorists” is made up to suit some public relations effort to justify the ongoing extra-judicial killing of people in boats in international waters. As I have previously explained, it is a totally illegal operation. In fact, press reports indicate that at least the U.K. and the Netherlands, who both have interests in the area, have stopped sharing intelligence with the U.S. because they do not want to be a party to murder. Presently, an aircraft carrier strike group is in the Caribbean Sea. The carrier and escorts are strategic assets. Having them there weakens our abilities in other places around the world where there are, you know, real crises such as the Middle East or western Pacific. From my experience, there is also a tendency among civilian leaders in government that in such a situation they think “use it or lose it.” In other words, they cannot keep the strike group there indefinitely so it is time to attack. So much for Trump’s peace agenda.

I am still waiting for Congress to re-assert their power. Until they do, as Bette Davis said in the 1950 movie All About Eve, “Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy night.”