All Epstein; All the Time - “The Sunday Political Brunch” - July 27, 2025

All Epstein; All the Time - “The Sunday Political Brunch” - July 27, 2025

I wasn’t kidding in this column last week when I predicted the Jeffrey Epstein scandal would envelop Washington, DC and literally “suck all the oxygen out” of the nation’s capital. This comes as the Wall Street Journal was the first to report that Attorney General Pam Bondi told President Donald Trump in May that he was named in the Epstein files “multiple times.” However, some of Epstein's other pursuits were halted after Speaker of the House Mike Johnson shut down the chamber just days before the traditional August recess was to begin. So, the “gone fishin’” sign may be up, but so is the sign saying, “to be continued!” Let’s “brunch” on all of that this week.

 

“No More Documents, at Least for Now” – The investigation of accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was dealt a severe blow this week, especially for his detractors. A federal judge in Florida has declined to release secret grand jury testimony that has remained under seal. At the White House’s request, the U.S. Department of Justice asked that the records be made public, citing “extensive public interest.” But Judge Robin Rosenberg said the sealed records were not a part of any current litigation and that “her hands were tied.” Trump backers believe that while Trump knew the now deceased Epstein, there is nothing in the court records that connects Trump to Epstein’s alleged sex trafficking. Watch for an appeal of this ruling, perhaps even to the Supreme Court.

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“Speaker: No Epstein Bills for Now” – Despite some internal pressure from Republicans, and bipartisan support from Democrats, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R) Louisiana, shut down the chamber until after Labor Day. So, there will be no votes on releasing other files or documents related to the Epstein child trafficking investigation. “We’re not going to play political games with this,” he said. Johnson says he decided after speaking with President Trump. While Speaker Johnson can shut down votes by the full House, he can’t handcuff his own committee chairmen. To that end, the House Oversight Committee voted Wednesday to subpoena imprisoned Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell to testify in August when the body is usually in recess. Speaker Johnson is skeptical, saying, “Can Maxwell be counted on to tell the truth? She has been sentenced to many, many years in prison for terrible, unspeakable acts. Can we trust what she's going to say?”

 

“Justice Reaches Out to Maxwell” – Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice confirmed that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Maxwell in Florida, where she is serving her sex-trafficking sentence. Days before, Blanche said on X, “Justice demands courage. For the first time, the Department of Justice is reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell to ask: What do you know? He added, "No one is above the law—and no lead is off-limits.” Epstein died in jail while awaiting trial, so perhaps Maxwell can “connect the dots” on who might have been Epstein’s clients, even though the DOJ says no actual “client list” exists. President Trump was asked about the meeting and said, “I think it would be something that sounds appropriate to me.” The Thursday meeting went for five hours, with more talks on Friday. Maxwell’s attorney David Oscar Markus said, “She answered all the questions truthfully, honestly and to the best of her ability.” No other details were released.

 

“Bipartisan Backlash” – The effort to release the Epstein files is being led by both a prominent Republican and a Democrat. “Americans were promised justice,” said Rep. Thomas Massie (R), Kentucky, who added, “Our binding bipartisan legislation to release the complete Epstein files now has 20 sponsors. Soon, we can begin collecting signatures required to force a public vote in the U.S. House. Is your member on this list?” Massie has been joined by Rep. Ro Khanna (D), California, in the bipartisan effort. Khanna said, “So, this is something that he (Speaker Johnson) knows his base wants. It would overwhelmingly pass, and so he’s literally closing Congress because he doesn’t want to vote on our bill, or any bill or any amendment related to Epstein — the release of the Epstein files.” While Trump says the scandal is just another “witch hunt,” this is fast becoming a big 2026 midterm election issue. Politicians in both parties often call for “transparency” and in this case voters deserved the right to know what’s in those files.

 

“Trump–Epstein Photos” – CNN made a big splash this week with an “exclusive” report on three photos and a video showing Epstein and Trump together. One is a photo from 1993, showing Epstein at Trump’s wedding to Marla Maples. Epstein is also in another photo at the wedding reception, standing behind DJ Howard Stern and TV host Robin Leach. A third picture of a 1993 New York business opening shows Trump and two of his children talking to Epstein. A 1999 video shows Trump and Epstein speaking with Melania Trump at a Victoria's Secret fashion show. “This is a significant development,” said CNN anchor Erin Burnett, who added, “This, of course, establishes them together and very friendly in 1999.” So what? I mean, the images are fascinating, but we already knew Trump and Epstein were friends. Congrats to CNN for finding these, but they do nothing to link Trump to any of Epstein’s alleged crimes. To call them “significant” is a real stretch, and Trump said it was “fake news” when the CNN reporter called him. In a criminal or civil court case, the images would carry little to no weight.

 

“White House Press Crackdown” – The Wall Street Journal is the latest media outlet to be on the receiving end of the president’s wrath. Until further notice, the WSJ no longer has a reporter in the White House Press pool. You may recall the Associated Press suffered the same fate earlier this year. The WSJ reported that the Justice Department told Trump in May that his name appears in the Epstein files, “multiple times.” Another WSJ article said Trump sent a sketch of a naked woman as a birthday card, and it was signed, “Donald.” Trump denies it was him saying, “I never wrote a picture in my life. I don’t draw pictures of women,” he said, according to the Journal. “It’s not my language. It’s not my words.” Trump is suing the WSJ for defamation, and its reporters are no longer welcome in the White House scrum.

 

“Gabbard Gabs” – Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard says in a recently declassified report that officials “manipulated and withheld” key intelligence from the public related to the possibility of Russian interference in the 2016 election. She blames members of the Obama administration and has referred that matter to the Department of Justice. “No matter how powerful, every person involved in this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Gabbard said. Democrats weren’t buying it. Rep. Jim Himes (D) Connecticut told Politico, “Baseless accusations of treason are unfortunately par for the course for this Director of National Intelligence.” Okay, so both the Epstein files and the Gabbard materials are at the Department of Justice, and they should be made public.

 

“Fed Chair Resigns? AI Strikes Again!” – A few weeks ago, I wrote about my growing concern about AI in politics. That was after someone “recreated” the voice of Secretary of State Marco Rubio and called three foreign ministers, a governor, and a member of Congress. This week, a letter was widely circulated on social media. It purported to be the resignation of Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell. It was even sent to me by a high-level Republican operative who bought it hook, line, and sinker. However, an eagle-eyed friend alerted me to examine the logo in the letter, which was clearly suspicious. I Googled the Federal Reserve logo image, and when it popped up, it was clear that the logo in the letter was a fraud! President Ronald Reagan used to say, “Trust but verify” on suspicious items. I think with AI, it’s now “Verify, then trust!”

 

“Name Change; Stance Change?” –  President Trump is sure not one to steer away from a controversy. He wants the NFL’s Washington Commanders and the MLB’s Cleveland Guardians to go back to their original names. Trump said on Truth Social, “The Washington ‘Whatever’s’ should IMMEDIATELY change their name back to the Washington Redskins Football Team. There is a big clamoring for this. Likewise, the Cleveland Indians, one of the six original baseball teams, with a storied past.” But he sounds like a man of contradictions. Back when President Barack Obama was in office he said, "Names and mascots of sports teams like the Washington Redskins perpetuate negative stereotypes of Native Americans." Obama wanted the Redskins and Indians to change names. Oddly enough, in 2013 Trump “tweeted” that, “President should not be telling the Washington Redskins to change their name – our country has far bigger problems. FOCUS on them, not nonsense.” Sounds like a position switch to me.