#survivors
2 entries with this tag
Trump Signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act Under Pressure, Then His DOJ Defied Both the Law and a Federal Judge's Order to Release the Files — the Same Associate Attorney General Just Referred for Discipline in the IRS Case Asked the Court to Ignore Its Own Deadline
In November 2025, under intense bipartisan and public pressure, Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which ordered the Justice Department to release all files connected to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation by December 19. His administration has spent the months since not complying. After journalist Katie Phang sued over withheld materials, U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled the administration had likely violated the Transparency Act and ordered the DOJ to release and unredact the disputed files or explain why they must stay hidden. Hours before the deadline, Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward — the same official a federal judge referred for bar discipline days earlier over the sham IRS settlement — asked Sullivan to delay the deadline by 60 days or disregard it entirely. The DOJ then formally declined to hand over additional unredacted files, claiming the redactions were appropriate and protected victims. Among the disputed materials, according to reporting, are FBI interview notes from a woman who alleged she was forced to perform a sex act on Trump in the 1980s after meeting him through Epstein — an allegation that is uncorroborated and that Trump has strongly denied. Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna, frustrated that the department was withholding files it was legally required to disclose while survivors' names leaked out, introduced a second bill — the Epstein Files Transparency Act II. The throughline: a president who signed a transparency law to quiet a scandal, then had his Justice Department defy the law, a court, and Congress to keep the files sealed.
Epstein's Assistant of 18 Years Testifies She Arranged Regular Calls Between Trump and Epstein — Claims She "Never Saw Anything Improper"
Lesley Groff, Jeffrey Epstein's executive assistant for 18 years, testified behind closed doors before the House Oversight Committee. She told lawmakers she arranged phone calls between Trump and Epstein "about once a quarter" before their alleged falling out. She claimed she "never saw anything improper" despite scheduling massages with young women and girls — the very mechanism Epstein used to recruit victims. Her name appears 164,000 times in DOJ records. She was listed as a potential co-conspirator in the 2008 non-prosecution deal. One survivor said Groff called her so often she dropped out of high school. Rep. Lynch called her denials "highly inconsistent." Rep. Ansari said the transcript is full of "I don't recall, I don't know." The committee referred two names to DOJ. Bill Gates testifies Wednesday. The House chaplain attended the interview for unexplained "pastoral care."