( -0958 ) Epstein Victims Speak at the Epstein Documents Discharge Petition Press Conference

( -0958 ) Epstein Victims Speak at the Epstein Documents Discharge Petition Press Conference

Epstein Documents Discharge Petition

Jeffrey Epstein, discharge petition, Congress, House of Representatives, Thomas Massie, Ro Khanna, release of documents, Epstein Files Transparency Bill, bipartisan support, House Oversight Committee, Mike Johnson, Republican leadership, Donald Trump, transparency, survivors, sex trafficking, child sex abuse, withheld files, legal accountability, release all unclassified records, push for vote, House floor, procedural discharge petition, subpoena authority, investigation, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Nancy Mace, Lauren Boebert, accountability, bipartisan effort, trauma, survivor testimonies, congressional pressure, delayed release, public demand, secret files, Democrat hoax, Trump administration, House vote, legislation, delayed investigation, press conference, Capitol Hill, survivor statements, trauma, bipartisan appeal, document release demand, political controversy, Trump dismissive remarks, Democratic and Republican divisions, House resolution, investigation continuation, House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer, public transparency, legal support for victims, political resistance, congressional showdown, public awareness, legislative gridlock, survivor advocacy, House member signatures, procedural tools, public outcry, legislative process.

TRANSCRIPT (PARTIAL - FAULTY TRANSCRIPTION SOFTWARE...)

I can tell you that I talked to President Clinton, I'm sorry, President Trump back in
2009, and several times after that, he didn't think that it was a hoax then.
In fact, he helped me.
He got on the phone.
He told me things that were helping our investigation.
Now, our investigation wasn't looking into him, but he was helping us then.
He didn't treat this as a hoax.
So at this point in time, I would hope that he would revert back to what he was saying
to get elected, which is, I want transparency.
This about face that occurred, none of us understand it.
In fact, I don't understand how this is an issue that's even up for debate.
How do you not stand behind these women after you've heard their stories and know that hundreds
of them were abused and it was only because files are being kept in secrecy?
The world should know who he is, who protected him, and the other people that are out there
to be investigated need to be investigated.
Sir, a question for Ms. Davis.
Great words.
Go ahead.
Are there any people who are currently serving in government who are named, who you know
of are in these files, whom you had relations with, anything of that sort, who Jeffrey Epstein
connected you with?
Are you willing to say yes or no?
I don't think I can answer.
Hello everyone.
I'd like to say thank you everyone for being here today on this very powerful and special
day for all of us here.
My name is Marina Lacerda.
I was minor victim one in federal indictment of Jeffrey Epstein in New York in 2019.
I was one of dozen of girls that I personally know who were forced into Jeffrey's mansion
on 9 East 71 Street in New York City when we were just kids.
Today is the first time that I ever speak publicly about what happened to me.
I never thought that I would find myself here.
The only reason that I am here is because it feels like the people who matter in this
country finally care about what we have to say.
As an immigrant from Brazil, I feel empowered knowing that the little girl struggling to
get by at 14 and 15 years old finally has a voice.
For the first time, I feel like I matter as an American.
I was only 14 years old when I met Jeffrey.
It was the summer of high school.
I was working three jobs to try to support my mom and my sister when a friend of mine
in the neighborhood told me that I could make $300 to give another guy a massage.
It went from a dream job to the worst nightmare.
Jeffrey assistant Leslie Groff would call me and tell me that I needed to be at the
house so often that I ended up dropping out of high school before ninth grade and I never
went back.
From 14 to 17 years old, I went and worked for Jeffrey instead of receiving an education.
Every day I hoped that he would offer me a real job as one of his assistant or something,
something important.
I would finally have made it big as like we say, the American dream.
That day never came.
I had no way out.
I was until he finally told me that I was too old.
There are many pieces of my story that I can't remember.
No matter how hard I try, the constant state of wonder causes me so much fear and so much
confusion.
My therapist says that my brain is just trying to protect itself, but it's so hard to begin
to heal knowing that there are people out there who know more about my abuse than I
do.
The worst part is that the government is still in possession right now
of the documents and information about that that could help me remember and get over all
of this maybe and help me heal.
They have documents with my name on them that were confiscated from Jeffrey Epstein's house
and could help me put the pieces of my own life back together.
But I don't have any of it.
And I know the same is true for many of these women.
We are here to support this bill today, not only for transparency, but for the American
people.
But if the government is going to release these documents to the public, describing
the crimes committed by Jeffrey Epstein and others, the least they can do is give me my
documents that they have about me.
The other survivors deserve the same respect from our government.
While identifying information must be redacted to the public, it is equally important to
provide the victims themselves with unredacted information.
I will never forget when the FBI agents showed up in my door in 2008.
Jeffrey Epstein hired a lawyer to represent me or more like to represent him, I like to
say.
I couldn't ask any questions and I had no idea what was going on.
I was terrified.
Until today, I think most of us are still terrified.
I thought somebody was going to kill me.
I thought something was going to happen to my sister or my mother.
It went further out to even maybe thinking something would happen in Brazil with my family.
And then one day, the lawyer said that everything was just going to go away, like nothing happened.
I didn't need to testify.
When I asked him why, he gave no explanation.
That was it.
So why?
Why was I never called to testify then?
We could have saved so many women.
We could have saved so many lives from being abused.
Why did he get away with it in 2008?
Why was he able to go on in the abuse with hundreds of girls after the Florida investigation?
Why didn't they let me testify to help stop him?
Our government could have saved so many women, but Jeffrey Epstein was too important and
those women didn't matter.
Well, we matter now.
We are here today and we are speaking and we are not gonna stop speaking.
Today I stand here with the women who have really helped me to find the strength to come
out and come forward to share my story for the very first time.
Together, we are stronger than ever.
While she may not be with us, Virginia Roberts, we will continue to use our voices to strengthen
yours always.
Thank you.
>> How we will secure this nation's future and the world is watching.
And before I step away, I wanted to add one quick thought.
Let's stop calling it an Epstein client list.
And let's call it what it actually is.
It's Epstein's sex buyer list.
Thank you.
>> How about that?
>> I'm so proud and honored to be here today.
My name is Lisa Phillips and I'm the host of award winning podcast from now on, where
I interview survivors.
In the year 2000, I was taken to Jeffrey Epstein's Island while on a photo shoot in the Caribbean.
Who I saw and what I experienced there would change me forever.
For months, I had to avoid Jeffrey.
But he told me that if I wanted to succeed as a Ford model, he could make it happen.
And he was right.
He introduced me to Katie Ford and many others in the entertainment business.
His grip on the modeling business was undeniable.
Not just the Ford family, but Victoria's Secret, Faith Cates, Jean-Luc Brunel, Victoria's Secret.
Jeffrey's reach went to the very top of fashion.
He could make a model's career.
What I didn't realize then was that once he lured someone like me in, he could also destroy
my career if I did not do what he wanted me to do.
In New York City, countless young women were abused by him.
Everyone in the industry knew, yet he was too powerful to stop.
He had friends in all of our entertainment and arts, and his value to those friends made
him untouchable.
But I ask you why.
Who was he to our government that he was allowed to operate openly for decades?
Why was he allowed to sponsor visas for young models using their immigration status as leverage
to abuse them?
And silence them.
Epstein was not just a serial predator.
He was an international human trafficker.
And many around him knew this.
Many participated and many profited.
And yet he was protected.
I know what it's like to be trafficked to others.
I know that the files contain the names of powerful men who have been shielded because
of their fame or their fortune.
So I stand here today not just for myself, but for every woman who has been silenced,
exploited and dismissed.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you.
And we are not asking for pity.
We are demanding accountability.
Congress must choose.
Will you continue to protect predators or will you finally protect survivors?
Transparency is justice, release the files and the secrecy and stand with us in declaring
that no one, no billionaires, no politicians, not world leaders is above the law.
And let me announce now, several of us Epstein survivors have been discussing creating our
own list of names.
We know the names.
Many of us were abused by them.
Now together as survivors, we will confidentially compile the names.
We all know we're regularly in the Epstein world.
And it will be done by survivors and for survivors.
No one else is involved.
Stay tuned for more details on that.
Because history is watching and so are the women who will come after us.
Thank you.
>> Thank you.
>> If that's not bravery, I do not know what is.
>> Okay.
We're bringing up another group of women.
Ashley, Danny, Jess, Haley and Wendy.
Come on up.
>> Here we go.
>> Okay.
>> So my name is Ashley.
>> My name is Ashley and I am a survivor of Jeffrey Epstein and Galeen Maxwell.
Some things I want to say.
To any survivors out there who feel like they don't matter, it doesn't matter if you went
once or countless times.
We were groomed.
We were manipulated and we were taken advantage of.
For decades, survivors have been suffocated by speculation.
We've been mocked.
We've been doubted.
We've been re-traumatized.
While those responsible hide in secrecy.
Why don't we deserve justice?
This is not partisan.
However, this is very political as the only path to justice is through our political system.
And this is about justice.
This is about accountability.
This is about protecting the innocence of our children and honoring the dignity of survivors.
Everywhere we turn, the story follows us.
It's in headlines, jokes, music, grocery store checkout lines, random conversations
that you hear people having in restaurants.
For more than 20 years, we've been unable to escape it.
And every time new promises are made, our sparks of hope are lit, only to be extinguished
again.
We are tired.
However, we are not going away.
We will not stop or give up.
And we will be on the front lines of this battle.
We are no longer scared.
And let's be clear.
There were so many enabling adults.
Those enablers actively turned a blind eye and they are the greatest danger.
You know who you are, as do we.
You allowed us to be abused for a fat check and a cushy life, which you still have.
And to those in power, hear us clearly.
Do your job.
Release what needs to be released.
And hold those responsible accountable.
Survivors deserve peace.
Survivors deserve truth.
Survivors deserve justice.
And to my fellow survivors, your voice matters, your story matters, and you matter.
Together, we are louder than the silence.
Together, we will not stop until justice is done.
Good afternoon.
Wow, a lot of people showed up for us today.
I wasn't expecting all this support.
What an incredible feeling and thank you for everybody for being here.
I'm going to try to make this as quick so the other girls don't have to be crunching
for time.
My name is Haley Robson.
I came out in 2019 on the documentary Filthy Rich.
I have been very focused on bringing more awareness to all of the survivors.
I am so proud to stand with them.
I am so proud to be up here to support them because they deserve all the love and support.
And I just want to say to the women who chose this moment to come out for the very first
time about your abuse, I cannot think of a more important, greater purpose in life than
to stand in solidarity when time is against us, when the politicians have made us an enemy,
when the world is watching and everybody is hoping for some type of result.
Thank you for choosing this moment for the first time to be so brave to come out and
stand in solidarity.
I prayed for a moment.
I prayed for this moment where God would fill us with reinforcement.
I want to acknowledge all the women, unfortunately, that couldn't be here today because I think
that is the only list of real great importance and we should never forget the voices that
were not only silenced, but that are not here today.
We should never forget the sacrifices that they made.
So today I would like to take a moment for Virginia, Sky, Danielle and Carolyn.
Their voices were just as powerful and they were silenced just as much.
And for some reason I can feel their spirit, especially Virginia's today.
She would be so proud and she would be so beside herself to see this one moment we have
all came together to unite.
And for our government and for the politicians who have taken our trauma and have weaponized
it against us, making it unbearable, making it unlivable, making it hard to move on in
a life that we wish to live in happiness and joy and peace and injustice that can only
come from within at this point.
And we have gotten to this point.
Shame on you.
Shame on you for using our trauma to weaponize this moment.
We are not going to be fooled by your trickery.
We are not going to be fooled by the lies, by the conspiracy theories.
We are the keys to this situation.
We have the truth.
And the FBI knows the truth.
The government knows the truth.
You may pull the wool over the sheep's eyes, but we are the keys.
We know who was involved.
We know the game.
We know the players.
And we are sitting here for 20 years waiting for you to get up and do something.
Well, guess what?
Your time is up and now we're doing it.
How do you follow that?
Hello, everybody.
My name is Wendy Passante and I was abused by Jeffrey Epstein when I was 14 years old.
I'm not here to relive what happened.
I'm here to be counted and to make sure others are counted too.
I once believed my silence was strength.
Hold it together.
Don't draw attention.
Today, I know that strength sounds like my voice.
It sounds like everybody's voice is up here.
Silence only protects predators, not children.
People ask, what about the victims?
We're here.
We're here today.
And there's more of us.
I stand with many who are still finding their words.
I live in a world where being understood is a struggle, where people in power would rather
sweep us under the rug in hopes that we'll go away.
We won't.
Being a survivor is not a headline.
It's our life.
We have to live it.
It's panic in a grocery store.
It's smiling at work while my hands tremble.
It's waking up at 3 a.m. with my heart racing and not knowing why.
It's living with PTSD, anxiety and depression and your nervous system's on guard at all
times, even in the safest room around the safest people.
Healing isn't tidy.
It's therapy, it's wait lists, it's trying a medication and trying again over and over
for years.
It's setting boundaries with some people who won't understand.
Survival isn't weakness.
It's wisdom we've earned.
If you are a survivor hearing me, your voice is never too late, too much or too little.
If all you could do was show up today, you're already trying to make a difference.
You do not owe anyone your story.
You are owed safety, care and belief.
Your breath is proof that harm does not get the last word.
I'm not asking anyone to take a political side.
I really don't even follow a lot of politics.
I'm asking you to take a stand in solidarity.
Protect the vulnerable, not the powerful.
Protect children and survivors.
Protect titles and reputations.
Our silence doesn't keep us safe.
And I hope today's courage from all of us ladies can help someone else be safer tomorrow.
We are here and we refuse to be erased.
So thank you guys for listening to all of us and being here today.
Hello everybody.
Thank you for being here.
As I stand here today and look around, I want to acknowledge what it feels like to be in
the presence of these incredibly brave, powerful women that I stand up here with.
I am so empowered by each and every one of your fortitude and I am following in the brave
footsteps of those that came before me.
While we each have our own stories and walk down different paths of life, we are bonded
together as survivors.
When I look into these beautiful faces, I am reminded that we all started our journeys
with big hopes and dreams.
Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell, stole and systematically destroyed
those dreams.
We are a mosaic of shattered hopes and dreams at their hands.
As an aspiring dancer, the manipulation came in forms of offering me dance studio space,
discussing opportunities to meet with ballet masters, and aiding a very ill family member
of mine, none of which would ever come to pass.
Instead, I was left in a cycle of abuse that wore me down and broke me.
When it happened, I would have to completely disassociate.
Similar to a coma, my brain would need to protect itself, so I would retreat in choreographing
in my own head to escape the cruel acts that were being carried out on my body.
After, I would go to the studio bundled in giant baggy clothing.
I remember standing there, staring in the mirror as if it were an empty void.
I was past the point of tears.
There was nothing left.
I was a hollow shell of myself.
I could no longer watch my body move, let alone dance.
He had taken something sacred from me.
Two decades later, I am still experiencing lingering effects of what happened to me as
a teenager.
I am just one story in the mosaic of women taking back their power by confronting the
horrific truths of their pasts due to Jeffrey Epstein and Gillian Maxwell.
We stand here today in the nation's capital for no other reason than to say that women's
voices will not be marginalized.
We stand together as a mosaic of stories, but we're also finding our way back to ourselves.
We are reclaiming the fragmented shards of the hopes and dreams of our pasts to paint
a better future for the next generation of women.
This story has come to Washington to be told.
We will be heard.
Thank you.
My name is Jess Michaels and I'm a 1991 Jeffrey Epstein survivor.
27 years.
For 27 years, I thought I was the only one that Jeffrey Epstein raped.
I believed I was alone and I was kept silent by the shame that was inside me and by the
fear outside in the world.
But I wasn't the only one.
None of us were.
And what once kept us silent now fuels that fire and the power of our voices.
We are not the footnotes in some infamous Predators tabloid article.
We are the experts and the subjects of this story.
We are the proof that fear did not break us.
And we don't just speak for ourselves, but for every survivor whose story is still unspoken.
For those not with us today.
For Virginia, whose courage lit the path and opened the door for us to walk through.
This is what power looks like.
Survivors united, voices joined, refusing to be dismissed.
Know this, justice and accountability are not favors from the powerful.
They are obligations decades overdue.
This moment began with Epstein's crimes, but it's going to be remembered for survivors
demanding justice, demanding truth, demanding accountability.
And we will not stop until survivor voices shape justice, transform culture and define
the future.
We are no longer whispers.
We are one powerful voice too loud to ignore.
And we will never be silenced again.
Thank you.
Awesome.
I'm going to be honest with you.

This is not okay.
And I just want to add that I think that sends a very dangerous message to our country, to
the young people in our country, that someone that we all know is aware of these crimes
could be given a pass.
And just for the last one, the last survivor who just spoke, she said that Epstein would
brag about her relationship with Donald Trump.
Could she please elaborate about that?
And anybody who can get to the microphone?
Yeah, I did say that.
My first trip to the Palm Beach residence, I drove there from the airport with Ghislaine
as well, and they, Jeffrey and Ghislaine were always very boastful about their friends,
their famous or powerful friends.
And his biggest brag forever was that he was very good friends with Donald Trump.
He had an 8x10 framed picture of him on his desk with the two of them.
Like they were very close.
[SIDE CONVERSATION]
So Lisa, what's your envision here?
Is it going to go to the public or just amongst the survivors?
No, we're reaching out to survivors that are scared.
So come on.
We're reaching out to survivors that are scared to come forward and that also know who they
were trafficked to.
So that's the list that we're compiling.
We're not quite sure how we're going to release that or even if we're going to, the
Department of Justice needs to release the list.
Right, because for folks at home, they might be confused.
You know, the survivors know the names.
You've seen these powerful people.
Why can't you say the names?
Could you just explain for folks?
Why do we have to say the names when the government knows the names?
And we're also scared to do so.
Look what's happened to so many of the survivors that have revealed names.
I find the question about the bill.
I think it's also worth saying that having represented, I think, between our firm and
Boy Schiller, hundreds of victims and we've talked to them about the various people that
they were farmed out to.
So we've created somewhat of a list.
Most of these individuals, the victims, are very scared to say these names because they
could get sued.
They're going to get attacked.
And nobody protected them the first time.
And that was against one person.
So is there a list?
There is a list.
But just to dispel kind of the common theme here, every one of these women was abused
by Jeffrey Epstein and his scheme was to personally abuse women.
When they reached a certain age, he did farm a section of them, some of them, out to some
of his friends.
That doesn't mean all of his friends.
With that said, I'm more than happy to assist in helping create the list behind the scenes.
And see what we do with it.
Go ahead.
Hold on.
I think if someone's interested in prosecuting, they may have something different to say about
sharing a list.
But they're not sharing a list for nothing to happen.
And that's the experience that they've had for all of these years.
Thank you all.
We're waiting to see the fate of this discharge petition right now as we're here.
The speaker and others have said that the people he met with yesterday had concerns about your
names being released if this bill were passed.
And some people I talked to today are not signing the discharge petition because they
say you don't want them to.
Can you clarify if that is an accident?
Do any of the survivors here not want the bill to pass?
First of all, our legislation, Ro Khanna and I went through this.
We talked about this and we were very careful to make sure that there is an exception so
that personally identifiable information, not just their names, but anything they could
be identified by, would not be disclosed.
And can you speak to that as survivors yourself?
I think all of them are on the same page.
They want everything released.
You really have to be able to pass the bill.
Yes, unequivocally redact personally identifying information and release everything else.
Okay.
Ms. Raiwa, thank you.
I know it's your first time speaking.
I'll go to Marina if we can.
Yeah, sure.
Marina, you have stayed silent for so many years.
Today, this is the first time we understand correctly.
You have never before gone public with your story and to share this.
Can you help us understand why today?
Why now and why here?
Well, it is not okay for us to be silenced and it's not okay for Jeffrey Epstein and
everybody else to be put on a pedestal.
I think everybody needs to hear from us because we know what went on, right?
And there is not only me who's been silenced.
There are hundreds of women that are silenced.
My hope is to stop this abuse for the future, right, for people that are coming up for women.
My daughter, for example, these people have, these women have daughters.
They most definitely don't want that anymore.
And I think mainly it is, it is, this is therapy for all of us too.
We want to be heard.
Nobody also has never asked me to speak.
That's also another thing.
So I can say for all of us here, we are here.
We want this bill to pass.
It is very important.
Okay.
And we need transparency.
We are tired of looking at the news and seeing Jeffrey Epstein's name and saying that this
is a hoax.
We are tired of it.
We are done.
We're not going to be silenced.
And I hope that my voice will bring other survivors and other victims to come along
and speak up so that we can be more of a stronger voice and louder.
What is your message to President Trump on this night?
Listen, I don't like to, I don't want to send a direct message to him.
I'm already scared enough.
Just, just pass the vote.
Listen to us.
This is not a hoax.
Like, it's not going to go away.
And like I said on my speech earlier, we are not going to be, we're not going to be silenced
anymore.
We will be speaking, moving forward wherever we need to be.
We will be and we need to pass this.
Go ahead.
Thank you, sir.
Jordan Colerats, from Gateway Pundit.
You know, for years we've heard that there was an Epstein client list or some kind of
a list.
And now we hear from DOJ that there's no list.
So much for all the victims.
What do you guys think?
I know you're working on your own list, but do you believe that Jeffrey Epstein had a
list?
So there's not a list.
So here's what it was.
Just like you heard everybody today, Jeffrey Epstein created through an organization that
of enablers, of people that were on his payroll, it was a complicated scheme where others should
still be investigated because they helped to enable him and operate this scheme.
Without those people, he could not have done this.
But the purpose was for him to personally abuse people.
With that being said, certain of his friends, he farmed out certain of the women that he
was exploiting too.
But that wasn't the primary purpose of that scheme.
And I don't think he wrote the names of those people down.
There's not a list of, hey, here's all of the people that I sent females to.
That's just not how that organization works.
Agreed?
Is there any evidence that Jeffrey Epstein was involved with or tied to the CIA or a
foreign intelligence operation?
I think that the safest thing for me to say is all files should come out, whether it is
for this with the CIA, FinCEN, SEC, FBI.
I'm not just making these up haphazardly.
I'm giving you a roadmap where to look.
Go ahead.
I was going to ask you, the White House has said that this is a very hostile act.
What's your response to the victims' response and thank you all for being here?
I'll go first and then I'll let them.
They're much more important to me.
But I don't understand why it's a hostile act.
I can tell you that I talked to President Clinton, I'm sorry, President Trump back in
2009 and several times after that, he didn't think that it was a hoax then.
In fact, he helped me.
He got on the phone.
He told me things that were helping our investigation.
Now, our investigation wasn't looking into him, but he was helping us then.
He didn't treat this as a hoax.
So at this point in time, I would hope that he would revert back to what he was saying
to get elected, which is I want transparency.
This about face that occurred, none of us understand it.
In fact, I don't understand how this is an issue that's even up for debate.
How do you not stand behind these women after you've heard their stories and know that
hundreds of them were abused and it was only because files are being kept in secrecy?
The world should know who he is, who protected him, and the other people that are out there
to be investigated need to be investigated.
Sir, a question for Ms. Davis.
Are there any people who are currently serving in government who are named, who you know
of, are in these files, who you had relations with, anything of that sort, who Jeffrey Epstein
connected you with?
Are you willing to say yes or no?
I don't think I can answer that.
Have the victims been threatened?
Mr. Edwards, are you representing Virginia Roberts?
Have they been threatened?
I'm speaking.
Have the victims been threatened?
Because they're saying they're being scared to talk.
I think she's referring to myself.
Hi, Anushka DiGiorgio.
I have been threatened.
I was threatened by phone.
My daughter was threatened when I was volunteering to participate by means of being a witness
in a civil lawsuit that Virginia Dufres was bringing against Ghislaine Maxwell.
I have been followed.
I have been stalked.
I have been followed not only by journalists, but by people who do not get out of the car
and do not try and talk to me and just drive behind me as I drive my daughter to school.
So the fear is very real for us.
I have also been in multiple situations with both Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell
where they have been direct and indirect about implying and saying that if I was to talk,
if I was to bring any kind of trouble, then there would be severe consequence, including death.
Just to add to that, you know, Maxwell also threatened my sister Maria Farmer, you know,
when the FBI did nothing about her initial report, you know, we did, she reported individually
at that time and then in 2002, we spoke to a reporter at Vanity Fair telling our stories,
fearful that perhaps other people were being harmed.
You know, we were not, we believed that was going to make a difference.
We believed that would be put in print and that story was crushed and it was because of their power.
And the message that we got from that was direct threats from Maxwell to my sister about her well-being
and her safety and that of our family.
So there, I think many people have similar stories of threats.
That has been a very real part of this case.
Go ahead, over here.
Do any of today's survivors speaking, anybody here ever have any connection or interaction
with Epstein's alleged financier, Leslie Wexner?
No.
No.
No.
Do you want to address that?
I just want to say one thing that's very clear when people say, you know, please share names,
there are names that are very well known like that of Les Wexner who everyone knows supplied an enormous
amount of Epstein's financial wealth and allowed this operation to happen.
So it's, I think, confusing to many of us why there have not been more ramifications for him
and he's been seen as a victim when clearly I believe there's more to it.
Over here, please.
Yep.
So you represented Virginia Roberts who's prayed for many years.
She eventually had to recant the allegations that she made against Alan Dershowitz.
She alleged that on at least six of these.
All right, next question.
Next question.
Thank you.
Why is it that she should be remembered?
No, we're not answering your question.
Anybody else?
How do the victims feel about the interview that was given to Glaine Maxwell by Todd Blanch?
That's better.
Okay, ma'am, I think that you had a question.
We're good, guys.
When you talked in the past on MSNBC about the existence of the Epstein birthday
book, have you and yourself in the course of litigation seen it?
I don't know that we're able to reveal what we've seen and what we have not seen by way
of protective order, but my point being in that circumstance was if anybody wants answers,
there's an easy place to get it.
I told you where to get it.
I said the estate of Jeffrey Epstein has it.
Serve a subpoena on them.
They'll turn it over.
And if we had served a subpoena on them in the past, they would have turned it over and
we would have seen it, which I don't usually miss subpoenas like that.
So there we go.
Go ahead.
To your question about the allegations, there's a simple answer.
Release the files.
Let the American public decide.
Instead of harassing, instead of, I gave you your say.
Look, look.
See?
You know, even, you've been heard.
You've been heard.
You've been heard.
And even Alan Dershowitz, even Alan Dershowitz says, release the files, release the files.
That is the answer.
And that's what we're here for.
Can you elaborate on your interactions with Donald Trump back in 2009 and for any of the
bigs in the city, ever see the president with them, not president yet, but never ever see
Trump with Epstein in any way?
I don't know who's, I don't think that we can answer that question.
Did anybody see Trump with Epstein back then?
This is really not a political thing.
We want the passage of the bill and this is not the call out President Trump.
My point was that he was friendly back then, did not think that it was a hoax and was trying
to help.
And now it seems like all of the sudden somebody's in his ear and he's not.
So I'm hoping he'll come back to where he was back in 2009, be on the side of the victims
and stand with us.
Go ahead.
I would, Teresa will step up.
I would, Teresa J.
Home, happy to speak on that because what I will say is she got this airtime and platform.
Her voice was elevated way before our voices were elevated here today.
And that same calm, manipulative voice that she had so polite there that day with Todd
Blanch was the same polite, coercive, manipulative voice that I heard as she was grooming me
to then send me off to the home of Jeffrey Epstein where he would assault me.
So that's what she was doing for hours, speaking with me, building relationship with me, letting
trust with me, allowing me to believe that I was going to get this job, a dream job that
I had been recruited from my college, flown across the country from Los Angeles to New
York City to interview.
So I thought so her voice that day was the same voice that sent me off to a monster.
So believe nothing can be believed from what she says because she's she's been charged
with perjury.
I myself could sit there and listen and as I did, I sat there and listen to this woman's
voice lie.
And there was no pushback from Todd Blanch because does he even have the facts to be
able to push back on her?
We could sit there and push back.
Why didn't we get to attend that?
Why weren't we there that day?
Or why wasn't even one of us consulted prior to that day in that meeting?
And why on earth has she been moved from Florida to her?
It basically is a prison spa.
I mean, you know, let's be real.
None of us were consulted.
I found out just like everyone here found out through the media, through all of you.
We found out about Gillan's transfer.
So we are all I'm very angry to sit there and listen.
The feelings that come up listening to this woman's voice is repulsive.
Yes, I would say it's triggering.
We all work very hard on healing and it still gets to us after two decades.
It's a very long answer, but that it's it's repulsive to sit there and listen to her voice
in her interview.
Can we take can we take two more two more questions?
One over here.
My reporting in the Farage directly led to a hundred million dollar payment from JP Morgan to the Virgin Islands.
Will you go after the DOJ, the FBI, because they're sitting on evidence.
I've held the evidence in my hands.
I think that there's there's nobody that's immune from us going after them if there's a legitimate action to take.
So to the extent that that evidence exists, then show it to us and we'll help in every every way we can.
We stand with the victims.
OK, one more.
Can the survivors speak to speaking up, being threatened and being afraid to come forward with the story to the case of Katie Johnson, who alleged that Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein.
I don't think we can talk about I don't think we can talk about that case.
I do think it's worth saying, though, despite the comments that he made.
Virginia Roberts-Juphre is an American hero.
She is somebody she is somebody without whom we would not be able to have this voice.
She was the one who had courage to name names, speak out against people.
And she was standing up against everybody at one time with an enormous amount of pressure.
And most of these women are here because of Virginia Roberts.
Last one.
Johnson says he's protecting the innocent. Who are the victims say do they think the innocent people are that he's protecting in his mind?
Clearly not us.
I don't think anybody knows, but I can tell you that in the Oversight Committee meeting yesterday,
they indicated that they were all for transparency, releasing the files and asked us to hold them accountable.
That right? Yeah, they said, hold hold them accountable.
So we intend to hold them accountable. We're we're we're going to show them where to go with it.
And as long as they're doing their job, they should.
I'm going to turn it back over to Rokana. Thank you.
Let me just say this. Let me let me say this.
I think the people back who are testifying here today are speaking out today.
They are American heroes. Let's give them another round of applause.
And you say, look, Thomas, Marjane, I were huge believers in the First Amendment and we believe in free speech and we take abuse all the time.
But you see, you see why it's so hard to do what they have done because they come forward and you subject yourself to national scrutiny and national questioning.
And I just want to say from the bottom of my heart how appreciative I am and how proud I am of what you've done today.
You made a big difference before I bring on Marjane and then Thomas will have the last word.
I want to summarize three basic things that I heard from the survivors.
First, they want to know why our government covered up for someone rich and powerful.
Why is it that we have two Americans? People say, why do you need to release the Epstein files if Epstein is dead and Maxwell's in jail?
Because we don't know who all was involved in the cover up. Why is there?
Why are there rich and powerful people who didn't have justice? They want to know that.
Second, many said it's important for their own closure. They don't know their own abuse.
They want to understand what's in these files for themselves.
And third, we heard that there are many others who obviously were involved and they want to know.
And the American people deserve to know what was there in those files.
I actually think they're helping us come together as a country.
I've never done a press conference with Marjane Taylor Greene before.
I've done some with Thomas, but look, this country is divided, it's exhausted.
This is one thing that we can come together on.
And I was very clear with Thomas, this is not against President Trump.
I would like nothing more than a truth social post for him after this press conference saying just release the files.
Be with Mass Icona. This is about something much deeper.
It is about bringing this country together to stand for America's kids, to restore trust, and to move this country forward.
So thank you to the survivors for helping us do that.
Now I want to introduce Marjane Taylor Greene.
Thank you.
For everyone watching at home, I think it's important to put yourself in these women's shoes.
As you're questioning, why can't they just name the names?
What you don't realize is they just told their stories of being raped and being abused, being victimized, being manipulated, being coerced,
and basically held in a prison of captivity of sexual abuse while they were young, young teenagers and extremely young vulnerable women.
And in Jeffrey Epstein's home and the places they went with him, they saw the most powerful people in the world in his pictures, and they saw him with those people.
Can you imagine how terrifying it would be to name names like that?
These are some of the richest, most powerful people in the world that could sue these women into poverty and homelessness.
Yeah, it's a scary thing to name names, but I will tell you, I'm not afraid to name names.
And so if they want to give me a list, I will walk in that Capitol on the House floor and I'll say every damn name that abused these women.
I can do that for them, and I'd be proud to do it.
Now, another thing, this is not about politics.
And this is a boiling point in American history where the American people, just like Roe just said, there's become two Americas.
There's the America for the rich and the powerful and the elite, where they never face any struggles or problems and never experience what real America goes through.
And then there's forgotten America that faces all the problems and deals with all the issues and never gets justice for being sexually assaulted and raped by a monster.
It shouldn't exist anymore, and people are sick of it.
So let's recognize the fact that the administration before and the one before it and the one before it and the one before it and before it never did anything about this.
So this isn't one political party or the other.
It's a culmination of everyone worked together to silence these women and protected Jeffrey Epstein and his cabal.
And this is not just rich, powerful people think his drivers, his maids, his chefs, all the people, his people that worked in his home security guards.
I heard one story from a young woman that was being raped by Jeffrey Epstein when he was out on work release while he was serving time in prison and had an ankle monitor on his leg.
Guess what? There was a police officer outside that door.
So this list of names is quite a list of names and it doesn't extend just in the rich, powerful circles.
It extends down to the very bottom where people were paid.
And again, I will say this, there's victims suffering today in similar circumstances, and they're terrified to name the names of the people that are currently abusing them.
And so with these brave, courageous women fighting this fight, this is a fight for women and children and any person that is facing sexual abuse and rape and captivity and human trafficking right now.
And so here's what I ask you in the press.
Don't go for salacious headlines.
Go for the truth.
And defend these women and help those of us in Congress that are crossing our political party lines for do and doing the right thing and trying to do it together.
And thank you, Ro and thank you, Thomas.
And now I recognize Thomas Massey from Kentucky.
Well, there's three branches of government and we're supposed to keep each other accountable.
And that's what we're doing here today in the People's House.
We're standing in front of the People's House with real people, not a hoax.
And they've told their story.
We wanted to give them a platform to speak and they've had it.
They stepped up and they were brave.
But I also today hope that they would persuade my colleagues to join this effort.
But I found out something today that happened that I wasn't expecting.
They persuaded me to fight even harder.
I'm not going to give up.
And I want to end with this call to action.
First, a call to action to my colleagues who just an hour before this press conference were prepared.
They were given a fig leaf.
We'll put a resolution on the floor so that you can say that you voted to protect the survivors.
Their resolution doesn't really do anything.
And that's the oldest trick in the swamp.
When you want to kill the momentum, when you want to kill initiatives, you introduce a placebo, a different bill that does nothing.
And then try to pull the wool over the eyes of the American people.
That's not going to happen this time.
We demand real accountability.
I encourage my colleagues, please, there's over 200 Republicans who have not signed this discharge petition.
We only need two of them to sign it.
And every Democrat will sign it.
And that will get us the number we need to force this vote, to pass a law, not a polite request to the DOJ to police themselves.
No, we need legally binding legislation to force that to happen.
And my main call to action is to the people watching these live feeds that are going through these cameras right now.
Congressman, listen to you. Light up their phones.
Burn down the phone lines here in Washington, D.C.
Ask them the questions that these survivors wanted you to ask them.
Why won't you be for transparency?
Don't accept their answer that the bill has a flaw or that the survivors don't want it.
We know that's not true.
They wouldn't be fighting it so hard in this town if it wasn't the real bill.
So with that, please call your congressman.
Tell him or her to get on this bill and to stand up for these survivors.
Thank you and God bless.
That's the end.
Thank you.
Congressman Massie.
Tell us, Tracy, what are some of the kickbacks you're getting back from your colleagues?
What are some of the reasons why they don't want to endorse this?
They're being threatened.
Look, I've got $2 million of ads running against me back in my district.
And it's funded by three billionaires, one of them is in F.C. and black.
I mean, this is what happens.
Your consultants, your political consultants will abandon you when the White House gets mad at you.
The speaker will block all of your bills.
They'll shut down your fundraising.
This isn't political, but it is.
The opposition to this is very powerful.
What's the impression now?
What's the impression of the White House, some, to get against this political act of violence?
I think no idea why they're doing this.
I mean, I do believe they're trying to protect the people.
They're making powerful and connected like they're probably conducting.
I think the government is doing what the White House is doing.
He was for transparency for about 24 hours and he got tuned up by the White House.
Have you had a chance to look at the garage emails that were leaked over the last week?
And Jeffrey, I've seen you involved with the app known as Carbine,
which is currently rolled out in 23 states across the United States.
I'm not that familiar with that.
I'm spending most of my time trying to port through the 35,000 pages that were released yesterday.
And when I found out, the page is completely redacted, the entire flight log is completely redacted.
So this is a non-release and the danger that Republicans are running, particularly the administration right now,
is recreating the debacle that the Attorney General Bondi had, which he gave out behind her back.
And then everybody put their money on that to get information that they already had.
What we need from this oversight committee investigation is some of that request.
Otherwise, it's just exercising people.
What do you think the voters think?
Excuse me, I'm just looking for something.
Oh, there it is.
[SIDE CONVERSATIONS]

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