NPR’s Leila Fadel asks Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna of California about lawmakers’ calls for that the Justice Division launch extra information associated to Jeffrey Epstein.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
OK. Now we flip to one of many members of Congress who co-sponsored the laws that is forcing the discharge of those paperwork from the Division of Justice associated to Jeffrey Epstein. Ro Khanna is a Democrat from California. Congressman, thanks for being again on this system, and good morning.
RO KHANNA: Good morning.
FADEL: So you’ve got referred to as this most up-to-date launch a bombshell, and also you cite particularly one reference to 10 co-conspirators. What are you within the information that you simply see as a bombshell?
KHANNA: The truth that there’s an electronic mail saying there are 10 co-conspirators implies that there are different wealthy and highly effective males who had been concerned. A whole lot of the skeptics have mentioned that it is a hoax – that solely Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell had been concerned within the abuse. I do know from speaking to the survivors that is not true. They’ve named different males who both went to the rape island, abused them or lined up for that abuse. That is within the statements to the FBI, the 302 statements, and that’s what we’re pushing to have launched. However we acquired an electronic mail no less than saying there have been 10 different co-conspirators.
FADEL: Now, you mentioned – to increase on what you are desirous to be launched, you’ve got mentioned you need to see the FBI witness interviews, which names different males, the Epstein emails seized from his computer systems, the 60-count draft indictment and the 82-page prosecution memo. You recognize, simply inform me what you are searching for in these specific paperwork that you really want, that’s main so that you can need them to be public. Like, what are you searching for in these paperwork?
KHANNA: A very powerful are the FBI witness interviews. I do know from survivors and survivors’ legal professionals that once they had these conversations with FBI brokers, they particularly named different males who they had been trafficked to…
FADEL: Yeah.
KHANNA: …Or who confirmed up on the island or who lined up for this abuse. And there have been legal professionals of the survivors current there. There are dozens of those interview memorandums. The DOJ has not launched a single one. In reality, in a single case, the DOJ launched a survivor’s identify illegally, however that they had not launched the file that the survivor needed. The 60-count draft indictment exhibits how a lot the prosecution of Epstein was botched. They solely prosecuted him for 2 counts. So we’d like that. And the emails on the pc that Jeffrey Epstein had which can be – these are his emails to different males, arranging for trafficking, arranging for flights to the island. None of that has come out.
FADEL: We are actually gone final Friday’s deadline for releasing all of the information that was set by your laws. What do you make of the DOJ’s argument that it takes time as a result of they should study every doc to keep away from inadvertently figuring out victims?
KHANNA: Effectively, frankly, they have not achieved an excellent job. I imply, they’ve inadvertently launched too many survivors. However each Thomas Massie and I’ve mentioned we’re much less hung up on the time difficulty. We’re extra involved about them complying with the spirit of the legislation in good religion, they usually have not achieved that. In the event that they launched some 302 FBI witness interview memorandum, that may be positive. In the event that they launched the 60-count draft indictment, that may be positive. That does not take a whole lot of time, and the legislation explicitly requires them to launch inner communication about charging or not. So they’re defending folks, and the president’s made it clear who they’re making an attempt to guard. He is involved that folks shall be harmed with their status – that they are bankers and highly effective politicians who’re in these information. And that’s true, and that is the aim of the legislation, to have public accountability for them. However the DOJ appears intent on defending them, frankly, greater than the survivors.
FADEL: Now, each you and Republican Thomas Massie, the co-sponsor of this laws, have talked about bringing, quote, “inherent contempt” proceedings in opposition to Lawyer Normal Pam Bondi. What would that seem like? What’s inherent contempt?
KHANNA: Effectively, we’ve got Republican assist – some Republican assist for it as effectively. We might give the legal professional common a 30-day grace interval to proceed to launch paperwork to be in compliance. And after these 30 days, there would begin to be a $5,000 positive on her personally for the paperwork that she will not be releasing. We additionally plan to go to the Southern District of New York, asking the decide who ordered these releases to have a particular grasp see what ought to be redacted or not or to create a congressional committee, a bipartisan committee, to see what ought to be redacted or not.
FADEL: Is it lifelike, although, that one thing like this might cross the Home? I imply, inherent contempt fees have not handed within the Home in opposition to anybody because the Thirties, and this Home particularly appears unable to agree on a lot.
KHANNA: Effectively, folks thought it was very unrealistic for us to get the discharge petition handed. That additionally has not handed for many years. We do know we’ve got some Republican assist. And the purpose is that, given we’ve got Republican assist, the Justice Division began to backtrack. An hour after Massie and I introduced that they began to launch redacted paperwork in an unredacted type, they did a second launch of paperwork that had that electronic mail concerning the 10 co-conspirators. They’re…
FADEL: We’ll have to depart it there. Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna, thanks. He’s the co-sponsor of the Epstein Information Transparency Act.
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