Presumably, what was done in the presence of Kash Patel was the accusation, not the leaking.
Will Bongino resign? "On Friday, a high-profile Bongino booster — the far-right influencer and conspiracist Laura Loomer — claimed, in two dramatic social media posts, that the bureau’s deputy director had taken Friday off to collect his thoughts, and was 'now seriously thinking about RESIGNING' over Ms. Bondi’s actions in the Epstein case. A person close to Mr. Bongino did not dispute her characterization, describing him as very angry and considering a range of options, including quitting."
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59 (na) komento:
I'm sorry, but are there any Trump supporters whop think that AG Bondi comes out looking good over this? She said, in a Fox News interview on 2/11, that she had the Epstein client list on her desk, and, then, months later, does this clumsy walk-back in the middle of a public cabinet meeting.
If any government agency would like to tamp down conspiracy theories, a couple of good recommendations would be 1) openness supported by publicly release documents & 2) don't be blatantly incompetent in your actions.
Me, I think that Epstein was so deeply entwined with at least one if not many national security agencies that the honest release of his relationships would deal a crushing blow to those agencies & inflict major damage to relationships with our allies. The major question I have about Epstein is how did he make all that money?
Also, just how fucking stupid and reckless would a man have to be to be told "Hey, wanna come over to my place and bang some underage girls?" and then accept the offer?
If someone recommended to me that we engage in some career ending and possible jail-time activity at "his place", I would suddenly remember that I've got some books overdue at the library and, as our commander-in-chief put it, "skedaddle".
About the same amount of stupid and reckless as having sex with an intern in the Oval Office while on the phone wit foreign leaders. Men do a lot of stupid things for sex regardless of how smart they are otherwise. It's a matter of self-control not intelligence.
I respect and trust Bongino as much any man I do not know personally. He walked away from a multi-million dollar podcast gig that might be gone for good just because this President, who he respects asked him to, and he loves his country. He expected it to be expensive, damaging and possibly dangerous, and he did it anyway. I will be very surprised and disappointed if he has not been absolutely righteous. The solution here is transparency. Lots of it.
I’m in agreement with YoungHegelian. Bondi claimed to have the Epstein client list “on her desk.” Then she says she doesn’t have it and never did have it. Why in the name of all that’s holy do Bondi and Wiles and anyone else think Mr. Bongino had to leak anything to anyone? How can one not know what’s on one’s desk?
Remember, so far these men have pretty much escaped any price for playing with Epstein, and they may well never pay one.
And that's the way it usually goes for the top level cads.
Tina Brown, late of The Daily Beast, Vanity Fair, and The New Yorker, has written an interesting piece about the Epstein matter. She, no MAGA person, has some history of being intimidated by Epstein, and thinks the whole business is fishy.
Read the whole thing, to coin a phrase. WHy MAGA is right about Jeffrey Epstein
The major question I have about Epstein is how did he make all that money?
Good question. This nay be a cover-up of activities that occurred over multiple administrations, which creates an intractable conundrum for the current administration to resolve without forcing catastrophic climate change. This may mirror the social progress that woke Britain to its cultural anomalies.
I think she meant that the Executive Order from Trump was on her desk with the paperwork she needed to sign to make it happen. She wasn't clear but was careless. If she isn't forced out, Bongino should take over the USSS--he can't work for her any longer.
Do not tout weapons of mass destruction without evidence. Sooner or later, the cards have to be shown. If you show nothing, you have nothing, or we go down the never ending rabbit hole. Sometimes the truth is down the hole.
Sometimes the rabbit hole leads nowhere. We wait. This will go away or it won't. The people will decide.
It's not going to fly. Trying to distract everybody with drama about leaks and outrage and emotional outbursts is not going to distract from the topic at the bottom of it. Covering up the Epstein affair, i.e. anything less than a full, reasonable disclosure of what this sordid abuse-of-power drama is all about, is not going to fly. It doesn't add up, and it shows, glaringly - and it will cost Trump the midterms if he doesn't course-correct.
I know Dan Bongino, passingly. We did events together some years ago. He put in the work. I dealt with Pam Bondi in Florida. She is not a serious person. I'm pretty good at reading political people. I claim no deep knowledge of either of them, but I believe Bongino is sincere and has paid his dues, and I suspect she is not credible.
Just one person's subjective opinion. But I watched Bongino make massive sacrifices for years after meeting him. I respect his service as a cop and a federal agent who served presidents from both Parties with absolute devotion. Bondi is a lightweight.
YoungHegelian said...
I'm sorry, but are there any Trump supporters whop think that AG Bondi comes out looking good over this? She said, in a Fox News interview on 2/11, that she had the Epstein client list on her desk, and, then, months later, does this clumsy walk-back in the middle of a public cabinet meeting.
Not me.
She looks to be somewhere on the scummy to incompetent spectrum on this one.
I will also point out that I am not seeing any actual investigations or prosecutions from this DOJ. She looks to be a sandbagger at best.
I doubt Trump had much personal involvement with Epstein, because if he had done something we'd have heard about it in 2020 or 2024. Who has the real info? CIA? Mossad? Someone else?
As Jean Renoir himself said in his film Rules of the Game, "The awful thing about life is this: everyone has their reasons."
Well, shit...
We all know that Pam Bondi takes her instructions from Trump.
Just thought of this yesterday: isn't the investigation of Comey and Clapper a good indicator that there's no Epstein list?
Wouldn't the former CIA and FBI directors be in the best position to use it as a get-out-of-jail free card if it existed? And yet the Administration is openly and notoriously trying to put them in jail.
Okay, there may be a double-secret investigation, where C&C were told "look, mate, to keep the con going, we have to rattle some sabers at you. But don't worry, it won't come to anything."
Coverups all the way down?
Or maybe there just isn't a list.
RR
JSM
If Loomer said the sky was blue, I'd go out and check.
"As Jean Renoir himself said in his film Rules of the Game, "The awful thing about life is this: everyone has their reasons."
Underrated film.
@ Inga
That's true as far as it goes, but a President is also reliant on his cabinet members for the information and expertise on which he bases decisions so they have a lot of influence over what their instructions will be.
It didn't work quite that way in the Biden Administration, of course, but normally that's how it works.
I think he's old and a publicity hound but Dershowitz is sounding interesting on this subject.
YoungHegelian said...
but are there any Trump supporters whop think that AG Bondi comes out looking good over this?
here are the possibilities:
a) she's a CRIMINAL, and PROBABLY PERSONALLY murdered epstein.
b) she's been compromised, through blackmail, because of her CRIMINAL activities.
c) she's COMPLETELY and TOTALLY inept.
d) ALL OF THE ABOVE
one way, or the other; she NEEDS to go (to jail?)
" She said, in a Fox News interview on 2/11, that she had the Epstein client list on her desk,"
** "i have the lists on my desk, lists of criminals!"
** "there aren't, and NEVER WERE, any lists"
** "we CAN'T release the lists (that DON'T EXIST) because of the things in them"
john mosby posits:
maybe there just isn't a list.
in which case, Blondi needs to be fired for being a f*ckup;
don't brag about things you can't prove..
the Only Thing WORSE, than bragging about things you can't prove;
is not even realizing that you're bragging about things you can't prove
they ALL take orders from trump ,loyalty is the only thing that matters.If you dont know that by now....
I didn’t have Intramural DOJ MAGAs meltdown on my bingo card.
Wouldn’t it be poetic justice if the Epstein Files coverup is the thing that finally destroys Trump. It would be amazing to see.
The walls are closing in.
I get the feeling you would consider anything that destroyed Trump as poetic justice.
Indeed, they are. There are only so many Trump cultists that will let this one go. You Original Mike, might be a true blue believer and follower of Trump, but there is a flood coming, seek higher ground.
Stupid effing crap.
Could people just shelve their egos for a bit and consider that the Epstein affair is not worth screwing up what has been the very productive and gratifying progress of the overall Trump admin?
It's like conservatives just cannot handle any success, and must always start circular firing squads just so they can yell at people who aren't "proper conservatives" like they are.
Fragile egos spawning self-destructive and childish behavior. No wonder we seldom run things.
Bobby: that's telling the AG to resign. Go get her!
If they have the list and it was classified, Trump could un-classify it. For whatever reason, that hasn't happened.
If they have it.
It's all speculation out here in the peanut gallery.
Don't hold your breath, Inga. There will be something else everyone is all excited about next week and it won't destroy Trump either. You're stuck with him.
Inga voted for "Pedo Pete".
" The major question I have about Epstein is how did he make all that money? "
His bake sales were legendary.
n.n said...
The major question I have about Epstein is how did he make all that money?
Good question. This nay be a cover-up of activities that occurred over multiple administrations, which creates an intractable conundrum for the current administration to resolve without forcing catastrophic climate change. This may mirror the social progress that woke Britain to its cultural anomalies.
7/11/25, 7:14 PM
—————————
Epstein made his money by managing other people’s money. Anywhere from 2.5% to 4.0% of assets under management.
I always thought his scheme was to blackmail people into giving him money to manage, investing the money in an index fund or something similar and then take the fees for doing practically nothing.
I have always thought that it was ridiculous to believe that Epstein kept a written record of any blackmail activities. I am reminded of the episode of “The Wire” where Stringer Bell jumps all over an underling because he was taking notes at a meeting.
From Google AI:
One of the most memorable Stringer Bell quotes about taking notes comes from the third season of HBO's The Wire, during the episode titled "Straight and True".
In the scene, Stringer Bell, a drug kingpin who tries to run his criminal organization like a legitimate business, organizes a meeting with other drug dealers to form the New Day Co-Op, hoping to minimize gang violence and increase profits. After the meeting, Stringer sees Shamrock taking notes on a tablet and confronts him, asking:
"Motherf*****, what is that?"
Shamrock replies, referencing Robert's Rules of Order:
"Robert Rules say we gotta have minutes for a meeting, right? These the minutes".
Stringer, visibly annoyed by Shamrock's actions and the potential paper trail documenting a criminal conspiracy, responds with the now-famous line:
"Nig** is you taking notes on a criminal fu***** conspiracy?"
This quote highlights Stringer Bell's desire to operate with a facade of legitimacy while simultaneously dealing with the stark reality of the criminal underworld and the inherent risks of documenting illegal activities.
The blame for this fiasco lies with Trump. He allowed it to be used to appease parts of his base. The person leading the charge on dismissing this is Trump, himself”.
“Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy’s been talked about for years,”
There are probably a lot of people from both parties that the Blob has collected life-destroying dirt on. Just because they're not on the Epstein list doesn't mean they're not somehow vulnerable in some other way or they have a loved one who is.
Releasing the list is probably a lot more complicated than it sounds. Trump wants to get things done and he needs allies to do so. It might be a MAD scenario. We don't know.
What’s so special about seeking justice for slutty underage girls when it comes to furthering Trump’s agenda? If Trump needs to keep this Epstein scandal under wraps to accomplish what he wants, will there ever be a point in which Trump supporters find they won’t cross a certain line? From the way it appears, there is an outcry among those Trump supporters who have rediscovered a part of themselves they held sacred before Trump came into their lives.
AMDG said...
I have always thought that it was ridiculous to believe that Epstein kept a written record of any blackmail activities. I am reminded of the episode of “The Wire” where Stringer Bell jumps all over an underling because he was taking notes at a meeting.
--
E. Jean Carrol like the way you think.
there is an outcry among those Trump supporters who have rediscovered a part of themselves they held sacred before Trump came into their lives.
Take that Finger of Shame and shove it.
We support Trump because he's the first politician in my life who's actually doing what he said he'd do. Just because he's screwing the pooch on this one doesn't change that.
I mean, it's not like he showered with his daughter or something ...
Yes, Inga.
And I certainly remember the persistent drumbeat around ths by "Pedo Pete" and Kammy.
So all of the sudden Dems are taking the Epstein thing seriously and not calling it a ridiculous conspiracy theory? I don't recall you shouting for justice for these girls when your party was in power. Did you threaten to abandon Biden if he didn't release the Epstein list? How come we had to wait for Trump to be elected before there was even the slightest hope or expectation that might happen?
The fact is, you're not interested in justice for Epstein's victims, only in stones to throw at Donald Trump.
To be fair, "Pedo Pete" had his hands full enabling rape trees, child trafficking etc, etc.
Most Dems, including myself, NEVER considered the Epstein thing a conspiracy theory. Most Dems have called for any info relating to Epstein’s clients to be made public and for those people to be prosecuted. I don’t care how many Democrats may be on the list, I’ve said so for years.
Yes, Inga. We have noted your consistent push on this...including your pres, "Pedo Pete"
Inga surfaces for blood with blood on her hands.
I would like the US not to be like the UK in hiding rampant sexual assault of young people. I would like answers, starting with the light plea deal in 2000-something. 2006 perhaps. That said, if the investigation is stymied because the evidence is child porn, it seems difficult to prosecute. If the victims are not known or won’t testify, what can be done? It’s not ok to put names out without being able to present solid evidence of a case.
So I’m looking for how Epstein managed to do this to begin with, how he managed to get that plea deal and how that plea deal did not include sufficient guardrails to prevent him from continuing his disgusting business. I think Bill Clinton and Bill Gates know everything. Let’s depose them.
It's obvious that Trump doesn't want this info released for whatever reason. Bondi is following his instructions. A new AG wìll not be allowed to release the info either so Bongino will have to go.
I don’t care how many Democrats may be on the list, I’ve said so for years.
Well I feel the same way, but nobody from the WH has called and asked me what they should do.
I'm not advocating they continue covering it up. I'm only speculating about what could be going on. None of us here really know anything at this point.
Most Dems, including myself, NEVER considered the Epstein thing a conspiracy theory. Most Dems have called for any info relating to Epstein’s clients to be made public and for those people to be prosecuted. I don’t care how many Democrats may be on the list, I’ve said so for years.
I don't remember any Democrats being vocal about this when Biden or Obama were in office.
The Epstein fracas is notable because it's a war between the insiders (rich and powerful people) and everybody else.
Patel and Bongino aren't mad at Blondi because they give a hoot about Epstein. Their FBI gigs are just temporary. They're mad because she's jeopardizing their *actual* money and careers as MAGA propagandists.
Leo Terrell might also make a good AG. Also fun confirmation hearings.
RR
JSM
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out, Dan.
Ken Paxton, I'm guessing, might not be a top candidate for US AG, but these days, who knows?
It's unlikely that Epstein kept one complete list or that the authorities could have found it. Bondi probably had a lot of files and data and lists of possible clients that the DOJ had culled from the data.
I'm reminded of the Nashville school shooter. There was nothing in her notebooks and papers that she labeled a "manifesto," but there were things that could explain her actions and perhaps warrant the label "manifesto." People argued for months about why the manifesto wasn't released and about whether there even was a manifesto without defining their terms or talking about the same things.
But again, who can say? Maybe our grandchildren will find an OJ manuscript by Jeffrey Epstein entitled, "How I Would Have Done It (If I Actually Did Do It)."
This is a conspiracy that progressed over multiple administrations. Good luck to the Trump administration to unwind this Ouroboros.
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