"Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member, Members of the Committee... as a former Senator, I have respect for legislative oversight and I expect its exercise, as do the American people, to be principled and fearless in pursuit of truth and accountability. As we all know, however, too often Congressional investigations are partisan political theater, which is an abdication of duty and an insult to the American people. The Committee justified its subpoena to me based on its assumption that I have information regarding the investigations into the criminal activities of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Let me be as clear as I can. I do not. As I stated in my sworn declaration on January 13, I had no idea about their criminal activities. I do not recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices. I have nothing to add to that. Like every decent person, I have been horrified by what we have learned about their crimes. It's unfathomable that Mr. Epstein initially got a slap on the wrist in 2008, which allowed him to continue his predatory practices for another decade. Mr. Chairman, your investigation is supposed to be assessing the federal government's handling of the investigations and prosecutions of Epstein and his crimes. You subpoenaed eight law enforcement officials, all of whom ran the Department of Justice or directed the FBI when Epstein's crimes were investigated and prosecuted. Of those eight, only one appeared before the Committee. Five of the six former attorneys general were allowed to submit brief statements stating they had no information to provide. You have held zero public hearings, refused to allow the media to attend them, including today, despite espousing the need for transparency on dozens of occasions. You have made little effort to call the people who show up most prominently in the Epstein files. And when you did, not a single Republican Member showed up for Les Wexner's deposition. This institutio…

as the public who also want to get to the bottom of this matter. My heart breaks for the survivors. And I am furious on their behalf. I have spent my life advocating for women and girls. I have worked hard to stop the terrible abuses so many women and girls face here and around the world, including human trafficking, forced labor, and sexual slavery. For too long, these have been largely invisible crimes or not treated as crimes at all. But the survivors are real and they are entitled to better. In Southeast Asia, I met girls as young as twelve years old who were forced into prostitution and raped repeatedly. Some were dying of AIDS. In Eastern Europe, I met mothers who told me how they lost daughters to trafficking and did not know where to turn. In settings around the world, I met survivors trying to rebuild their lives and help rescue others - with little support from people in power, who too often turned a blind eye and a cold shoulder. If you are new to this issue, let me tell you: Jeffrey Epstein was a heinous individual, but he's far from alone. This is not a one-off tabloid sensation or a political scandal. It's a global scourge with an unimaginable human toll. My work combatting sex trafficking goes back to my days as First Lady. I worked to pass the first federal legislation against trafficking and was proud that my husband signed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which increased support for survivors and gave prosecutors better tools for going after traffickers. As Secretary of State, I appointed a former federal prosecutor, Lou CdeBaca, to ramp up our global antitrafficking efforts. I oversaw nearly 170 anti-trafficking programs in 70 nations and directly pressed foreign leaders to crack down on trafficking networks in their countries. Every year we published a global report to shine a light on abuses. The findings of those reports triggered sanctions on countries failing to make progress, so they became a powerful diplomatic tool to drive concrete…

Infuriatingly, the Trump Administration gutted the Trafficking in Persons Office at the State Department, cutting more than 70 percent of the career civil and foreign service experts who worked so hard to prevent trafficking crimes. The annual trafficking report, required by law, was delayed for months. The message from the Trump Administration to the American people and the world could not be clearer: combatting human trafficking is no longer an American priority under the Trump White House. That is a tragedy. It's a scandal. It deserves vigorous investigation and oversight. A committee endeavoring to stopping human trafficking would seek to understand what specific steps are needed to fix a system that allowed Epstein to get away with his crimes in 2008. A committee run by elected officials with a commitment to transparency would ensure the full release of all the files. It would ensure that the lawful redactions of those files protected the victims and survivors, not powerful men and political allies. It would get to the bottom of reports that DOJ withheld FBI interviews in which a survivor accuses President Trump of heinous crimes. It would subpoena anyone who asked on which night there would be the "wildest party" on Epstein's island. It would demand testimony from prosecutors in Florida and New York about why they gave Epstein a sweetheart deal and chose not to pursue others who may have been implicated. It would demand that Secretary Rubio and Attorney General Bondi testify about why this administration is abandoning survivors and playing into the hands of traffickers. It would seek out officers on the front lines of this fight and ask them what support they need. It would put forth legislation to provide more resources and force this administration to act. But that's not happening.

Instead, you have compelled me to testify, fully aware that I have no knowledge that would assist your investigation, in order to distract attention from President Trump's actions and to cover them up despite legitimate calls for answers. If this Committee is serious about learning the truth about Epstein's trafficking crimes, it would not rely on press gaggles to get answers from our current president on his involvement; it would ask him directly under oath about the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files. If the majority was serious, it would not waste time on fishing expeditions. There is too much that needs to be done. What is being held back? Who is being protected? And why the cover-up? My challenge to you, Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, is the same challenge I put to myself throughout my long service to this nation. How to be worthy of the trust the American people have given you. They expect statesmanship, not gamesmanship. Leading, not grandstanding. They expect you to use your power to get to the truth and to do more to help survivors of Epstein's crimes as well as the millions more who are victims of sex trafficking."

Here is Hillary Clinton’s opening statement to House Oversight on Epstein.

Clinton says she does not recall ever encountering Epstein and says she knew nothing about his crimes.

She also says that Trump should testify under oath and criticizes the committee for not holding any public hearings.

Recent studies challenge Kennedy's claims about vaccines, Tylenol and antidepressants The Trump administration has pledged to conduct its own studies, but research continues to contradict its claims.

What new research says about RFK Jr.'s claims about Tylenol, vaccines and antidepressants www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

The State of the Union Was a Rally for an Ailing Strongman An increasingly unpopular Trump lurched from plodding teleprompter readings to gothic MAGA fantasies in his long-winded speech.

The State of the Union Was a Rally for an Ailing Strongman
open.substack.com/pub/thenatio...

I really thought Trump was going to give us an update last night on that Navy hospital ship heading to Greenland.

Trump’s lies last night don’t change the fact that inflation is up, unemployment is up, and the Epstein Class are getting richer while being shielded from justice by Donald Trump and the Republicans. The sycophants cheered, but the emperor has no clothes.

Trump’s ICE Is Quietly Stockpiling Weaponry—and It Should Alarm Us All In addition to staffing up at a furious rate, ICE and CPB are acquiring a vast cache of weapons from private contractors, new data reveals. This will not end well—or anytime soon.

Appalling: ICE and CBP contracted for $144 million in weaponry and accessories in Trump's first year, per data obtained by Sen Adam Schiff.

For ICE it's a fourfold increase, much of it for military-style weapons. A heavily armed secret police force. 1/

(new piece)
newrepublic.com/article/2069...

Warnock: "We heard tonight the rumblings of a desperate man who's trying to present case he can for the midterms. It was half lies, half grievances. He knows he is quickly losing power."

damn, Trump's surgeon general nominee Casey Means is a transparent bullshitter even by the standards of the regime. Watch how she's tries to blame Chris Murphy's staffers for the fact he has her dead to rights on being dishonest and corrupt.

Watched by Millions, 'People's State of the Union' Counters Unhinged Trump "We live in a country where we have one reality for everyday people and another for the rich and the well-connected and the well-protected," said Rep. Summer Lee.

"We live in a country where we have one reality for everyday people and another for the rich and the well-connected and the well-protected."

In tonight's speech, the president did what he does best: celebrate himself. But if anyone was looking for leadership focused on easing their current economic pain, he made clear that they'll need to look elsewhere.

Rubin: "On Jan. 4, Deputy AG Blanche wrote a memo instructing DOJ officials reviewing the Epstein files to flag 302 memos -- the form the FBI uses to memorialize interviews. That's the exact kind of document we reported yesterday was missing with respect to Trump's accuser."

It was sad to see the men’s hockey team allowing themselves to be exploited by Trump and his fascist regime.

“What kind of administration releases naked photos of victims, and then protects the perpetrators?”

#TrumpEpsteinFiles #EpsteinAdministration

"Holy shit, did WE ever make the right decision" - The US Women's Hockey Team

Trump talked for nearly two hours, gave out medals, praised sports teams, lied constantly, made zero new policy proposals, suggested we are about to bomb another country again, and got standing ovations from Republicans after every line. Nothing new for average working Americans.

Epstein leveraged relationship with Botstein to draw in multiple women Jeffrey Epstein wanted to reassure an Eastern European musician about his intentions. He turned to the conductor and Bard College President Leon Botstein.

Leon Botstein's spokesman, who has offered comment for several other Times Union stories on the Bard president's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, failed to offer any answers for this one. Sarah Trafton reports.

Rep. Ilhan Omar: "The president talked about protecting Americans, and I just had to remind him that his administration was responsible for killing two of my constituents."

You made history last night

It will be tough for America’s global reputation to recover after this absolutely shameful vote.

Immigration Detention Is No Place for a Child ​As I continue to heal from my own experience in a for-profit ICE prison, I can’t help but wonder if children detained will ever feel safe again.

We must all ask ourselves: Is this really the world we want for our children—one where they are afraid to go to school, home, hospitals, neighborhoods, playgrounds, museums, and libraries for fear of immigration detention?

Tell lawmakers to put Kentuckians over cuts in the state budget Kentuckians work hard every day to take care of their families and strive for a better life, but high prices and low wages are making it harder to get ahead. This year, lawmakers have a unique opportu...

I just wrote a @theactionnetwork.bsky.social letter: Tell lawmakers to put Kentuckians over cuts in the state budget. Write one here: actionnetwork.org/letters/tell...

A health insurance exec stands smiling in front of charts showing profits and CEO income rising. caption says :If it ain't broke don't fix it.

A health insurance exec stands smiling in front of charts showing profits and CEO income rising. Caption says: If it ain't broke don't fix it.

Opinion | I Was a CDC Senior Leader. From What I Saw, No One Should Run Two Agencies. Placing Jay Bhattacharya in charge of both NIH and CDC raises concerns

I Was a CDC Senior Leader. From What I Saw, No One Should Run Two Agencies. www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/seco...

This KFF post says state data are also available. connect.kff.org/cdc-data-sho...

This KFF post says state data are also available. connect.kff.org/cdc-data-sho...

Trump Admits War Would Be Disastrous for Ordinary Iranians as He Weighs Military Assault "The stakes are clear," said the National Iranian American Council. "There’s a chance to avert war and disastrous outcomes for the people of Iran, but time may be running out."

"The stakes are clear​," said the National Iranian American Council. "There’s a chance to avert war and disastrous outcomes for the people of Iran, but time may be running out."

Tonight’s state of the union.

a yellow and blue flag with a shield on it ALT: a yellow and blue flag with a shield on it

Today is the four year anniversary of the barbaric full scale invasion against the peaceful people of Ukraine.

Peaceful, until roused to defend themselves….

Slava Ukrainii

Elizabeth Warren on CNBC: "The point that no one is fighting over is that the American family paid for Donald Trump's illegal tariffs. And when you take money from people illegally, you gotta give it back."

While I am getting ready for SCOTUS opinions to be released at 10am, Blue has other ideas...