Sen. Dick Durbin, the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is not fooling around. Last week, he demanded answers from Donald Trump’s Department of Justice about information that it had arranged for the FBI to go through the department’s approximately 100,000 Epstein records and flag any that mentioned President Trump.
On Tuesday, Durbin asked, on the Senate floor, “What is it that is in these files that is so frightening to the president, the White House, the Department of Justice and the Republican leadership in Congress?” That's what we all want to know.
We all deserve to know, Durbin acknowledged. Specifically, Durbin now wants to see a transcript of Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche's very suspicious two-day prison interview with Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year sentence for her role in Epstein's sex-trafficking of minors. “We don’t know what was said, but we should,” Durbin added.
Durbin has also written to Blanche demanding that information.
Durbin’s letter pointed out that the meeting raised “serious questions about the potential for a corrupt bargain between the Trump administration and Ghislaine Maxwell.” Such interviews are usually conducted by line prosecutors familiar enough with the details so as to be able to know if Maxwell was lying, Durbin reportedly wrote.
Durbin also reportedly wants a commitment from the DOJ that Maxwell will not be pardoned or have her sentence commuted in return for her cooperation.
Maxwell is being rightly penalized for her wrongdoing, Durbin said. “Any notion that she’s going to receive a pardon from Donald Trump, which seems to be a rather common thing in this administration, is totally unacceptable. Totally.” Nice touch there, Senator!
Durbin also pointed out that Maxwell “was branded as a brazen liar when she was sentenced.” She has “zero” credibility now when she would surely love a pardon or reduced sentence.
We all know that Durbin will not likely get the material he’s asking for. But keeping up the pressure matters. So does keeping a spotlight on that shady Blanche/Maxwell discussion.
