The Epstein Grift
The "redactions-for-cash" theory
The Epstein Transparency Act, a law passed almost unanimously, set a deadline for the release of the Epstein Files that passed on Friday. According to the law, every file that was not classified in nature was to be produced, without exception, but that’s not what happened. What we got was a small batch of files, most of which had been released previously, and the small amount of new material that was released was also heavily redacted.
This should surprise no one.
This is not the first time Trump has done this, and it certainly won’t be the last. Many remember, during his first presidential campaign in 2015, when Trump used a fictional “audit” as an excuse so he didn't have to release his tax returns, something all the other candidates agreed to do. Or when he stole nuclear secrets and stored them in a Mar-a-Lago bathroom, forcing federal agencies to raid his home to recover them. Now it’s happening again, and anyone who thinks we are going to see the Epstein Files anytime soon should also understand that we are now ten years into Trump’s fake audit, and the public still hasn’t seen those tax returns.
Trump is, at his very core, a grifter. Even his most ardent supporters would have a hard time denying this, though most would certainly try. After all, these are the same people who fail to recognize the irony inherent in wearing Chinese-made “Make America Great Again” hats. When we view Trump’s past actions through a grifter’s lens, we can come up with a number of other probable actions - things that likely happened - that are not yet being publicly discussed. In short, our understanding of Trump’s grifting nature informs our understanding of this cover up and why it’s happening. It also tells us that there is likely much more to this story than what our mainstream media is presenting to us.
I will say this in the simplest language I can use. Trump has (allegedly) sold pardons. And while there is no solid proof, intelligence operatives all over the world believe he has also sold classified information, even nuclear information. He sold fake college degrees, bad steaks, worse vodka, and even stole from his own charity. Is there anyone out there who believes he isn’t finding a way to sell redactions now that the Epstein Files are beginning to be released?
To be perfectly clear - I have no evidence that this is happening. I have no source, nor do I have a smoking gun. But it just makes sense. The moment The Epstein Transparency Act became law, we know that every rich pedophile implicated in the files picked up the phone and called The White House. They certainly wanted Trump to use his influence over the Department of Justice to cover up their crimes. Bribes were almost certainly offered.
Can anyone imagine a world in which Trump didn't take the money?
Brett Pransky is a writer, a teacher, a father, and a husband, but rarely in that order. He spends his days amplifying the voices of freedom and democracy as an Editor right here at The Political Voices Network, and he spends his nights trying to fix the world one clever sentence at a time.