[0:01]THE LAST WORD WITH LAWRENCE O'DONNELL STARTS RIGHT NOW. HEY, LAWRENCE. HEY JOHN, AND I SAY THIS FOR YOU AND THE CONTROL ROOM. UH, AS I WAS JUST LISTENING TO YOU, YOUR VOLUME WAS GOING UP AND DOWN ON MY END OF IT,
[0:13]SO I'M, I'M HOPING THAT WE, ARE GONNA FIX THAT, BUT IT'S. IT'S NOT GONNA BE A PROBLEM AT ALL FOR THE BEGINNING OF THIS PROGRAM BECAUSE YOU'RE GONNA TALK LOUD. WELL, NO, BECAUSE LISA RUBIN IS JOINING ME IN THE STUDIO,
[0:26]SO I CAN HEAR HER WITH MY ACTUAL IN THE ROOM EARS INSTEAD OF THROUGH THE WIRE'S EARS. AND SO IT'S ALL, IT'S ALL GONNA WORK. IT'S ALL GONNA BE FINE. GOOD. THAT'S THE THING WITH TECHNOLOGY. IT'S NOT ALWAYS PERFECT.
[0:39]WE DO THE BEST WE CAN, RIGHT? AND IT'S WORKING RIGHT NOW, SO I, I SHOULD GET TO IT WHILE IT'S WORKING. GET TO IT. THANKS, JEN. THANK YOU. THE DINNER MEETING SCHEDULED FOR VICE PRESIDENT'S
[0:53]RESIDENCE LAST NIGHT ABOUT THE EPSTEIN SITUATION DIDN'T HAPPEN AT THE VICE PRESIDENT'S RESIDENCE THANKS TO A LEAK FROM INSIDE THE TRUMP WHITE HOUSE, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION, THAT INDICATED
[1:06]VICE PRESIDENT VANCE PLANNED A DINNER MEETING AT HIS RESIDENCE LAST NIGHT. WITH WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF, SUZY WILES, THE TRUMP FBI DIRECTOR, THE TRUMP ATTORNEY GENERAL, AND THE TRUMP DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL,
[1:19]WHO WAS DONALD TRUMP'S PERSONAL CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER, TODD BLANCH, WHO IS THE ONLY CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER IN HISTORY. TO REPRESENT A PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES IN A TRIAL WHERE
[1:34]THAT PERSON WAS CONVICTED OF CRIMES BY A JURY OF HIS PEERS. NBC NEWS IS REPORTING THAT NO GATHERING OCCURRED LAST NIGHT AT THE VICE PRESIDENT'S RESIDENCE, WHICH WAS THE WORST POSSIBLE CHOICE OF VENUE
[1:50]FOR SUCH A MEETING, BECAUSE IT IS SO EASY FOR THE PRESS TO JUST STAKE OUT THE DRIVEWAY THERE TO MONITOR THE ENTRANCE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT'S RESIDENCE, TO SEE WHO'S COMING TO DINNER. NBC NEWS IS REPORTING
[2:03]THAT A GROUP DID MEET TO DISCUSS THE EPSTEIN SITUATION AT THE WHITE HOUSE LAST NIGHT, WHICH IS THE WAY THAT MEETING SHOULD HAVE BEEN PLANNED IN THE FIRST PLACE. BUT IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT EVEN THEN, EVEN WHEN THEY KEPT IT INDOORS AT THE WHITE HOUSE WITH
[2:18]NO ONE ABLE TO WATCH WHO WAS COMING AND GOING, SOMEONE AT LEAST ONE PERSON OR MORE INSIDE THE TRUMP WHITE HOUSE, INSIDE THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS LEAKING
[2:31]ABOUT THESE MEETINGS, ABOUT THE SCHEDULING OF THESE MEETINGS, AND ABOUT THEM ACTUALLY HAPPENING. SOMEONE IN THERE WORKING FOR DONALD TRUMP. WANTS NEWS ORGANIZATIONS TO KNOW THAT THE TRUMP WHITE HOUSE
[2:45]AND TRUMP CABINET MEMBERS ARE DESPERATELY TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO REWRITE HISTORY TO ERASE DONALD TRUMP'S FRIENDSHIP WITH JEFFREY EPSTEIN, WHO SAID, BEFORE HE DIED IN PRISON,
[2:59]I WAS DONALD'S CLOSEST FRIEND FOR 10 YEARS. REWRITING HISTORY IS A LARGER PROJECT FOR THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION, WHICH WE WILL GET TO LATER IN THIS HOUR WITH YALE HISTORIAN DAVID BLIGHT.
[3:12]BUT REWRITING DONALD TRUMP'S PERSONAL HISTORY IS EVEN MORE IMPORTANT TO DONALD TRUMP. BUT PHOTOGRAPHS DON'T LIE. AND THAT IS DONALD TRUMP RIGHT THERE,
[3:27]SITTING BESIDE GUILLAINE MAXWELL IN THAT PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF GUILLAINE MAXWELL'S YEARS OF REIGN OF TERROR AGAINST CHILDREN WHO SHE
[3:42]PERSONALLY MOLESTED. ALONG WITH JEFFREY EPSTEIN. JEFFREY EPSTEIN WASN'T THE ONE LURING THOSE CHILDREN INTO HIS HOME. THAT WAS ELAINE MAXWELL'S JOB. AND THAT'S WHAT VICTIMS TESTIFIED TO UNDER OATH IN FEDERAL COURT,
[3:59]WHEN GLAINE MAXWELL WAS CONVICTED BY A UNANIMOUS JURY OF SEX TRAFFICKING. DONALD TRUMP'S OWN JUSTICE DEPARTMENT HAS SAID GLAINE MAXWELL AND JEFFREY EPSTEIN HAD OVER 1000 VICTIMS,
[4:12]AN UNCOUNTABLE NUMBER OF VICTIMS. THEY DON'T KNOW HOW MANY MORE OVER 1000, HOW MANY THOUSANDS IT MIGHT BE. JEFFREY EPSTEIN WAS RAPING GIRLS ON AN ALMOST DAILY BASIS FOR DECADES.
[4:29]AND HE WAS DOING IT WHEN HE SAID HE WAS DONALD TRUMP'S CLOSEST FRIEND. TODAY THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS CORPS ONCE AGAIN FAILED TO ASK DONALD TRUMP. ABOUT HIS FRIENDSHIP WITH GUILLAINE MAXWELL AND WHY HIS CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER
[4:44]WENT TO FLORIDA TO QUESTION GUILLAINE MAXWELL BEFORE GRANTING HER A TRANSFER TO A TO A PRISON THAT ONE FORMER FEDERAL PRISON OFFICIAL CALLS A COUNTRY CLUB. THAT'S IN TEXAS,
[4:58]CLOSE TO ELAINE MAXWELL'S FAMILY. A MINIMUM SECURITY FACILITY, WHICH DOES NOT ALLOW SEX OFFENDERS LIKE GILLAINE MAXWELL, UNLESS THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES WANTS THAT PARTICULAR
[5:12]CHILD RAPIST WHO HE USED TO BE FRIENDS WITH, TO BE GIVEN SPECIAL TREATMENT. WHICH IS WHAT DONALD TRUMP'S OLD FRIEND, GUILLAINE MAXWELL IS GETTING TONIGHT FROM DONALD TRUMP'S
[5:26]JUSTICE DEPARTMENT. THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS CORPS GOT TO ASK, EXACTLY 6.5 QUESTIONS TODAY. THEY WASTED THOSE QUESTIONS, OF COURSE. ONE WAS ABOUT TARIFFS THAT,
[5:39]AS USUAL, PRODUCED A NON-ANSWER. AND THE OTHER QUESTIONS WERE ABOUT VLADIMIR PUTIN, WITH THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS CORPS FOOLISHLY PURSUING QUESTIONS LIKE THIS QUESTION. IS YOUR DEADLINE STILL STANDING FOR VLADIMIR
[5:53]PUTIN TO AGREE TO A CEASEFIRE TOMORROW, OR IS THAT FLUID NOW? TO WHICH DONALD TRUMP SAID, IT'S GOING TO BE UP TO HIM. THOSE ARE HIS WORDS. NOW, IT IS NOT NEWS
[6:06]THAT DONALD TRUMP DOES NOT EVER MAKE DEMANDS ON VLADIMIR PUTIN. IT IS NOT NEWS THAT DONALD TRUMP DOES NOT HAVE DEADLINES WITH VLADIMIR PUTIN. IT IS NOT NEWS THAT AS FAR AS DONALD TRUMP IS CONCERNED,
[6:20]WHEN IT COMES TO VLADIMIR PUTIN, QUOTE, THAT'S THE WAY IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN WITH DONALD TRUMP AND VLADIMIR PUTIN. AND SO WHITE HOUSE REPORTERS SHOULDN'T BE WASTING THEIR QUESTIONS ON JUNK LIKE THAT.
[6:33]IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN UP TO VLADIMIR PUTIN. WHEN DONALD TRUMP ASKED VLADIMIR PUTIN PUBLICLY DURING THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN TO PLEASE HACK HILLARY CLINTON'S EMAILS, DONALD TRUMP KNEW.
[6:47]IT WAS GONNA BE UP TO HIM. IT WAS GONNA BE UP TO VLADIMIR PUTIN, AND VLADIMIR PUTIN IMMEDIATELY DELIVERED. AT AN IDIOTIC TRUMP CAMPAIGN RALLY IN 2016, DONALD TRUMP SAID RUSSIA, IF YOU'RE LISTENING, AND THEN
[7:00]PUBLICLY BEGGED RUSSIAN SPIES AND RUSSIAN HACKERS AND RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AND VLADIMIR PUTIN TO OBTAIN AND RELEASE HILLARY CLINTON'S EMAILS. AND THEY DID.
[7:15]NOTHING LIKE THAT CAN POSSIBLY HAPPEN IN RUSSIA WITHOUT VLADIMIR PUTIN DECIDING THAT IT SHOULD HAPPEN. 12 RUSSIAN OFFICIALS WERE INDICTED IN THE UNITED STATES FOR THAT THEFT AND FOR THEIR INTERFERENCE IN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION,
[7:29]INTERFERENCE THAT COULD ONLY HAVE BEEN ORDERED BY VLADIMIR PUTIN. AND SO DONALD TRUMP'S REAL ANSWER ABOUT VLADIMIR PUTIN EVERY TIME, NO MATTER WHAT QUESTION YOU'RE ASKING, IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE.
[7:43]IT'S GONNA BE UP TO HIM. WHITE HOUSE PRESS CORPS' QUESTIONS REVEALED ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TODAY, NOTHING. BUT WHITE HOUSE REPORTERS DID EXACTLY WHAT DONALD TRUMP WANTED THEM TO DO THIS TIME,
[7:57]EXACTLY. THEY DIDN'T SPEAK A WORD ABOUT HIS FRIENDS JEFFREY EPSTEIN AND GLENN MAXWELL. NOT ONE REPORTER BROUGHT THEM UP. TODAY, ANOTHER VICTIM'S LAWYER,
[8:11]ROBERT GLASSMAN, FILED A LETTER CONCERNING THE TRUMP JUSTICE DEPARTMENT'S REQUEST TO UNSEAL THE EPSTEIN AND MAXWELL GRAND JURY TESTIMONY. ROBERT GLASSMAN REPRESENTS THE VICTIM WHO TESTIFIED IN GILLAINE MAXWELL'S TRIAL.
[8:25]UNDER A PSEUDONYM, AS OTHER WITNESSES DID, TO PROTECT PRIVACY. THAT VICTIM, KNOWN IN THE COURTROOM AS JANE, TESTIFIED THAT SHE MET ELAINE MAXWELL AND JEFFREY EPSTEIN WHILE AT A SUMMER CAMP WHEN SHE WAS
[8:40]14 YEARS OLD. YES, THAT WAS THE ENTRY AGE FOR MANY OF GUILLAINE MAXWELL'S VICTIMS, AND JEFFREY EPSTEIN'S VICTIMS.
[8:55]HERE IS SOME OF JANE'S TESTIFYING. WHEN YOU WERE 14 YEARS OLD AND THERE WERE TIMES WHERE YOU WERE ALONE WITH MAXWELL AND EPSTEIN, WHAT KINDS OF SEXUAL CONDUCT WOULD OCCUR DURING THOSE INCIDENTS?
[9:08]ANSWER, IT WOULD BE THEM LEADING ME TO A MASSAGE TABLE AND SHOWING ME HOW JEFFREY LIKES TO BE MASSAGED. QUESTION. WHO WOULD TELL YOU HOW JEFFREY LIKES TO BE MASSAGED? ANSWER. ELAINE AND JEFFREY.
[9:22]HOW DID HE LIKE TO BE MASSAGED? LIKE HE, HE LIKED, LIKE VERY HARD, LIKE, LIKE RUBBING HIS SHOULDERS REALLY HARD AND LIKE TWISTING HIS NIPPLES HARD, AND RUBBING HIS FEET HARD
[9:35]AND LIKE HIS HEAD. WHO WOULD GIVE YOU INSTRUCTIONS? WHAT KIND OF INSTRUCTIONS WOULD THEY GIVE YOU? JUST SHOWING ME, YOU KNOW, WHAT HE LIKES, WHAT,
[9:49]WHAT MEN LIKE, WHAT WOMEN LIKE, SORT OF TOUCHING ON BREASTS AND TOUCHING HIS PENIS. QUESTION, WHAT WAS MAXWELL'S DEMEANOR LIKE DURING THESE INCIDENTS? I WOULD SAY THAT IT SEEMED VERY CASUAL,
[10:02]LIKE IT WAS LIKE IT WAS VERY NORMAL, LIKE IT WAS NOT A BIG DEAL. AND WHEN SHE BEHAVED LIKE THAT, HOW DID THAT MAKE YOU FEEL? IT MADE ME FEEL CONFUSED BECAUSE THAT DID NOT FEEL NORMAL TO ME.
[10:16]I'D NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS, OR FELT ANY OF THIS, AND IT WAS VERY EMBARRASSING. IT'S ALL THOSE MIXED EMOTIONS. WHEN YOU'RE 14, YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT'S GOING ON. DURING THESE INCIDENTS THAT WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING,
[10:31]DID EPSTEIN TOUCH YOUR BODY? ANSWER YES. WHERE DID EPSTEIN TOUCH YOUR BODY? HE WOULD TOUCH MY BREASTS, HE WOULD TOUCH MY VAGINA. DURING THESE INCIDENTS, WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING,
[10:44]WHEN YOU WERE 14, DID YOU TOUCH EPSTEIN'S BODY? YES. WHERE DID YOU TOUCH HIS BODY? EVERYWHERE. DID MAXWELL EVER TOUCH YOUR BODY?
[11:02]WHERE WOULD SHE TOUCH YOU? I WOULD SAY MAINLY MY BREASTS. THE PROSECUTOR AT GUILLAINE MAXWELL'S SENTENCING HEARING SAID, GUILLAINE MAXWELL AND JEFFREY EPSTEIN
[11:16]WERE PREDATORS TOGETHER. THEY MOLESTED KIDS TOGETHER, AND DONALD TRUMP IS NOW PUBLICLY ENTERTAINING THE POSSIBILITY OF PARDONING HIS OLD FRIEND IN THAT PHOTOGRAPH, GLAINE MAXWELL.
[11:29]DONALD TRUMP HAS BEEN OFFERED NUMEROUS OPPORTUNITIES TO SAY THAT HE WOULD NOT DO THAT, TO SAY THAT HE WOULD NOT PARDON A CHILD MOLESTER LIKE GILLAINE MAXWELL, LIKE HIS FRIEND GUILLAINE MAXWELL, AND DONALD TRUMP HAS REFUSED TO SAY THAT.
[11:44]DONALD TRUMP IS PUBLICLY HOLDING HIS PARDON POWER OVER GUILLAINE MAXWELL SO THAT SHE KNOWS VERY CLEARLY THAT SHE MUST NEVER SAY ANYTHING NEGATIVE ABOUT DONALD TRUMP. AS SHE CONTINUES TO HOPE FOR A PARDON OR
[11:58]AN ELIMINATION OF THE REMAINDER OF HER SENTENCE. IN THE PAST, DONALD TRUMP HAS SAID SOMETHING ABOUT ELAINE MAXWELL THAT HE HAS NEVER SAID ABOUT ANY OF HER VICTIMS, LIKE JANE, WHO YOU JUST HEARD FROM,
[12:11]ABOUT GUILLAINE MAXWELL ONLY, DONALD TRUMP SAID, I WISH HER WELL. DID DONALD TRUMP SEND HIS CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER TO ELAINE MAXWELL TO PERSONALLY WISH HER WELL? THE DEMOCRATS IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
[12:26]WHO SUPPORT A SUBPOENA TO THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TO OBTAIN THE EPSTEIN FILES ARE ALSO URGING A SUBPOENA FOR THE TESTIMONY OF ALEX ACOSTA, WHO SERVED AS THE US ATTORNEY FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA, WHO AGREED TO A PLEA BARGAIN WITH JEFFREY.
[12:40]EPSTEIN, THE FIRST TIME JEFFREY EPSTEIN FACED FEDERAL CHARGES THAT DID NOT EVEN REQUIRE EPSTEIN TO SERVE TIME IN PRISON. THAT WAS THE RESULT OF THE PLEA BARGAIN. NO REAL TIME IN PRISON. HE WAS ALLOWED TO LEAVE
[12:53]A MINIMUM SECURITY FACILITY EVERY DAY. THE PLACE WHERE HE SLEPT AT NIGHT, HE WAS ALLOWED TO LEAVE THERE DURING HIS SHORT SERVICE OF THAT SENTENCE, TO GO TO HIS OFFICE IN FLORIDA. NEARLY EVERY DAY.
[13:07]JEFFREY EPSTEIN CONTINUED RAPING CHILDREN AFTER THAT PLEA BARGAIN THAT ALEX ACOSTA ARRANGED FOR HIM. ALEX ACOSTA THEN WENT ON TO SERVE.
[13:20]AS DONALD TRUMP'S FIRST SECRETARY OF LABOR DURING THE FIRST TRUMP PRESIDENCY, ALEX ACOSTA'S NAME IS CONSPICUOUSLY ABSENT FROM THE LIST OF FORMER JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS, INCLUDING REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS,
[13:33]WHOSE TESTIMONY HAS BEEN SUBPOENAED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. BUT NO WHITE HOUSE REPORTER HAS BOTHERED TO ASK DONALD TRUMP WHAT HE THINKS OF HIS FRIEND, ALEX ACOSTA,
[13:47]MAKING SUCH AN EASY PLEA BARGAIN DEAL WITH HIS FRIEND JEFFREY EPSTEIN. LEADING OFF OUR DISCUSSION TONIGHT IS MSNBC LEGAL CORRESPONDENT LISA RUBIN. LISA, THERE'S SO MUCH GROUND TO COVER HERE,
[14:00]AND I WANT TO, JUST OPEN IT TO YOU TO TAKE IT IN ANY DIRECTION YOU WANT. BUT LET'S BEGIN WITH THIS, ALEX ACOSTA CONSPICUOUS ABSENCE FROM THE SUBPOENA LIST. IT'S PARTICULARLY BIZARRE, LAWRENCE, BECAUSE IN 2019,
[14:13]THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE'S OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY. OPENED AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE CONDUCT OF ALEX ACOSTA AND 4 OTHER LAWYERS ACTING UNDER HIS SUPERVISION IN THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA. THAT'S THE OFFICE WHERE HE WAS THE US ATTORNEY,
[14:27]AND THEY ISSUED A 350 PAGE REPORT AS A RESULT OF THAT INVESTIGATION BECAUSE WHAT THEY WERE LOOKING INTO WAS DID ALEX ACOSTA COMMIT PROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT IN NEGOTIATING. THE VERY DEAL WITH JEFFREY EPSTEIN THAT YOU WERE JUST MENTIONING.
[14:43]NOW ALEX ACOSTA WAS EXTENSIVELY INTERVIEWED BY THE OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY. HE WAS GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO SUBMIT WRITTEN RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS, WHICH HE DID. HE WAS ALSO GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW HIS INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT,
[14:57]PROVIDE COMMENTS ON THAT AS WELL, AND SEE A COPY OF THE DRAFT REPORT. AND YET, HOUSE OVERSIGHT HAS NEVER MENTIONED WHETHER OR NOT THEY'VE TAKEN A DEEP DIVE INTO THAT REPORT OR REQUESTED THE BACKGROUND MATERIALS,
[15:10]MUCH LESS SUBPOENAED ALEX ACOSTA ON HIS OWN. I WILL TELL YOU I'VE READ A GOOD AMOUNT OF THAT REPORT, AND ALEX ACOSTA WAS ASKED WHY HE CUT THAT DEAL WITH JEFFREY EPSTEIN, AND HE SAID THAT IT WAS TO PREVENT A MANIFEST INJUSTICE THAT HE DIDN'T WANT TO
[15:25]STEP ON THE PREROGATIVES OF STATE PROSECUTORS, BUT RATHER HE SAW FEDERAL INTERVENTION THERE AS SORT OF BEING A BACKSTOP. WHERE THE STATE HAD FAILED, I GUESS MY QUESTION TO ALEX ACOSTA, WERE I A MEMBER ON THE HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE, WOULD BE,
[15:37]SIR, ABOUT THAT DEAL DO YOU THINK PREVENTED A MANIFEST INJUSTICE? WHAT PART OF THAT DEAL WAS JUSTICE FOR THE VICTIMS? WAS IT THE PART THAT SAID YOU WEREN'T GOING TO MAKE THE DEAL PUBLIC AND THEREAFTER CONCEAL IT
[15:51]FROM THE VICTIMS WHO HAD COOPERATED WITH YOUR INVESTIGATION AND THAT OF THE PALM BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT? WAS THAT THE PART THAT PREVENTED THE MANIFEST IN? JUSTICE, OR WAS IT THE PART WHERE YOU GAVE HIM SUCH A SHORT STINT IN PRISON THAT HE THERE
[16:06]THEREAFTER NEGOTIATED IT DOWN EVEN FURTHER, AS YOU SAID, TO ONLY SLEEP THERE AND HAVE DAYTIME RELEASE. IT'S PERVERSE, IT'S WACKY, AND I CAN'T, I, I CAN'T FOR THE LIFE OF ME UNDERSTAND HIS OMISSION FROM THAT LIST.
[16:20]AND NOTHING ABOUT THE PLEA DEAL THAT ALEX ACOSTA MADE WITH JEFFREY EPSTEIN STOPPED JEFFREY EPSTEIN FROM CONTINUING TO RAPE CHILDREN. IT DOESN'T APPEAR THAT WAY AT ALL. I MEAN, CERTAINLY SOME OF THE CONDUCT OF HIS THAT WAS
[16:33]AT ISSUE IN THE LATER PROSECUTIONS EXTENDED TO A PERIOD BEYOND THAT PERIOD OF TIME. SO, AND, AND HOW DOES ALEX ACOSTA'S INVESTIGATION MISS GLAINE MAXWELL?
[16:47]BECAUSE SHE DOESN'T GET CHARGED UNTIL YEARS LATER BY ANOTHER US ATTORNEY IN NEW YORK. THAT'S NOT CLEAR TO ME EITHER, BECAUSE AT THE TIME PROSECUTORS WERE LOOKING INTO CERTAIN ALLEGED CO-CONSPIRATORS OF JEFFREY EPSTEIN'S.
[17:00]IN FACT, 4 OF THEM ARE NAMED IN THAT NON-PROSECUTION AGREEMENT, AND NONE OF THEM ARE NAMED GLAINE MAXWELL. AND THAT MAY BE BECAUSE AT THAT POINT IN TIME THERE WAS SOMEONE ELSE IN PALM BEACH WHO WAS SORT OF ACTING IN A GLAINE MAXWELL-LIKE CAPACITY,
[17:14]SOMEONE WHO WAS. PRINCIPALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RECRUITMENT OF THESE YOUNG WOMEN DURING THAT PERIOD OF TIME. AGAIN, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT 2006, 2007 WHEN THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA WAS DOING ITS INVESTIGATION,
[17:27]BUT WE CERTAINLY KNOW FROM OTHER VICTIMS, INCLUDING AT GUILLAINE MAXWELL'S OWN TRIAL, THAT A DECADE PRIOR GUILLAINE MAXWELL WAS IN FACT THE MADAM OF THE HOUSE, SHE WAS THE ONE WHO RECRUITED, FOR EXAMPLE, VIRGINIA GIUFFRE, WHO IS NO LONGER WITH US,
[17:41]FROM MAR A LAGO WHERE SHE WAS DOING A SUMMER. JOB AS A SPA ATTENDANT BASICALLY HANDING OUT TOWELS IN THE LOCKER ROOM. SHE'S THE ONE DONALD TRUMP CONSIDERS STOLEN PROPERTY AND AS FOR GLENN MAXWELL, SHE'S THE ONE HE WISHES WELL.
[17:54]THERE'S SOMETHING REALLY, REALLY BACKWARDS ABOUT THAT. I WANT TO SAY ONE MORE THING ABOUT THAT OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY REPORT BECAUSE IT EXTENSIVELY TALKS ABOUT THE BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN JEFFREY EPSTEIN'S LAWYERS AND THE PROSECUTORS.
[18:08]AND AT THE TIME, JEFFREY EPSTEIN'S LAWYERS WERE TRYING TO GET OUT. OF THE REQUIREMENT THAT HE REGISTER AS A SEX OFFENDER, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THEY SAID TO THE PROSECUTORS AS THEY WERE CUTTING THE DEAL WAS, THAT'S OFF THE TABLE FOR US BECAUSE YOU KNOW IT'S BEEN IMPORTANT
[18:22]TO US THAT JEFFREY SERVED HIS TIME AT A FEDERAL PRISON CAMP. AND IF YOU FORCE HIM TO REGISTER AS A SEX OFFENDER AND PLEAD GUILTY TO A SEX REGISTRY QUALIFYING OFFENSE, HE WILL BE PRECLUDED FROM SERVING IN A FEDERAL PRISON CAMP.
[18:36]WHY DO I MENTION THAT? BECAUSE EVEN IN 2007, IT WAS OBVIOUS AS DAY TO THE PEOPLE REPRESENTING JEFFREY EPSTEIN THAT BEING A SEX OFFENDER AND BEING IN A FEDERAL PRISON CAMP DIDN'T WORK TOGETHER,
[18:49]YOU COULDN'T BE A FEDERAL SEX OFFENDER AND BE IN A FEDERAL PRISON CAMP, AND YET HERE WE ARE WITH GLAINE MAXWELL IN THAT EXACT SITUATION RIGHT NOW, AND THE BUREAU OF PRISONS AND THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE WILL NOT EXPLAIN WHY SHE GOT A WAIVER ALLOWING HER TO NOW BE AT FEDERAL PRISON CAMP
[19:03]IN BRYAN, TEXAS. AND OF COURSE IN TRUMP WORLD IT IT'S ONE OF THOSE EXPLANATIONS WE DON'T NEED. IT'S LIKE VLADIMIR PUTIN WORLD. WE KNOW WHERE THAT COMES FROM. WE KNOW HOW A SEX OFFENDER GETS INTO A PRISON IN THE FEDERAL SYSTEM THAT
[19:18]THEY'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE IN WHEN THAT PERSON IS A FRIEND OF DONALD TRUMP, WHICH SHE, SHE WAS. SO AS WE GO FORWARD, WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR IN TERMS OF DEVELOPMENTS,
[19:31]LET'S SAY WITH, WITH THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WHEN THEY COME BACK IN SEPTEMBER, DAY TO DAY. IT'S, IT'S VERY HARD TO SAY WHAT'S HAPPENING NEXT WITHIN THIS ADMINISTRATION. THERE'S THE CRAZY JD VANCE MEETING, WHICH, OH BY THE WAY, COULDN'T POSSIBLY HAVE SOLVED ANYTHING,
[19:45]NO MATTER WHAT THEY DISCUSSED IN THAT MEETING. THEY COULDN'T POSSIBLY HAVE COME UP WITH A SOLUTION, SO THEY'VE PAID THE PUBLIC PRICE FOR SCHEMING AROUND THAT KIND OF MEETING, WHICH WAS A HOPELESS MEETING TO BEGIN WITH. IT WAS ALSO A HIGHLY IMPROPER MEETING TO BEGIN WITH,
[20:00]OUR COLLEAGUE KEN DELANIAN SAID THE OTHER DAY THAT THE WAY THAT THIS DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE. AND THIS WHITE HOUSE ARE BEHAVING HAS SHATTERED THE POST-WATERGATE NORM OF INSTULATING THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE FROM POLITICAL PRESSURES, AND I WOULD GO FURTHER THAN THAT. NOT ONLY DID THEY SHATTER THE NORM, IT'S LIKE BOTH SIDES ARE WALKING THROUGH THAT
[20:14]SHATTERED WINDOW ROUTINELY DAY BY DAY BY DAY, BUT LEAVING IT AS A CRIME SCENE FOR ALL OF US TO SEE. IN TERMS OF WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR NEXT, THERE ARE DEMOCRATS ON HOUSE OVERSIGHT THAT TODAY FOR THE FIRST TIME SAID YOU SHOULD BRING IN THE VICTIMS,
[20:27]AND YOU SHOULD GIVE ANY VICTIM WHO WANTS A VOICE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TESTIFY, AND MANY VICTIMS WILL NOT. THEY WANT THAT. THEY FIND THE DRIP DRIP OF NEW INFORMATION OR NEW THINGS THAT THE ADMINISTRATION IS FLOATING TO BE AKIN TO THEIR OWN PUBLIC WATERBOARDING,
[20:40]SOME OF THEM WILL NOT INVITE THAT, BUT OTHERS OF THEM MAY WANT THAT. AND IF THIS ADMINISTRATION IS REALLY BENT ON SOME FORM OF ACCOUNTABILITY OR TRANSPARENCY, THAT CERTAINLY WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT THEY WOULD ADVISE THEIR GOP COLLEAGUES IN THE HOUSE TO DO.
[20:54]THE OTHER THING I'M LOOKING AT, WE KEEP FOCUSING ON THE SUBPOENAS TO INDIVIDUALS FOR THEIR TESTIMONY. I'M FAR MORE CONCERNED WITH THE SUBPOENA TO THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE FOR THEIR MATERIALS BECAUSE THAT SUBPOENA GOES WELL BEYOND WHAT WE CONSIDER THE EPSTEIN FILES
[21:09]AND WOULD ENCOMPASS ALL THE COMMUNICATIONS THAT HAVE BEEN CREATED SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS ADMINISTRATION ABOUT JEFFREY EPSTEIN AND GLAINE MAXWELL, AND MANY OF THOSE DOCUMENTS A WON'T BE PRIVILEGED, AND B, AS YOU WELL KNOW,
[21:22]THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DOESN'T RECOGNIZE AN ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE, DOESN'T RECOGNIZE A DELIBERATE PROCESS PRIVILEGE. THE SORT OF THINGS YOU CAN USE TO PROTECT DOCUMENTS FROM COMING OUT IN LITIGATION, THAT'S OFF THE TABLE IN CONGRESS. SO LET'S SEE IF THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE PLAYS BALL WITH HOUSE OVERSIGHT OR NOT.
[21:37]I'M GOING TO PREDICT THAT THEY DON'T, BUT WHAT WILL BE MOST INTERESTING TO ME IS HOW THE REPUBLICANS THEN BEHAVE WHEN THERE IS THAT STANDOFF ABOUT COOPERATING. LISA RUBIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR STARTING US OFF TONIGHT. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AND COMING UP,
[21:50]WHAT DOES A $5 MILLION DONATION TO DONALD TRUMP BUY YOU? THE ANSWER IS A LOT MORE THAN $5 MILLION IN PROFITS. THAT'S NEXT. FOR ONE THING,
[22:15]A SEAT AT A CANDLELIT DINNER AT DONALD TRUMP'S FLORIDA RESIDENCE IN MARCH, WHICH WAS BILLED AS HAVING VERY LIMITED SPACE. AND FOR ONE HEALTHCARE PRODUCTS COMPANY EXECUTIVE,
[22:27]IT BROUGHT, IT BROUGHT HIM ANOTHER YEAR OF EXCESSIVE PAYMENTS FROM MEDICARE GIVEN TO HIS COMPANY BY DONALD TRUMP. DONALD TRUMP HAS REPEATEDLY LIED IN SAYING THAT HE WANTS TO ELIMINATE
[22:42]WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND IN MEDICARE. HERE'S WHAT HE SAID. WE'RE CUTTING THREE THINGS WASTE, AND ABUSE. WE'RE NOT CHANGING MEDICAID
[22:55]AND WE'RE NOT CHANGING MEDICARE. AND THEY ALSO DID NOT CUT WASTE, A NEW YORK TIMES INVESTIGATION INTO UNSTUDIED AND VERY EXPENSIVE BANDAGES
[23:09]FOUND THAT SPENDING ON WHAT THEY CALL SKIN SUBSTITUTES FOR SENIORS ON MEDICARE IS ONE OF THE LARGEST EXAMPLES OF MEDICARE WASTE IN HISTORY. PRIVATE INSURERS RARELY PAY FOR SKIN SUBSTITUTES,
[23:24]ARGUING THAT THEY ARE UNPROVEN AND UNNECESSARY, BUT MEDICARE ROUTINELY COVERS THEM. SPENDING ON SKIN SUBSTITUTES EXCEEDED $10 BILLION IN 2024, MORE THAN
[23:37]DOUBLE THE FIGURE IN 2023, ACCORDING TO AN ANALYSIS OF MEDICARE DATA DONE FOR THE TIMES, MEDICARE NOW SPENDS MORE ON THE BANDAGES THAN ON AMBULANCE RIDES, ANESTHESIA,
[23:50]OR CT SCANS, THE ANALYSIS FOUND. LAST YEAR, THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION INTRODUCED A NEW POLICY THAT WOULD COVER BANDAGES ONLY IF HIGH QUALITY RESEARCH COULD SHOW
[24:02]THAT THE PRODUCT ACTUALLY WORKED. THE POLICY WAS SUPPOSED TO GO INTO EFFECT THIS APRIL, BUT NOW, AFTER A $5 MILLION DONATION, DONALD TRUMP HAS DELAYED THE BIDEN RULE.
[24:16]THE NEW YORK TIMES REPORTS THAT AT A DINNER FOR DONORS HOSTED BY TRUMP, A CEO. OF A COMPANY THAT SELLS EXPENSIVE BANDAGES MADE MADE OF DISCARDED PLACENTA, GOT A CHANCE TO SPEAK TO TRUMP.
[24:30]HE ALSO BROUGHT COPIES OF A FLYER URGING THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TO REVERSE A PLAN TO RESTRICT MEDICARE REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE BANDAGES AND CRITICIZING FORMER PRESIDENT JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
[24:43]FOR HAVING RAMMED THROUGH A POLICY THAT WOULD CREATE MORE SUFFERING AND DEATH FOR DIABETIC PATIENTS ON MEDICARE. THE NEXT MORNING, MR. TRUMP POSTED THE FLYER ON HIS SOCIAL MEDIA SITE. IT WAS NOT JUST SYMBOLIC.
[24:57]ABOUT ONE MONTH LATER, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCED IT WOULD DELAY UNTIL NEXT YEAR. THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PLANNED TO LIMIT MEDICARE COVERAGE OF THE BANDAGES KNOWN AS SKIN SUBSTITUTES, SAYING THAT IT WAS REVIEWING ITS POLICIES.
[25:11]SINCE APRIL, THE MONTH WHEN THE BIDEN INITIATED CHANGE, WOULD HAVE OTHERWISE GOT INTO EFFECT. MEDICARE HAS PAID DOCTORS AND OTHER MEDICAL PROVIDERS MORE THAN $2.3 BILLION.
[25:26]FOR SKIN SUBSTITUTES. JOINING US NOW IS NEW YORK TIMES REPORTER KEN VOGEL. KEN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH UH FOR THIS REPORT. I KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO DO THIS KIND OF WORK AND TO GET AT THIS DATA AND,
[25:38]AND THESE DETAILS. WHAT ELSE DID YOU LEARN ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR REIMBURSEMENT, BEING CONTINUED? YEAH, THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION HAD INITIATED THIS RULE
[25:51]CHANGE TO THE MEDICARE REIMBURSEMENT RATES. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN REALLY BAD FOR THESE COMPANIES, AND THEY WERE RAISING A RUCKUS ABOUT IT AS SOON AS THE ANNOUNCEMENT CAME OUT LAST YEAR, AND THEY WENT IN VERY AGGRESSIVELY FOR DONALD TRUMP. SOME OF THEM HAD NEVER
[26:04]GIVEN TO TRUMP BEFORE, AND THEY MADE THESE HUGE DONATIONS, SOMETIMES CORPORATE DONATIONS, TO THE TRUMP SUPER PAC. THERE WAS AN EARLIER INSTANCE LAST YEAR WITH THE SAME COMPANY THAT WE WROTE ABOUT WHOSE EXECUTIVE WENT TO THIS DINNER AT MAR A LAGO IN MARCH,
[26:19]WHERE IN LATE MAY OF LAST YEAR THEY HAD MADE A $1 MILLION DONATION TO SORT OF A PREDECESSOR PAC, WHICH AT THAT POINT WAS HELPING TRUMP AND HIS ELECTION CAMPAIGN JUST A FEW WEEKS.
[26:33]LATER, TRUMP INITIALLY TWEETS OUT SOMETHING GOING AFTER THIS PROPOSED BIDEN RULE CHANGE. SO THAT'S WHEN THESE FOLKS IN THIS INDUSTRY REALIZED THAT THEY HAD POTENTIALLY A FRIEND IN TRUMP AND
[26:45]WHO KNOWS WHETHER HE ACTUALLY BELIEVED THAT THIS WAS SOMETHING THAT, WAS IN THE BEST INTEREST OF SENIORS AND DIABETICS IN PARTICULAR, AS HIS AS HIS POST SAID. OR WHETHER, AS WAS THE CASE WITH THIS POST THAT WE WROTE ABOUT,
[26:59]HE WAS LITERALLY JUST PARROTING THE TALKING POINTS OF THE DONORS WHO HAD GIVEN HIM A BUNCH OF MONEY AND GOT IN HIS EAR AT ONE OF THESE EXCLUSIVE DINNERS. IN THE CASE OF THE
[27:11]FLYER THAT YOU MENTIONED THAT TRUMP POSTED THAT WAS ACTUALLY DELIVERED BY THIS GUY, THIS EXECUTIVE WHOSE COMPANY HAD GIVEN $5 MILLION. TRUMP DIDN'T EVEN ATTRIBUTE IT. HE JUST TOOK A PHOTO, LITERALLY TOOK A PHOTO OF THIS FLYER AND PUT IT UP ON HIS TRUE SOCIAL PAGE WITHOUT INDICATING WHERE IT CAME FROM,
[27:26]ALMOST AS IF IT WAS HIS OWN WORDS, WHEN IN FACT IT WAS THE WORDS OF A DONOR WHO HAD JUST PAID A BUNCH OF MONEY TO GET ACCESS. IT'S MEDICAL COSTS CAN ALWAYS SURPRISE US, BUT I HAVE TO SAY I'VE NEVER SEEN. ANYTHING QUITE LIKE THIS.
[27:38]WHAT THE PRODUCT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CAN COST, ACCORDING TO ONE ITEM IN YOUR REPORT HERE, $11,283 PER SQUARE INCH
[27:51]OF THIS PRODUCT. THAT'S HOW YOU GET UP INTO BILLIONS OF DOLLARS REALLY FAST. THERE WERE TWO PRODUCTS THAT WERE AROUND THAT SAME PRICE THAT WERE OFFERED BY THIS COMPANY. IT'S CALLED EXTREMITY CARE. IT'S A SUBURBAN PHILADELPHIA COMPANY
[28:06]AND UH OVERALL BILLING, THIS IS NOT JUST SINCE APRIL WHEN THE CHANGE WOULD HAVE GONE INTO EFFECT BEFORE IT WAS DELAYED, BUT OVERALL BILLING UH THROUGH MEDICARE FOR THESE TWO REIMBURSEMENTS THROUGH MEDICARE FOR THESE TWO
[28:20]TYPES OF PATCHES WAS $1.4 BILLION. SO JUST TO THIS ONE COMPANY FOR. TWO PRODUCTS. SO AND NOT TO THE COMPANY, BUT FOR THE REIMBURSEMENT TO THE DOCTORS WHICH ULTIMATELY WERE DOWN TO THE BENEFIT OF THE COMPANY.
[28:33]SO YOU SEE HOW LUCRATIVE THIS THIS SPACE IS AND COMPLETELY MISSED BY ELON MUSK AND BUT NOT MISSED BY DONALD TRUMP. HE APPARENTLY KNOWS WHAT HE'S DECIDED TO DO HERE. KEN VOGEL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR JOINING US TONIGHT.
[28:46]PLEASURE. DONALD TRUMP HAS DECIDED THAT OUR GREATEST UNIVERSITIES ARE HIS ENEMIES, AND HE WANTS TO REWRITE HISTORY USING AN APPROACH SIMILAR TO WHAT THE THIRD REICH USED IN GERMANY DURING THE RISE OF ADOLF HITLER,
[29:02]SO SAYS OUR NEXT GUEST, YALE HISTORY PROFESSOR DAVID BLIGHT, WHO WANTS TO BRING WHAT HE CALLS DONALD TRUMP'S HISTORY DEPARTMENT OUT OF THE SHADOWS AND EXPOSE THEIR LIES.
[29:18]THE WORLD GOT GREAT NEWS FROM HARVARD THIS WEEK AS WE HAVE COUNTLESS TIMES OVER THE CENTURIES WITH HARVARD RESEARCHERS COMING UP WITH NEW WAYS TO SAVE OUR LIVES. HARVARD GAVE US THE SMALLPOX VACCINE IN 1799.
[29:36]THE DEAN OF HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL, DOCTOR JOHN WARREN, WAS THE VERY FIRST SURGEON TO USE ANESTHESIA. AND NOW, HARVARD HAS DELIVERED A BREAKTHROUGH IN ALZHEIMER'S RESEARCH.
[29:49]A HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL STUDY PUBLISHED YESTERDAY IN THE JOURNAL NATURE HAS FOUND WHAT COULD BE THE HOLY GRAIL OF ALZHEIMER'S, A WAY TO PREVENT AND EVEN REVERSE ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE. THAT IS WHAT THEY'VE OBSERVED,
[30:03]APPLYING WHAT THEY HAVE FOUND IN STUDYING THE BRAIN TISSUE OF ALZHEIMER'S PATIENTS AND EXPERIMENTS WITH MICE THAT HAVE SHOWN THE POSSIBILITY OF RESTORING MEMORIES LOST TO ALZHEIMER'S. THE SENIOR AUTHOR OF THE STUDY,
[30:16]DR. BRUCE YANKER TOLD THE BOSTON GLOBE, IT SEEMS TO SOMEHOW TURN BACK THE CLOCK. DOCTOR BRUCE YANKER, A PROFESSOR OF GENETICS AND NEUROLOGY AT HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL, ALSO TOLD THE BOSTON GLOBE THAT DONALD TRUMP
[30:30]TERMINATED THE FEDERAL GRANT SUPPORTING HIS RESEARCH. UNFORTUNATELY, THIS WILL SIGNIFICANTLY LIMIT OUR PROGRESS GOING FORWARD, SAID DOCTOR YANKER. DONALD TRUMP'S FATHER SPENT HIS FINAL YEARS LOST TO ALZHEIMER'S.
[30:47]DONALD TRUMP, WHO SHOWS POSSIBLE EARLY SIGNS OF THAT DAMAGE, MIGHT SPEND THE FINAL YEARS OF HIS LIFE CRUSHED BY ALZHEIMER'S, AND DONALD TRUMP HAS DECIDED THAT WE DON'T NEED ANY MORE ALZHEIMER'S RESEARCH BECAUSE DONALD TRUMP HAS DECIDED
[31:04]THAT HARVARD UNIVERSITY IS HIS PERSONAL ENEMY. HE HAS BEEN GUIDED IN THAT THINKING BY AN HISTORIAN NAMED KEVIN ROBERTS, WHO IS NOW THE HEAD OF THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION, WHICH CREATED THE PROJECT 2025 GUIDEBOOK THAT DONALD TRUMP HAS BEEN FOLLOWING.
[31:22]KEVIN ROBERTS PUBLISHED A BOOK JUST AFTER THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. WITH A FORWARD BY JD VANCE, SAYING EVERY IVY LEAGUE COLLEGE SHOULD BE BURNED. OUR NEXT GUEST SAYS DONALD TRUMP IS FOLLOWING NOT JUST PROJECT 2025,
[31:37]BUT THE APPROACH THAT ADOLF HITLER AND THE THIRD REICH USED TO CONTROL GERMANY. IN A NEW ARTICLE IN THE NEW REPUBLIC, YALE HISTORY PROFESSOR DAVID BLIGHT LISTS THE EIGHT KEY FACTORS THAT THE NAZIS USED TO ACHIEVE POWER AS DESCRIBED IN RICHARD J.
[31:54]EVANS' TRILOGY ON THE THIRD REICH. ONE OF THOSE FACTORS WAS THE DESTRUCTION OF DISSENT AND ACADEMIC FREEDOM IN UNIVERSITIES. ANOTHER WAS, THE PUBLIC MANIPULATING AND RE-CRAFTING OF HISTORY.
[32:09]DAVID BLIGHT WON THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR HIS BIOGRAPHY OF THE ESCAPED SLAVE FREDERICK DOUGLASS, WHO BECAME, AMONG OTHER THINGS, AN ADVISER TO PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN. MANY OF DAVID BLY'S OTHER BOOKS,
[32:22]INCLUDING A SLAVE NO MORE, INCLUDE INVALUABLE DETAILS ABOUT THE MOST CRUEL PERIOD OF AMERICAN HISTORY THAT KEVIN ROBERTS WANTS TO REWRITE NOW IN A WAY THAT WOULD SOOTHE DONALD TRUMP'S FLAWLESS IGNORANCE OF AMERICAN HISTORY.
[32:39]IT SEEMS THAT DAVID BLIGHT'S SCHOLARSHIP AND KEVIN ROBERTS SCHOLARSHIP ONCE OVERLAPPED AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY IN 1999 WHEN ROBERTS EARNED HIS PHD IN AMERICAN HISTORY WITH A DISSERTATION TITLED SLAVES AND SLAVERY IN LOUISIANA,
[32:55]THE EVOLUTION OF ATLANTIC WORLD IDENTITIES, 1791 TO 1831. KEVIN ROBERTS. PROCLAMATIONS NOW ARE UNHINGED FROM SCHOLARSHIP OR LAW.
[33:08]HE NOW SAYS OUR RIGHTS COME NOT FROM COURTS OR CONSTITUTIONS, BUT FROM GOD. DAVID BLIGHT NOW BELIEVES IT'S TIME FOR HISTORIANS TO LEAVE THEIR LIBRARIES AND THEIR CLASSROOMS AND PUBLICLY,
[33:23]STRONGLY DEFEND HISTORY ITSELF. PROFESSOR BLIGHT WRITES THESE ASSAULTS ON HISTORY HAVE MOVED AT A STARTLING PACE, IF A BIT UNDER THE RADAR OF PUBLIC ATTENTION.
[33:38]WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF PROJECT 2025, HAS ATTACKED THE INSTITUTIONS THAT HISTORIANS MOST CHERISH. THEY INCLUDE THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES, THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, AND ITS 21 MUSEUMS. THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES,
[33:51]THE FULBRIGHT FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM, AND THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE. THIS IS ONLY A PARTIAL LIST AND SHOULD ALSO INCLUDE UNIVERSITIES THEMSELVES AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS, WHICH MANY REPUBLICANS ARE DETERMINED TO ERODE
[34:05]OR DESTROY. DAVID BLIGHT SAYS HERITAGE AND KEVIN ROBERTS ARE TRUMP'S HISTORY DEPARTMENT, AND PROFESSOR BLIGHT WANTS TO BRING KEVIN ROBERTS AND TRUMP'S HISTORY DEPARTMENT OUT OF THE SHADOWS.
[34:18]PROFESSOR WHITE WRITES, I RESPECTFULLY INVITE HIM TO JOIN A SMALL GROUP OF HISTORIANS IN A SERIES OF DISCUSSIONS, DEBATES. HE CAN CHOOSE HIS COMPANIONS, AND WE WILL CHOOSE OUR PARTICIPANTS. I CHALLENGE HIM TO A SERIES OF CIVIL DEBATES
[34:33]IN MAJOR TELEVISION OR PODCAST OUTLETS OR ESPECIALLY A PUBLIC VENUE BEFORE THE 2026 ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE. JOINING US NOW WITH A PREVIEW OF. SUCH A DEBATE IS YALE UNIVERSITY'S STERLING
[34:48]PROFESSOR OF HISTORY AND BLACK STUDIES, DAVID BLIGHT. PROFESSOR BLIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR JOINING US HERE TONIGHT. THIS IS A STRIKING PROPOSAL FOR A PROFESSOR TO SAY,
[35:00]LET'S GET OUT THERE. LET'S GET OUT THERE AND HAVE THIS DISCUSSION PUBLICLY. LET'S HAVE IT IN A WAY THAT THE COUNTRY CAN HEAR IT AND JUDGE. WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO THIS POINT AND TO THIS IDEA? THANK YOU,
[35:14]FOR HAVING ME BACK ON. WHAT BROUGHT ME TO THIS FIRST OF ALL, WAS THE VICIOUSNESS OF THE ATTACKS THAT KEVIN ROBERTS HAS MADE ON US, ON MY PROFESSION, ON AMERICAN HISTORIANS, ON THE LAST
[35:27]HALF TO THREE QUARTERS OF THE CENTURY OF REVOLUTIONS AND SCHOLARSHIP, OF WHICH HE WAS PART WITH THAT DISSERTATION YOU JUST CITED. BUT WHAT ALSO BROUGHT ME TO THIS PROPOSAL OR INVITATION TO MR.
[35:41]ROBERTS. IS THAT I DON'T SEE WHAT ELSE WE CAN DO AT THIS POINT. THIS ISN'T ABOUT FACTS AND EVIDENCE. IT IS AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE HOPE, BUT IT'S NOT ABOUT UH INTERPRETATIONS THAT MAY DIFFER.
[35:55]THIS IS A POLITICAL FIGHT. WHAT PRESIDENT TRUMP DID IN THE MARCH 20TH EXECUTIVE ORDER ABOUT RESTORING SANITY TO AMERICAN HISTORY CRAFTED ESSENTIALLY BY THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION
[36:11]WAS TO DECLARE POLITICAL WAR ON THE PRACTICE OF HISTORY, ON THE TEACHING OF HISTORY, ON AMERICAN SCHOLARSHIP. AND MR. ROBERTS HAS BEEN VERY MUCH THE VANGUARD OF THE FAR RIGHT'S ATTACKS
[36:26]ON ALL THINGS LIBERALISM, THE LIBERAL MIND, LIBERAL POLITICS, THE LIBERAL QUEST FOR, FOR KNOWLEDGE, TO USE REASON TO DISCOVER
[36:39]NEW IDEAS. AND SO I, I THOUGHT, WHY NOT CHALLENGE HIM TO COME OUT, COME OUT OF THAT HERITAGE FOUNDATION BUILDING THERE IN WASHINGTON. COME DEBATE US, HE CAN CHOOSE THE FIRST MODERATOR IN THE VENUE. WE'LL CHOOSE THE 2ND MODERATOR IN THE VENUE.
[36:54]BUT LET'S HAVE IT OUT. WHAT IS AMERICAN HISTORY? WHAT SHOULD IT BE? WHAT ARE ITS DOMINANT NARRATIVES AND HOW DID THEY DEVELOP? WHY IS IT? THAT THE FAR RIGHT
[37:06]CHOOSES SO VIGOROUSLY, EVEN VICIOUSLY, TO ATTACK HOW WE UNDERSTAND OUR PAST. WHAT IS IT ABOUT HISTORY THAT MAKES THEM WANT TO CONTROL IT TO KIND OF LOCK IT UP
[37:20]IN A BOX AND THERE'S ONLY ONE DOOR IN? WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE PAST THAT MAKES IT SO DANGEROUS TO THEIR VISIONS OF A SOCIAL ORDER AND A SOCIAL ORDER AT THE END OF THE DAY.
[37:35]THAT WILL NOT REPRESENT THE BEAUTY OF AMERICAN PLURALISM, THE GENIUS OF AMERICAN PLURALISM, THE GENIUS OF THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE. ROBERTS IS A
[37:48]A GREAT PROPONENT OF CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM. HE, HE'S VERY EXPLICIT ABOUT THAT. HENCE, I USED THIS ARTICLE THAT MICHAEL TOMASKY WAS SO KIND AS TO
[38:02]SOLICIT AND INDEED ASK ME. TO BRING TOGETHER ABOUT A DOZEN AMERICAN HISTORIANS, AND I MIXED THE GENERATIONS, ALL OF WHOM NOW HAVE WRITTEN ESSAYS
[38:15]ABOUT DOING HISTORY, WRITING HISTORY, TEACHING IT IN THE TIME OF TRUMP. AND IT WILL BE THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE OF THE NEW REPUBLIC. 11 HISTORIANS WEIGHING IN. MY LEAD ESSAY INVITES MR.
[38:27]ROBERTS TO COME OUT INTO PUBLIC AND HAVE THAT KIND OF DEBATE. WE HAVE TO SQUEEZE IN A COMMERCIAL BREAK HERE. WE'RE GOING TO BE RIGHT BACK WITH MORE FROM PROFESSOR BLIGHT. WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK. BACK WITH US IS YALE HISTORY PROFESSOR DAVID BLIGHT.
[38:43]UH PROFESSOR, YOU WROTE IN YOUR PIECE FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS, HERITAGE'S LEADERSHIP HAS DREAMED OF THIS MOMENT, A PRESIDENTIAL ADMINISTRATION WILLING TO DESTROY AND THEN REMAKE THE NATION'S HERITAGE
[38:55]IN THE SERVICE OF RIGHT-WING TRIUMPHALISM. THAT WAS, NEWS TO ME. I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT THEY'VE BEEN AT THIS PROJECT FOR SO LONG. OH, THEY HAVE, LET'S NOT FORGET WHAT THEIR NAME IS.
[39:11]IT'S THE AMERICAN HERITAGE FOUNDATION. THEY DID NOT, THEY WEREN'T ALWAYS THIS UH VIGOROUS ABOUT CONTROLLING AMERICAN HISTORY, BUT THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS GIVEN THEM AN OPENING.
[39:23]IT IS SORT OF THEIR DREAM. THIS IS A PRESIDENTIAL ADMINISTRATION NOW WILLING TO USE POWER TO DICTATE HISTORY. NOT HISTORY, REPRESENTED BY THE BEST AND THE MOST THOROUGH
[39:36]EVALUATED, UH REVIEWED SCHOLARSHIP, BUT HISTORY BORN OF POWER, HISTORY BORN OF A NEED TO CONTROL WHAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE GOING TO THINK ABOUT THEIR COUNTRY.
[39:49]I THINK WHAT THEY'RE REALLY UP TO, AT THE END OF THE DAY, SHORT TERM, THEY WANT TO CONTROL AMERICAN HISTORY, LONG TERM. THEY ARE ACTUALLY ROLLING BACK THE ENLIGHTENMENT ITSELF. THE ENLIGHTENMENT,
[40:02]LET'S, I MEAN JUST NAME ANY SIX PRINCIPLES OF THE ENLIGHTENMENT, THE USE OF REASON, RATIONALITY, THE BELIEF IN RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, THE BELIEF IN THE DOCTRINE OF CONSENT, THE BELIEF IN SOVEREIGNTY,
[40:15]REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT, LIBERTY, EQUALITY, THOSE GREAT PRINCIPLES, FLEDGLING AS THEY WERE OF THE 18TH CENTURY, OUT OF WHICH THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION WAS BORN. THE HERITAGE FOUNDATION AND THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
[40:29]WANTS TO ROLL MOST OF THAT BACK INTO A KIND OF PRESCRIBED HISTORY THAT IS NOT ABOUT REASON OR NOT ABOUT MUTUAL TOLERANCE, NOT ABOUT LEARNING ABOUT NEW PEOPLES,
[40:44]NEW PLACES, NEW IDEAS, NEW PASTS, AND IT'S ALSO A PROBLEM BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE THIS IS ALL ZERO-SUM. IF YOU HAVE A LOT MORE WOMEN'S HISTORY BEING TAUGHT OR BLACK HISTORY OR LATINO HISTORY,
[40:58]AND NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY, YOU MUST THEREFORE NOT BE TEACHING ABOUT WHITE PEOPLE. SOMETIMES THAT'S TRUE, AND ACADEMICS DO HAVE SOME THINGS TO ANSWER FOR ON WHAT WE'VE DONE WITH CURRICULUMS. BUT IT IS NOT A ZERO-SUM GAME.
[41:13]THE AMERICAN NATIONAL NARRATIVE IS, AND VIRTUALLY ALWAYS HAS BEEN, A PLURALISTIC NARRATIVE ABOUT ALL SORTS OF PEOPLES TRYING TO BECOME
[41:26]ANY PLURIBUS UNUM. FOR BETTER OR WORSE, ONE PEOPLE, LIVING UNDER RULE OF LAW, ANOTHER ENLIGHTENMENT PRINCIPLE, LIVING UNDER A WRITTEN CONSTITUTION,
[41:40]AN ENLIGHTENMENT PRINCIPLE. AMERICAN HISTORY HAS ALWAYS BEEN REALLY DIVERSE AND MESSY AND COMPLEX AND CONFLICTED AND FULL OF VIOLENCE AND FULL OF DIFFICULT STORIES,
[41:53]BUT PEOPLE CAN HANDLE IT. STUDENTS CAN HANDLE IT. I JUST WORKED THIS SUMMER WITH 3 DIFFERENT TEACHER INSTITUTES, THAT'S SECONDARY TEACHERS WHO COME TOGETHER FOR A WEEK. ONE IN PHILADELPHIA ON THE CONSTITUTION, ONE AT GETTYSBURG ON CIVIL WAR MEMORY,
[42:07]AND ANOTHER ONE HERE AT YALE ON BLACK HISTORY AND LATINO HISTORY. TEACHERS WANT THIS HISTORY, AND THE STUDENTS CAN TAKE IT. AND HISTORIANS NOW, AS NEVER BEFORE,
[42:20]HAVE TO GET OUTSIDE OF OUR LIBRARIES AND GET OUTSIDE OF OUR CLASSROOMS AND FIGHT FOR THIS. THERE CAN BE NO SURRENDER OF THESE BASIC ETHICS OF HOW YOU DO HISTORY
[42:32]AND WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT. YALE PROFESSOR DAVID BLIGHT, THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR JOINING US. IT IS ALWAYS AN HONOR TO HAVE YOU HERE. IT'S MY HONOR, THANKS. THANK YOU. PROFESSOR DAVID BLIGHT GETS TONIGHT'S LAST WORD.