Trump Invades Washington DC to Avoid Questions About Epstein

0:00You're listening to Newsweek Radio. Irreverent news talk and opinion without agenda. From the 72nd floor of One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan. This is Newsweek Radio. with your host, Jesse Edwards. Today's top trending headlines at Newsweek.com. Links are in the descriptions, depending on where you're listening. J.D. Vance attacks Democrats over Epstein files. Yeah, let's get this out of the way before we move on to Trump's presser from earlier today, because nobody mentioned Epstein the entire time there. Well, I guess they did at the very, very end there. But it was an incredible waste of time, and I'll never get that hour and a half back.

0:36But we've got some highlights for you in just a minute. But first, Vice President J.D. Vance has responded to criticism of the Trump administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case by blaming Democrats for doing nothing for four years. Take a listen. I laugh at the Democrats who are now all of a sudden so interested in the Epstein files. For four years, Joe Biden and the Democrats did absolutely nothing about this story. We know that Jeffrey Epstein had a lot of connections with left-wing politicians and left-wing billionaires. And now President Trump has demanded full transparency from this.

1:08And yet somehow the Democrats are attacking him and not the Biden administration, which did nothing for four years. Yeah, this just goes to show you how naive J.D. Vance actually is. Unless, you know, he's just pretending to be stupid, which wouldn't be very smart at a time like this. because J.D. Vance fails to realize that he's simply digging his tires and Trump's tires even deeper into the sand here. It's people on your side, J.D. Vance, who are starting to realize that Trump is no different than the Democrats. People on your side, specifically the conspiracy theory-leaning crowd where the damage has largely already been done because they see the Trump administration as having the same policy on pedophiles as Biden, Obama, or Clinton.

1:47You're all the deep state now. You can't just say, well, they did it too and expect to get away with it, can you? You must be as stupid as those fathead J.D. Vance memes make you look. This is what you knuckleheads came up with in your crisis powwow the other day that was supposed to be in the White House until the press found out about it. It's completely fake news. We're not meaning to talk about the Epstein situation. This is the best strategy that you and Team Trump could come up with. The same thing that Trump himself has said in recent days, that if the Democrats had any dirt on him, they would have released it.

2:18That only works if the majority of the general public don't already believe that you're both covering for each other somehow. And until you can prove otherwise, you've already been found guilty in the court of public opinion. CNN's Harry Inton reports Google searches for Epstein have dropped 89%. Well, if that's the case, Republicans might want to reconsider all those depositions they just stacked up over the coming months with the Clintons and seemingly every single attorney general going back 20 years, because that is sure to keep this at the forefront of American consciousness, as rightfully it should.

2:49But no, the Epstein scandal isn't going anywhere based on the simple fact that Trump squirms too much over it when pressed even the smallest amount. And so many of us like to see him squirm because deep down, we honestly believe he's a bad guy. Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? The truth is going to come out. People are pouring through financials and talking to witnesses like never before. And it's only a matter of time before we realize exactly why Trump is acting like this when he wouldn't need to if he had a clear conscience. I mean, he's so good at bullshitting about everything else but this topic, and we're going to find out why, one way or another, eventually.

3:22All right, now on to this god-awful presser that I wasted an hour and a half of my life on this morning. Just to bring you the highlights, this is how Trump decided to start his press conference. This is an emergency. This is a tragic emergency. And it's embarrassing for me to be up here. You know, I'm going to see Putin. I'm going to Russia on Friday. Well, a correction there, big guy. You're actually meeting Putin in Alaska on Friday. I'm going to Russia. Good God, Trump's cheese is sliding off of his proverbial cracker faster than it ever did with Joe Biden, I'm afraid. You should probably just stick to one topic at a time there, Trumpy old boy.

3:58What else you got? I don't like being up here talking about how unsafe and how dirty and disgusting this once beautiful Capitol was with graffiti all over the walls. It's another part of it, by the way, because we're talking about safety. but we're also talking about beautification. We have the most beautiful, potentially capital in the world. We always had. But people come from Iowa, they come from Indiana, they come and then they get mugged. Not going to happen. Keep coming because by the time you get your trip set, it's going to be safe again and it's going to be clean very quickly. Yeah, trust me, people are getting mugged in Indianapolis just as much as they are in D.C.

4:36And I'm guessing a lot of those same folks might be asking themselves what kind of renovations can they expect to see while visiting D.C. that they won't be seeing back home. We're going to replace the medians that are falling down all over the roads. We're going to replace the potholes. We're going to put a nice new coat of asphalt over the top. Well, that's good to know. I'm sure all those Midwesterners are going to sleep better at night knowing that Pennsylvania Avenue has a fresh coat of blacktop. That should help feed the kids and pay for a new car. Here's what you need to know. Trump invoked Section 740 of the 1973 D.C.

5:06Home Rule Act to federalize the Metropolitan Police Department. The law allows federal control for 30 days with congressional approval required for any extension. Up to 1 ,000 National Guard troops may be deployed this week under Trump's direct authority, even though violent crime in D.C. is actually down 26 % compared to last year. There were a ton of press packed into the briefing room today, several tons in fact, so much so that I could have sworn that at least one of them would have asked about Epstein. This issue directly, a lot of you are standing outside, can't get in this room. I have never seen the room like this, which tells me that you want to talk about Epstein.

5:44I mean, this was a D.C. news conference. It tells me that you want to talk about crime in D.C. No, Epstein. And beautification of D.C., but I'm going to put that. That's easy. What? And I think, frankly, fixing the crime with the pros, fixing the crime is easy, too. A person who I've known for a long time. Let me guess. Epstein? No, Trump is not going to talk about it. And that's what this entire presser sounded like. Just keep flapping your liver lips about something else and hope that it goes away. And it sounds like Trump is planning to instruct the National Guard to help clean up the so-called homelessness crisis.

6:17We're going to be removing homeless encampments from all over our parks, our beautiful, beautiful parks, which now a lot of people can't walk on. They've been very, very dirty, very, a lot of problems. Yep, yep, yep. But we've already started that. We're moving the encampments away. Where? Where are you moving them? Look, if you've heard me rant about this before, you know I'm rather passionate about getting drug addicted and mentally unstable people off the streets and into mandatory rehab for, you know, up to a year or so. But Trump didn't say here exactly what he's planning to do with these so-called homeless folks who are mostly just people who have lost their minds to drugs.

6:55Is he going to send them to Democrat-run cities like they did with the illegal immigrants? I wouldn't put it past him. I'm just worried that the follow through is going to be the absolute disaster. What should he do with the street druggie population? Put them in FEMA camps until they sober up? Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea. I just don't have any faith in Trump or his administration's ability to pull it off without it being a PR disaster or worse. What this looks like is Trump wants us to forget about the Epstein files so bad that he's willing to invade Washington, D.C. to get there. If Trump is serious about liberating D.C.

7:27from crime and homelessness and urban decay, he should take the show on the road and clean up the rest of Main Street USA while he's at it. Sweep up the open-air insane asylums and drug markets in tense cities dotting the country. Who knows? It might even distract a few of us from wondering what's on the old Epstein list for a little while anyway. Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? And another quick note, Mr. President, this was the exact promise that you made to the entire country, not just the District of Columbia. Why aren't you fixing our roads and clearing our streets of tweakers and fentanyl zombies across the country?

7:59And why this half-measure now? Do you really think it's enough to get us to stop talking about your Epstein connections? Because it's not. This isn't going away until you address it clearly, head on, with full and obvious transparency. Show us the list, Lebowski. No, there wasn't any mention of Epstein at this press conference. Not until Trump had already left the room and this one lone reporter squeaked out his name. We're going to have a safe, beautiful Capitol and it's going to happen very quickly. Thank you all. Thank you all very much. Madam Attorney General, Madam Attorney General, the Justice Department of Appeal, the Epstein decision today, Mr.

8:36President. The one question that everyone was dying to ask in a room packed full of our nation's top journalists, and nobody had the guts to go off script? I mean, at least that one guy did when the show was over. And sure, these days it's going to get you uninvited to the White House press pool, but considering who's in charge, some, including myself, might see that as a badge of honor. Next headline in Newsweek, DOJ bid to unseal Ghislaine Maxwell grand jury transcripts suffers blow. A federal judge has denied the Department of Justice's request to unseal grand jury transcripts related to the indictment of Ghislaine Maxwell.

9:08A judge in the Southern District of New York said the grand jury transcripts sought by the Trump administration did not contain any significant information. He also said that much of it was already public knowledge. So you see, there's nothing to see here, nothing to see here except every politician and judge shrugging their collective shoulders as the public demands to know who Jeffrey Epstein's clients were. Next headline in Newsweek, Marjorie Taylor Greene hits out at net worth claims. Go to hell, she says. Wow. Why don't you go talk about Jewish space lasers? And really, why don't you f*** off?

9:38How about that? Yes, our favorite little psycho on Capitol Hill. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, pushed back on Sunday against a report that said her personal wealth has skyrocketed since she entered Congress, calling the claims outright slander and lies. Why don't you f*** off? How about that? Yeah, it sounds like we should call her Marjorie Taylor Pelosi from now on. In a tweet, the congresswoman owed her wealth to her family's construction business and private investment. Guessing the private investment is the breadwinner there. Instead, her net worth today, valued at$22.51 million per public records, has absolutely nothing to do with her government role since 2021, which comes with a salary of$174 ,000 per year.

10:21She was responding to an article by financial news outlet Bazinga published on June 8th titled, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene's net worth jumps$21 million since joining Congress. Top six stocks she was buying amid tariff chaos. Why don't you f*** off? How about that? Since April, some Democrats and Republicans have called for an insider trading investigation into Greene, alleging she purchased stocks just before investors began panic selling amid tariff uncertainty. While members of Congress are permitted to buy and sell stocks, their knowledge of political developments has often raised concerns about the possibility of insider trading.

10:59I'm shocked, shocked to find gambling in here. I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here. You're winning, sir. Oh, thank you very much. As if we needed another reminder as to why these bums on Capitol Hill spend millions of dollars just to be elected to positions that pay in the low six figures. It's a great article. It goes much deeper. Check the link in the description or head on over to newsweek.com to see it for yourself. And hey, would you look at the time? We're out of it. Until we can do it again, it's Newsweek Radio. I'm Jesse Edwards. Catch you next time. And we say bye-bye.

11:30Newsweek Radio is a member of the Trust Project. And it's embarrassing for me to be up here. You know, I'm going to see Putin. I'm going to Russia.