CANTON Vice President JD Vance was unable to avoid the subject that has dominated Washington for months, even though he was hundreds of miles away from the nation’s capital.
A small group of protesters gathered across the street from those gathered as Vance visited Ohio on Monday to tour a steel mill as part of the Trump administration’s economic agenda. They held a sign that read, “JD protects pedophiles,” in reference to the president’s relationship with alleged sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Vance visited Ohio on Monday with the stated purpose of promoting the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act, a piece of spending and tax legislation that was adopted by Republicans in Congress. He addressed Metallus Inc.’s steelworkers.
Related article: JD Vance urges Ohio steelworkers to support the One Big, Beautiful bill
The media, however, questioned the protesters’ presence over a purported Epstein client list and the reasons for the federal government’s reluctance to make files on Epstein that the FBI and Justice Department had compiled public.
In July 2019, Epstein, a wealthy investor and former presidential friend, was charged with federal sex trafficking of kids. He was discovered dead in his New York jail cell a few weeks later, and it was determined that he had hanged himself.
Since then, conspiracy theories have proliferated, leading to demands for the complete release of FBI files and sealed court records. Additionally, congressional Democrats have pushed for the release of thousands of records.
According to the Washington Post, Trump is becoming increasingly frustrated with the Epstein files because they are taking center stage and overshadowing his objectives.
Vance didn’t waste any time in defending Trump, stating that he wanted the case to be fully transparent.
The president has been pretty explicit, to start. Vance stated, “We’re not shielding anything.” The attorney general has been instructed by the president to make all reliable information available and, to be honest, to look for further reliable information about the Jeffrey Epstein case.
The Epstein story has revolved around Attorney General Pam Bondi. One of her main goals was to make the FBI’s files public.
Bondi and other Justice Department officials hinted for months that they were preparing to reveal fresh information against Epstein. This included fresh information regarding his passing and a list of clients that had not been made public before. However, earlier this month, the FBI and Trump’s Justice Department came to the conclusion that Epstein committed himself and that there is no such client list.
Now that there is no substantial new information in the case, the Trump administration’s attention to the issue has stoked conspiracy theories on the right and stoked division within the president’s own supporters.
Vance emphasized on Monday that Bondi is working on Trump’s order to make reliable facts about the case public, but it may take some time.
Certain things require time. That thing needs to be put together by you. You must gather that information. To protect the victims, you must redact some of their names. The president, however, has been extremely explicit. He want complete openness. He has requested the attorney general for that.
The vice president also used the occasion to accuse the George W. Bush and Obama administrations of being too lenient against Epstein.
According to Vance, if you want to criticize those who aren’t being fully transparent, you could target the administrations who were lenient with Jeffrey Epstein, those that kept this matter under wraps for 20 years, and those that didn’t demonstrate complete transparency.
According to a 2020 Justice Department study issued during Trump’s first term, Alex Acosta, a Florida U.S. attorney during the Bush administration, made a poor decision in managing an investigation against Epstein in 2008. According to the investigation, Acosta did not commit any professional wrongdoing while serving as Trump’s secretary of labor.
Vance defended the President as well.
Trump, Donald J. He has nothing to hide, I assure you. His government has nothing to conceal. According to Vance, this is the reason he has been a supporter of complete transparency in this matter.
