Latest / The Vault: The Epstein Files / Federal Judge Orders DOJ to Expedite Epstein FOIA Requests (Part 1) (10/1/26)

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Federal Judge Orders DOJ to Expedite Epstein FOIA Requests (Part 1) (10/1/26) · The Vault: The Epstein Files

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  Speaker 1: What's up everyone and welcome to another episode of the
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  Speaker 1: Epstein Chronicles. In this episode, we're going to dive into
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  Speaker 1: a ruling made by a judge in a case brought
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  Speaker 1: by Democracy Defenders Fund against the DOJ. And this has
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  Speaker 1: to do with Freedom of Information Acts that have been
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  Speaker 1: filed in regards to Jeffrey Epstein. So let's dive into
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  Speaker 1: the ruling by the judge and see where things stand.
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  Speaker 1: Democracy Defenders Plaintiff vs. U.S. Department of Justice Case number
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  Speaker 1: 25-2791-CKK Memorandum Opinion This case concerns multiple Freedom of Information
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  Speaker 1: Act requests submitted by Plaintiff Democracy Defenders Fund to the
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  Speaker 1: Department of Justice regarding the investigative files of Jeffrey Epstein
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  Speaker 1: and DOJ's handling thereof. DDF now moves for a summary
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  Speaker 1: judgment on its request for expedited processing under DOJ's regulations
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  Speaker 1: and the compelling need prong of the FOIA statute. The
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  Speaker 1: court concludes that DDF is entitled to expedited processing as
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  Speaker 1: a matter of law under DOJ's regulation because it requests
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  Speaker 1: relate to matters of widespread and exceptional media interest in
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  Speaker 1: which there exist possible questions about the government's integrity that
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  Speaker 1: affect public confidence. However, the court determines that DDF is
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  Speaker 1: not entitled to expedited processing as a matter of law
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  Speaker 1: under the compelling need prong of the FOIA statute because
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  Speaker 1: DDF has not shown that it's primarily engaged in disseminating information. Accordingly,
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  Speaker 1: upon consideration of the party submissions, the relevant legal authority,
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  Speaker 1: and the entire record, the court shall grant in part
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  Speaker 1: and deny in part DDF's motion for summary judgment. Background.
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  Speaker 1: This case concerns multiple Freedom of Information Act requests submitted
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  Speaker 1: by Plaintiff Democracy Defenders Fund to the Department of Justice
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  Speaker 1: regarding the files of Jeffrey Epstein, and DOJ's handling thereof.
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  Speaker 1: Relevant here are DDF's July 22, 2025 request to DOJ
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  Speaker 1: Criminal Division, and its July 28, 2025 request to DOJ Crim,
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  Speaker 1: and the Office of the Attorney General, Office of the
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  Speaker 1: Deputy Attorney General, and DDF's move for summary judgment on
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  Speaker 1: its request for expedited processing of these submissions. The Court
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  Speaker 1: shall begin by detailing the media environment at the time
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  Speaker 1: DDF submitted its request. as it's essential to determining whether
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  Speaker 1: DDF is entitled to expedited processing. In doing so, the
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  Speaker 1: court draws from the DOJ's response to DDF's statement of
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  Speaker 1: undisputed material facts, citing only that the statements to which
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  Speaker 1: DOJ either admitted that the record before the agency includes
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  Speaker 1: reporting or supporting such statement, or admitted that an article
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  Speaker 1: included in plaintiff's fee waiver request includes reporting supporting such
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  Speaker 1: a statement. The court shall then provide background on DDF's
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  Speaker 1: FOIA request and the underlying litigation before turning to the
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  Speaker 1: merits of DDF's motion for summary judgment. A. The Epstein
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  Speaker 1: Files In 2019, Jeffrey Epstein was indicted and arrested on
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  Speaker 1: federal charges for sex trafficking underage girls. He died in
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  Speaker 1: prison shortly thereafter. In 2021, a jury convicted Epstein's ex-girlfriend
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  Speaker 1: and associate, Glaine Maxwell, of conspiring to recruit and sexually
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  Speaker 1: abuse underage girls with Epstein. Maxwell is currently serving a
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  Speaker 1: 20-year sentence in federal prison. These events grip the interest
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  Speaker 1: of the public and national media. Many believe that the
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  Speaker 1: investigative files on Epstein and Maxwell, commonly referred to as
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  Speaker 1: the Epstein files, include interviews, flight logs, a client list,
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  Speaker 1: which reportedly includes high-profile names, and thousands of other documents
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  Speaker 1: that remain concealed and inaccessible to the public. During his
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  Speaker 1: 2024 campaign for president, candidate Donald Trump said multiple times
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  Speaker 1: that he would declassify and release the Epstein files. On
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  Speaker 1: February 21, 2025, after President Trump's election, then Attorney General
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  Speaker 1: Pamela Bondi was asked by Fox News whether the Department
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  Speaker 1: of Justice would be releasing the list of Epstein's clients.
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  Speaker 1: She said the list was sitting on her desk right
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  Speaker 1: now to review. At a White House event less than
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  Speaker 1: a week later, Attorney General Bondi handed out binders labeled
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  Speaker 1: the Epstein Files Phase 1, to a selected group of influencers.
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  Speaker 1: Attorney General Bondi indicated that Phase 1 binders contained declassified
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  Speaker 1: records from the Epstein Files, but in reality the binders
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  Speaker 1: consisted almost entirely of information that had previously been released.
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  Speaker 1: Phase 1 was not well received. Reporting indicated that Phase
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  Speaker 1: 1 release prompted widespread criticism from the public, even among
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  Speaker 1: the president's, supporters, some of whom indicated that the administration
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  Speaker 1: was involved in a cover-up. In March of 2025, Attorney
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  Speaker 1: General Bondi told Fox News that the FBI's New York
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  Speaker 1: office had withheld some of the Epstein documents. She said
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  Speaker 1: that she had requested the documents and that a truckload
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  Speaker 1: of evidence arrived at DOJ, adding that DOJ got them all.
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  Speaker 1: In July 2025, however, Attorney General Bondi said that these
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  Speaker 1: documents turned out to be CSAM, and therefore would not
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  Speaker 1: be released. On July 7, 2025, the FBI and DOJ
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  Speaker 1: issued an unsigned two-page memorandum stating that its systematic review
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  Speaker 1: of records related to Epstein revealed no incriminating client list
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  Speaker 1: or evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties.
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  Speaker 1: The memorandum concluded that no further disclosure would be appropriate
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  Speaker 1: or warranted. The unsigned memo prompted widespread bipartisan backlash, On
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  Speaker 1: July 15, 2025, NPR reported that Attorney General Bondi, FBI
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  Speaker 1: Director Kash Patel, and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino were
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  Speaker 1: at odds with each other over the handling of the
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  Speaker 1: Epstein case and the ensuing public backlash. On April 15, 2025,
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  Speaker 1: NPR described how prominent media personalities criticized the Trump administration
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  Speaker 1: on how it was handling the files in the immediate
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  Speaker 1: backlash to the memo. Reuters polled American adults from July
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  Speaker 1: 15th to July 16th and found that 69% of respondents
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  Speaker 1: believed the federal government was hiding details about Epstein's client list.
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  Speaker 1: On July 17th, 2025, the Wall Street Journal reported that
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  Speaker 1: President Trump had given a birthday card to Epstein in
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  Speaker 1: 2003 that included a drawing of a naked woman. Trump's
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  Speaker 1: name was written below the woman's waist in what appeared
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  Speaker 1: to be his handwriting and a note referencing a secret
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  Speaker 1: the two men shared. a flurry of media activity ensued.
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  Speaker 1: President Trump and other White House officials said the birthday
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  Speaker 1: card was fake. The Wall Street Journal's editorial board published
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  Speaker 1: an article considering whether the matter merited the president appointing
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  Speaker 1: an independent special counsel to oversee the case, an idea
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  Speaker 1: that picked up on Representative Lauren Boebert's statement that a
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  Speaker 1: special counsel should be appointed to investigate Epstein's crimes if
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  Speaker 1: more Epstein files were not released. On the same day
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  Speaker 1: as the Wall Street Journal article, President Trump posted on
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  Speaker 1: social media that he had directed Attorney General Bondi to
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  Speaker 1: produce any and all pertinent grand jury testimony subject to
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  Speaker 1: court approval related to the Epstein investigation. On July 18, 2025,
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  Speaker 1: DOJ filed a motion in the Southern District of New York,
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  Speaker 1: signed by both Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney
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  Speaker 1: General Todd Blanche, to unseal grand jury transcripts from the
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  Speaker 1: Epstein grand jury investigation. But the bad press continued. Reporting
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  Speaker 1: suggested that the unsealing request was a distraction that was
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  Speaker 1: unlikely to produce additional information, as the grand jury testimony
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  Speaker 1: constituted only a portion of Epstein-related material. That same day, U.S.
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  Speaker 1: Senator Richard Durbin sent a letter to Attorney General Bondi
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  Speaker 1: stating that, from March 14th to the end of March,
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  Speaker 1: she had pressured approximately 1,000 FBI personnel in 24-hour shifts
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  Speaker 1: to review an estimated 100,000 Epstein-related records, and to flag
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  Speaker 1: any records in which President Trump was mentioned. Also the
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  Speaker 1: same day, podcaster Joe Rogan, one of the podcasters to
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  Speaker 1: interview candidate Trump during his 2024 campaign, criticized administration officials
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  Speaker 1: for not delivering on Epstein transparency as promised, and indicated
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  Speaker 1: that people are cynical over the lack of transparency. On
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  Speaker 1: July 20, 2025, the New York Times reported that an
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  Speaker 1: Epstein victim, encountered Trump in 1995 in Epstein's office. It
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  Speaker 1: further reported that afterward the victim had encouraged law enforcement
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  Speaker 1: to take a closer look into Trump. B. DDF's FOIA
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  Speaker 1: Requests Against this backdrop, Plaintiff Democracy Defenders Fund submitted several
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  Speaker 1: FOIA requests to defendant DOJ. The following requests are relevant here. 1.
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  Speaker 1: DDF's July 22, 2025 Request On July 22, 2025, DDF
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  Speaker 1: submitted a FOIA request to DOJ's Criminal Division. This request
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  Speaker 1: concerned the investigative files of Epstein and Maxwell and communications
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  Speaker 1: among senior DOJ officials relating to DOJ's investigation of Epstein
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  Speaker 1: and Maxwell. Specifically, DDF requested all records from the inception
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  Speaker 1: of DOJ's investigation of Epstein and Maxwell to when this
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  Speaker 1: request was processed. 1. all records relating to the Department
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  Speaker 1: of Justice investigation of Jeffrey Epstein that mention, refer to,
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  Speaker 1: or include the name of Donald J. Trump, Donald Trump,
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  Speaker 1: President Trump, or other variations of his name, Mar-a-Lago, or
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  Speaker 1: any codename, codeword, pseudonym, or other cryptonym that is used
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  Speaker 1: to refer to Donald Trump, Mar-a-Lago, including records contained in
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  Speaker 1: its investigative files of Jeffrey Epstein. Two, all records relating
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  Speaker 1: to the Department of Justice Thank you for watching. in
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  Speaker 1: its files of Glenn Maxwell. 2. DDF's July 28, 2025 request.
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  Speaker 1: On July 28, 2025, DDF submitted additional FOIA requests to DOJ, CRM,
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  Speaker 1: and the Office of the Attorney General. Office of the
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  Speaker 1: Deputy Attorney General and these identical requests sought records of
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  Speaker 1: all communication between top officials at DOJ and personnel related
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  Speaker 1: to the handling of the Epstein files and any DOJ
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  Speaker 1: investigation into the files. Specifically, DDF requested all records from
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  Speaker 1: January 20, 2025 to when this request is processed of 1.
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  Speaker 1: Records of all communication including, but not limited to, letters, faxes, emails, voicemails,
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  Speaker 1: direct messages, regardless of whether maintained on an official device
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  Speaker 1: or account, or a personal device or account, that referred
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  Speaker 1: to Jeffrey Epstein, Glenn Maxwell, or any codename, codeword, pseudonym,
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  Speaker 1: or cryptonym, used for identifying Epstein or Maxwell, that were
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  Speaker 1: sent from, received by, or transmitted to any Department of
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  Speaker 1: Justice official, including but not limited to Attorney General Pamela Bondi,
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  Speaker 1: Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanch, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General
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  Speaker 1: Amil Bove, FBI Director Kash Patel, and FBI Deputy Director
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  Speaker 1: Dan Bongino. This includes any attachments including but not limited
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  Speaker 1: to meeting agendas, Minutes, notes, memos, briefing materials, drafts, presentations,
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  Speaker 1: or analysis created, received, or reviewed by agency personnel. This
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  Speaker 1: request includes direct correspondence, as well as communication, facilitated by
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  Speaker 1: or through third parties. 2. Any communication in any form,
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  Speaker 1: including audiovisual media, such as digital video, VHS, DVD, or
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  Speaker 1: other similar format. Discussing or explaining the process of how
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  Speaker 1: the department official should approach and or address references to
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  Speaker 1: Donald Trump or Mar-a-Lago appearing in any file related to
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  Speaker 1: Jeffrey Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell cases, including any communication that
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  Speaker 1: described how to flag, categorize, or memorialize mentions of President Trump.
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  Speaker 1: This request includes, but is not limited to, videos circulated
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  Speaker 1: on unclassified networks within the department. 3. Electronic copies of
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  Speaker 1: all calendar entries or meeting invitations for any department official,
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  Speaker 1: including but not limited to Attorney General Bondi, Deputy Attorney
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  Speaker 1: General Todd Blanch, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove,
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  Speaker 1: FBI Director Kash Patel, or FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino,
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  Speaker 1: including any calendars maintained on their behalf that reference Jeffrey
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  Speaker 1: Epstein or Glenn Maxwell, or any codename, code word, pseudonym,
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  Speaker 1: or cryptonym used for identifying Jeffrey Epstein or Glenn Maxwell.
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  Speaker 1: For any such calendar entries or meeting invites produced, please
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  Speaker 1: also provide any related material including recordings, transcripts, agendas, minutes, notes, memos, briefings, materials, drafts, presentations,
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  Speaker 1: or analysis created, received, or reviewed for use during or
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  Speaker 1: in preparation of such a meeting. 4. Any communication, correspondence,
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  Speaker 1: or documents listing or containing the identities of people who
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  Speaker 1: were clients or associates of Jeffrey Epstein, including any documents
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  Speaker 1: listing or containing the identities of people who were invited
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  Speaker 1: to Epstein's properties, including invitations, calendar schedules, and flight logs.
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  Speaker 1: All right, we're going to wrap up episode one right here.
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  Speaker 1: And in the next episode, we're going to pick up
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  Speaker 1: with C, the present litigation. All the information that goes
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  Speaker 1: with this episode can be found in the description box.