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Wyden Presses Oversight Committee to Dig Deeper Into Black’s Epstein Ties · The Vault: The Epstein Files

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's up everyone and welcome to another episode of the
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Epstein Chronicles. When it comes to Jeffrey Epstein's former associates,
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: nobody's having a worse week than Leon Black. Not only
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: did this clown storm out of the congressional hearing, Senator
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: Wyden is now pressing for more answers as the scrutiny
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: continues to heat up. And I'll tell you what, for
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: the first time, one of Jeffrey Epstein's closest associates, is
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: in real jeopardy. Now, when I say that, I don't
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: mean going to prison, right? I won't believe anyone's going
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: to prison until they start putting people there. But what
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: I'm talking about is reputationally and financially. I mean, how
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: many lawsuits is he going to get hit with if
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: and when it's proven that he was a lot closer
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: and a key element of Jeffrey's operation? What then? How
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: many people are going to sue him? I'm guessing a lot.
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: And they should. As far as legal jeopardy, if I
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: was Leon Black, what I'd be scared of is taxes.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: What are they going to come for financially? Because that's
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: how you get people like Leon Black. Unfortunately, you're never
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: going to get them on the allegations that have been
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: made by Guzel Ganieva or by the unfortunate young lady
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: who has Mosaic Down Syndrome. People like Leon Black, they
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: find a way to get away from that shit. But
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: when it comes to money, when it comes to tax evasion,
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: when it comes to hiding that shit. That's how you
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: get people like this. And I know a lot of
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: you are saying, well, there's no justice there. You're getting
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: them for a different crime. And my counter to that is, yes,
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: that's true. The most grievous sins are not being punished,
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: but at least there's some punishment. And that's why I
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: always bring up the example of Al Capone. Of course,
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: the government wanted to get them for murder, right? Elliot Ness,
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: the Untouchables, the whole thing. But they couldn't make that stick.
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: So what did they do? They changed up the strategy
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: and they ended up getting them on tax evasion. And
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: that's how you go after powerful people. You follow the money.
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: And if you follow the money on the street, eventually
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: that shit's going to land with the person who's the plug.
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: And the same is true here. If you follow all
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: the money from all of Epstein's associates, It all ends
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  Speaker 1: up going to the same place, right? To Jeffrey Epstein.
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: So the question is, why? And unfortunately, none of these
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: people seem to have an answer. Today's article is from
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: the Grant Pass Tribune. And the headline, Wyden presses for
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: answers as congressional scrutiny of Leon Black deepens. This article
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: was authored by Ellen Ward. A congressional investigation examining the
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: financial relationship between billionaire investor Leon Black And convicted sex
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: offender Jeffrey Epstein entered a new phase this week as
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: lawmakers moved to compel additional testimony and records following Black's
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: appearance before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: And I think the problems for Leon Black are just beginning.
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: I think that if anybody's exposed here, I think it's him. Now,
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: let's not get too carried away and act like he's
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: going to end up in prison. I'm not going to
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: go that far. But I think that he is really
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: being looked at right now. And if anybody is going
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: to be in jeopardy, I think it's going to be
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: Leon Black. And I think that all the facts align
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: and the evidence points to him knowing a lot more
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: than he ever let on. And when it comes to
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: the money, well, I've told you from the beginning, I
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: think that there was a ton of tax evasion and
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: money laundering. Whether Leon Black was directly involved in that
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: or not, I don't know. but I can tell you
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: with conviction that that's what Jeffrey Epstein was up to.
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: And if you were using his services, it only makes
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: sense that that's what you were looking for. The latest
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: hearing has renewed attention on a years-long investigation led by
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: Oregon Senator Ron Wyden, whose work on the Senate Finance
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: Committee has steadily expanded beyond questions of tax strategy to
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: include the flow of millions of dollars between Black, Epstein,
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: and other individuals connected to to the financiers' network. And
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: it would be nice if Congress and the Senate would
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: get on board and get all these bank records subpoenaed
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: and into the public record. Because if you follow this money,
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: I guarantee you you're going to get to some of
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  Speaker 1: the answers that we're looking for. And that's why they
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  Speaker 1: haven't done it. Black appeared voluntarily before the House committee
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: in a closed-door interview intended to clarify the nature of
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: his business dealings with Epstein. During the session, Black maintained
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  Speaker 1: that Epstein's role centered on advising him on complex financial
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  Speaker 1: matters involving taxes, trusts, and estate planning, rather than serving
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  Speaker 1: as a licensed taxed attorney or accountant. So you have
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  Speaker 1: all the money in the world. You're in charge of
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  Speaker 1: Apollo Global worth billions. And you reach out to Jeffrey Epstein,
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  Speaker 1: who's not an attorney, not a tax guy, not an accountant.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, it's not like you or I. reaching out
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: to our buddy who knows how to do taxes, right?
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: Different story. Whole different story here. So if you want
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  Speaker 1: to believe that Jeffrey Epstein was receiving this money for
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: tax advice, cool. Like I always tell you, I'm not
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: here to convince anybody of anything. Here's the evidence. Do
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: with it as you will. Members of the bipartisan committee, however,
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: concluded that significant questions remain unanswered after Black, declined to
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: discuss several matters involving confidentiality agreements and financial arrangements linked
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: to Epstein. He doesn't want anybody to know the truth.
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  Speaker 1: And they came in voluntarily because they wanted to dogwalk
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: the whole entire operation. They wanted to control the narrative. Oh,
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  Speaker 1: we're here voluntarily, of our own free will. Well, yeah,
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  Speaker 1: but if you didn't come voluntarily, you'd be here under subpoena.
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  Speaker 1: So tell the truth, or come back under a subpoena,
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  Speaker 1: and face all the jeopardy that comes with that. And
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: now that's the position that Leon Black's in. And guess what?
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  Speaker 1: Well deserved. The committee responded by issuing subpoenas requiring Black
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: to produce additional documents and return for sworn testimony later
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  Speaker 1: this summer, signaling that lawmakers believe the investigation has reached
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: a point where further compulsory testimony is necessary. It reached
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: that point about 30 years ago, I'm glad that Congress
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: is catching up now, but let's be real. This is
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: an issue that was allowed to metastasize. This cancer could
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: have been cut out a long time ago, but it wasn't,
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: and now it's spread. For Oregon, the hearing represents another
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  Speaker 1: chapter in an investigation that Senator Wyden has pursued for
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: more than four years. As ranking member of the Senate
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: Finance Committee, Wyden has examined banking records, financial transactions, and
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  Speaker 1: tax documents, in an effort to understand why Black transferred
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: an estimated $ 170 million to Epstein between 2012 and 2017.
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: According to Wyden's investigation, those payments dramatically exceeded the compensation
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: Black paid to internationally recognized tax and estate planning professionals
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: already working on his financial affairs. They weren't willing to
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: go into the areas that Epstein was. Come on, this
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: is not rocket science. He had the professionals, the people
• 7:49
  Speaker 1: with a good reputation, on the outside, taking care of
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: the quote-unquote taxes. But on the inside, well, where all
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: the money laundering was happening, where all the fraud was happening,
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: where the hiding of funds was happening, that was exclusively
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: controlled by Jeffrey Epstein. And that's what he was getting
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  Speaker 1: paid for. Wyden has repeatedly argued that the size and
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: structure of those payments deserve greater scrutiny. In early June,
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  Speaker 1: the Oregon senator formally transmitted the findings of his Senate
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: investigation to the House Oversight Committee before Black's appearance, encouraging
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  Speaker 1: investigators to pursue additional lines of questioning regarding financial records,
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  Speaker 1: settlement payments, and the movement of funds connected to Epstein's network.
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: All very relative and all very important. And I really
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: think that if anyone's exposed here... It's Leon Black. Among
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: the issues identified by Wyden are allegations that Epstein may
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: have acted as an intermediary in payments made to several
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: women and maintained records involving settlement agreements. Wyden has also
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: questioned the circumstances surrounding Black's multi-million dollar settlement with the
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: government of the U.S. Virgin Islands, which resolved civil claims
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: without an admission of wrongdoing. Those issues now appear to
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  Speaker 1: be central to the House Committee's expanding investigation, and I
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: told you at the time it was a hustle, and
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: that the USVI should be ashamed of itself. It was
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  Speaker 1: always about the money for the USVI, never about the survivors,
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: never about real justice. They were eating at both ends
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  Speaker 1: of the table. When Epstein was alive, they were enjoying
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: his largesse. When Epstein died, they went after his estate.
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  Speaker 1: And not only that, but they ended up getting more
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  Speaker 1: money than all of the survivors combined. How is that acceptable?
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  Speaker 1: And how is it that I'm like the only person
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  Speaker 1: who called it out? Black has consistently denied participating or
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: having knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein's criminal activities. He's maintained that
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: substantial payments reflected sophisticated financial and estate planning services that
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  Speaker 1: also produced significant tax savings and stated that he was
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  Speaker 1: deceived about the full extent of Epstein's criminal conduct. Everybody
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: was deceived. Nobody had an internet browser that worked, I guess.
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  Speaker 1: Nobody did any due diligence. Does anyone believe that? His
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: legal representatives have criticized recent congressional subpoenas, arguing that the
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: requests are unnecessary because Black has already cooperated extensively with investigators.
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  Speaker 1: So what's the big deal then? If he's already cooperated intensively,
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: then what's the big deal? Congressional investigators appear unconvinced that
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: the matter has been fully explained. Members of both political
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: parties have indicated they want a clearer understanding of the
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: financial relationship between the two men, particularly the purpose of
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: unusually large payments, the existence of confidentiality agreements, and whether
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: Epstein played any role beyond providing financial advice. No, I'm
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: sure that's it. It started and stopped there, right? The
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: renewed congressional interest comes as federal investigators continue reviewing millions
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  Speaker 1: of pages of records associated with Epstein and his extensive
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: network of business associates, financial clients, and personal contacts. House
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: investigators have indicated that Black's testimony represents only one portion
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  Speaker 1: of a broader effort to understand how Epstein maintained influence
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  Speaker 1: among wealthy and powerful individuals over many years. Well, compromise.
• 11:36
  Speaker 1: getting people into compromising situations, and just learning about people.
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  Speaker 1: That was Epstein's gift. Make no mistake, he had a
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  Speaker 1: menagerie of people that he collected. Very powerful people. For Wyden,
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  Speaker 1: the developments represent a continuation of an investigation that is
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  Speaker 1: increasingly focused on financial transparency rather than criminal allegations alone. Bingo!
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: If you want to win, and you want to hold
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: people accountable, that's how you do it. I know, not salacious,
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: not the kind of shit that draws engagement, and certainly
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: not the kind of thing that makes you rich. But
• 12:13
  Speaker 1: if you want justice, that's how you get there. The
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: Oregon Senator has argued that Congress has a responsibility to
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: determine whether existing tax law, banking regulations, and financial reporting
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: requirements were sufficient to detect or prevent transactions that may
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: warrant additional oversight. Black is scheduled to return before the
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: House Oversight Committee under subpoena next month, where lawmakers are
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  Speaker 1: expected to continue pressing for answers regarding the financial relationship
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: that has remained under congressional examination for years. Whether that
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: testimony resolves lingering questions or broadens the investigation further remains
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: one of the most closely watched political and financial inquiries
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: currently unfolding in Washington. That's true. When you have somebody
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: as powerful as Leon Black, on the dock, everybody's paying attention.
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: And hopefully, with this renewed attention, we get some of
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: the answers that we've been looking for. And if we
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: want to get to the bottom of what Leon Black
• 13:16
  Speaker 1: was up to with Jeffrey Epstein, then I think Senator
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: Wyden is on the right track. Because if you want
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: to get Leon Black, the way to do it is
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: through his bank account. All the information that goes with
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: this episode can be found in the description box.