Latest / The Vault: The Epstein Files / Legal Experts See Little Room Left for Maxwell to Overturn Conviction (8/31/26)

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Legal Experts See Little Room Left for Maxwell to Overturn Conviction (8/31/26) · 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. One of the ongoing sagas when it comes
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell is Ghislaine Maxwell and
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: her attempts to get herself out of prison. And she
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: has tried now countless times to do just that. And
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: every single time that Ghislaine Maxwell thinks that she has
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: some sort of inroad, thinks that things are going to
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: move in her direction, she ends up getting smacked directly
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: in the chops by the court. And her streak of
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: taking L's inside the courtroom continued with the ruling by
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: Judge Engelmeyer that we recently saw telling her basically that
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: the party was over and that there was no more
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: road for her to travel when it comes to trying
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: to get an appeal. And not only that, but he
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  Speaker 1: cautioned her against trying to appeal it again, saying that
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: it's frivolous. And if anything has ever been frivolous, it's
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: most certainly this. How many times is Ghislaine Maxwell going
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  Speaker 1: to get a chance to try and get herself out
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: of trouble? Well, according to Judge Engelmeyer, never again. But
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  Speaker 1: considering who we're dealing with, I have my doubts. Today's
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  Speaker 1: article is from The Guardian and the headline, Ghislaine Maxwell
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  Speaker 1: has virtually run out of legal routes to overturn conviction.
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: Experts say, This article was authored by Victoria B. Kempis.
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: Ghislaine Maxwell seems to be all but guaranteed to have
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: run out of legal avenues to challenge her conviction for
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: her involvement in Jeffrey Epstein's abuse of girls and young
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: women with perhaps her lingering hopes of freedom resting on
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  Speaker 1: a pardon from the Trump administration. And that's the only
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: way she's going to get out. And I wish I
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: could tell you one way or the other what was
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: going to happen. But with this administration, you just never know.
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: And I think that anyone who predicts the unpredictable, when
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: we're dealing with people like Donald Trump and Todd Blanche, well,
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: I think they're setting themselves up for disaster. Because you
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: just don't know what these guys are going to do.
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  Speaker 1: Paul Engelmeyer, a Manhattan federal court judge, last week rejected
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  Speaker 1: Maxwell's contention that her constitutional rights were violated at trial
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  Speaker 1: and sentencing for her crimes. Maxwell's claims are all meritless
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  Speaker 1: and all, or almost all, are frivolous, Engelmeyer wrote in
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  Speaker 1: his ruling on the former British socialite's legal gambit, and
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  Speaker 1: Judge Engelmeyer didn't leave any sort of room for debate.
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  Speaker 1: That opinion, that memorandum, was pretty vicious, and not only that,
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  Speaker 1: it was deserved. Glaine Maxwell's been out here playing games
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  Speaker 1: for way too long, never taken responsibility for what she
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  Speaker 1: has done, not allegedly done, what she has done, you know,
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  Speaker 1: once you're convicted in this country, you're guilty, okay? Now,
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  Speaker 1: of course, that doesn't mean that innocent people aren't convicted.
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  Speaker 1: They most certainly are. Ghislaine Maxwell? Not one of those people.
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  Speaker 1: Engelmeyer also rejected Maxwell's claim that new evidence, which she
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: said came to light during the Epstein File Transparency Act disclosure,
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  Speaker 1: did not support her allegation of constitutional violations. On the contrary,
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  Speaker 1: To the extent it's relevant, far from exculpitating her, it
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  Speaker 1: incriminates her or reinforces the correctness of the legal rulings
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  Speaker 1: he ruled, and I think it does. When you look
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  Speaker 1: at the files, and you look at everything that came out,
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: and you look at what Ghislaine Maxwell was saying previously,
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  Speaker 1: and what she said to Todd Blanche especially, it's obvious
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  Speaker 1: she's doing nothing but lying. And for those of us
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: who have been paying attention, we know that that's what
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  Speaker 1: she's been doing for the entire time. And I don't
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  Speaker 1: just mean during her arrest or after her arrest, but
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  Speaker 1: leading up to it. This woman has done nothing but
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: lie when it comes to her involvement with Jeffrey Epstein.
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  Speaker 1: Every time you turn around, she's telling a different story.
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  Speaker 1: And that was really slammed home in the lawsuit against Virginia.
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  Speaker 1: You know, when she lied throughout the whole entire lawsuit
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  Speaker 1: and especially in the deposition. And that's how she ended
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  Speaker 1: up getting smacked with those perjury charges. Maxwell's family said
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  Speaker 1: in a statement that Engelmeyer's ruling was marked by a
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  Speaker 1: tone of sarcasm and disdain that, in our view, undermines
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  Speaker 1: the appearance of impartiality and invites scrutiny of the judge's conduct.
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  Speaker 1: They also said Maxwell will continue to pursue every available
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  Speaker 1: legal avenue for relief while those avenues are getting short.
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  Speaker 1: And as far as the judge being... Impartial? That's ridiculous. Absolutely,
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  Speaker 1: positively ridiculous. And as far as the court's concerned, it's
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: over for Ghislaine Maxwell. Time to enjoy those 20 years.
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  Speaker 1: Legal veterans said, however, that Maxwell had exhausted all of
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: her court-based roots. With Maxwell apparently running out of legal pathways,
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  Speaker 1: many have wondered whether Donald Trump will at some point
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  Speaker 1: deliver a Hail Mary, a presidential pardon. Well, that's what
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: it would be. I mean, we're talking Aaron Rodgers completing
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: the pass against the Seahawks type of Hail Mary. She's
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  Speaker 1: exhausted her direct appeals. Now she's trying to collaterally attack
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  Speaker 1: the conviction, which is very difficult to do, said Niyama Rahmani,
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  Speaker 1: a former federal prosecutor who founded the law firm West
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  Speaker 1: Coast Trial Lawyers. I don't know what world she lives in,
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  Speaker 1: Rahmani also said. Her only chance of ever seeing the
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  Speaker 1: light of day before her sentence runs is a presidential pardon.
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  Speaker 1: And look, I would say 50-50 at this point. Previously,
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  Speaker 1: I didn't think there was any chance that Donald Trump
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: would give her a pardon. And that's because of the blowback.
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  Speaker 1: But at this point, what does he care? I mean,
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  Speaker 1: he's a lame duck. He's not running for office ever again.
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  Speaker 1: And what, you think he cares about the GOP or
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: the Republican Party? Yeah, right. Rachmani explained that Maxwell's recent
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  Speaker 1: rejected request was different from her Supreme Court effort, which
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  Speaker 1: was based on claims that a decades-old non-prosecution agreement with
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: the South Florida federal authorities shielded her from prosecution. The
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  Speaker 1: Supreme Court bid failed when the justices declined to review
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: that appeal. Well, there was nothing to appeal. And the
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  Speaker 1: justices knew that. The NPA is trashed. And that's basically
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  Speaker 1: what the Supreme Court just said. Look, we're not going
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  Speaker 1: to throw this conviction out based on that nonsense you're
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  Speaker 1: bringing to us. So take your stupid appeal and shove it.
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: Maxwell could ask the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to
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  Speaker 1: review Engelmeyer's ruling, but that is a request, not a
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  Speaker 1: surefire opportunity to be heard, said Mark Chutkow, a former
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  Speaker 1: federal prosecutor now practicing white-collar defense at the firm Dykema. Ordinarily,
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  Speaker 1: you either have to get a certificate of appealability from
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: the trial court that denies your motion or your petition,
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: or you can get it from the appellate court, he said,
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  Speaker 1: noting Engelmeyer did not grant such a certificate. I would
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  Speaker 1: assume what she's going to do is seek a certificate
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  Speaker 1: of appealability from the Second Circuit. Well, good luck. You
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  Speaker 1: know who's on the Second Circuit? Judge Nathan. The judge
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  Speaker 1: that oversaw the Maxwell trial? Yeah, on the Second Circuit.
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  Speaker 1: she might have a thing or two to say to
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  Speaker 1: her colleagues. The Second Circuit, however, will see Engelmeyer's decision
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  Speaker 1: and his denial of this certificate. It seems unlikely that
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  Speaker 1: she's going to get a certificate of appealability from the
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: Second Circuit Court of Appeals, meaning that in essence, her
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: legal avenues are going to be dead, Chutkow said, and
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  Speaker 1: I think that's the right approach, and I think that's
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  Speaker 1: the right analysis. Because Ghislaine Maxwell has exhausted her every
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: single escape hatch that you can possibly imagine. The decision
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: could bring Ghislaine Maxwell's campaign to escape accountability to a
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  Speaker 1: final close. A jury heard the evidence and convicted her.
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: The Court of Appeals affirmed her conviction. The Supreme Court
• 8:38
  Speaker 1: declined to intervene, said Spencer Coven, an attorney at Goldlaw
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  Speaker 1: who has represented dozens of Epstein survivors. Now, after thoroughly
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  Speaker 1: reviewing her latest claims... Judge Engelmeyer has found that the
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  Speaker 1: evidence of her guilt was overwhelming, and that her arguments
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  Speaker 1: were largely frivolous, procedurally barred, and based upon speculation, distortions,
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  Speaker 1: and outright falsehoods. Well, yeah, she's delusional. And I think
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  Speaker 1: those delusions are on full display when it comes to
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  Speaker 1: her appeal process. Given that Engelmeyer's ruling virtually shuts the
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  Speaker 1: door on future efforts, per longtime attorneys, attention has once
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  Speaker 1: again shifted to a presidential pardon, or commutation, from President Trump,
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  Speaker 1: who's been saddled with ongoing Epstein and Maxwell controversies since
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  Speaker 1: taking office again. Well, all by his own design, he
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  Speaker 1: had the chance to be the hero. But of course,
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  Speaker 1: he'd rather protect his friends, himself, and the cover-up. Trump
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  Speaker 1: vowed while campaigning that his administration would release all Epstein documents,
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  Speaker 1: but his Justice Department repeatedly missed congressionally mandated disclosure deadlines,
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  Speaker 1: and some allege that some files remain secret. Trump, who
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  Speaker 1: socialized with Epstein before the latter's Florida state court's soliciting conviction,
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  Speaker 1: has maintained that he never engaged in inappropriate conduct. The
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  Speaker 1: White House, when asked for comment on the pardon issue,
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  Speaker 1: pointed to two statements. When Trump was asked if he
• 10:09
  Speaker 1: had ruled out a pardon, he said, I haven't even
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: thought about it. I mean, I haven't thought about it
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  Speaker 1: for months. Maybe I haven't thought about it at all.
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  Speaker 1: Trump also said, what does that even mean? Oh, I'm
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: so cryptic. I haven't thought about it in months. Maybe
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: I haven't thought about it at all. Maybe you can
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: share another AI video showing you not pardoning Glenn Maxwell.
• 10:30
  Speaker 1: Like the AI video you showed of us attacking Karg Island. Like,
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  Speaker 1: what are we even doing? AI videos when it comes
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: to war? What are we, the Iranian regime? Pathetic. The
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: whole entire thing from top to bottom? Not exactly confidence-inducing. Politically,
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  Speaker 1: I think it would be catastrophic, said Brittany Martinez, a
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  Speaker 1: Republican strategist who is the executive director of Principles First.
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  Speaker 1: You run on releasing the Epstein files. Then when documents
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  Speaker 1: are released, they're limited and heavily redacted. Then you turn
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  Speaker 1: around and call the entire controversy a hoax. And then
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  Speaker 1: after all of that, you pardon Jeffrey Epstein's closest associate
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  Speaker 1: while claiming to be the president who protects women and children.
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  Speaker 1: That would be incredibly difficult to defend, she added. Oh,
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  Speaker 1: don't worry, people would be coming out in droves. Oh, well,
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  Speaker 1: this is what he really means. And look, Lane Maxwell's
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  Speaker 1: not really guilty. Rahmani explained that there's a formal pardon process.
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  Speaker 1: A request would go to the Justice Department's pardon attorney,
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  Speaker 1: who in turn makes a recommendation. That said, the president
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  Speaker 1: sort of marches to the beat of his own drum,
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  Speaker 1: Rahmani said. Trump could just grant it. There is a very, very,
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  Speaker 1: very slim chance it happens at all, Rahmani added. If
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: it did, however... Rahmani said he would expect it to
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: happen when Trump's presidency wraps up, not before the midterms. Yeah,
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  Speaker 1: no shit. They know that that would be disastrous for them.
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  Speaker 1: Have you seen the polling in the battleground states lately?
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  Speaker 1: Not looking great. Even though the president is very unpredictable,
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  Speaker 1: I just can't see it. It would be career suicide.
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  Speaker 1: But again, he obviously doesn't care. Maxwell's family said legal
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  Speaker 1: routes must be exhausted. before making a pardon application. They said,
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  Speaker 1: to the best of their knowledge, there isn't an application
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  Speaker 1: to the Trump administration. For advocates, presidential clemency would deal
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: an immense blow to survivors. Lauren Hirsch, a former prosecutor,
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: who is the CEO of the non-profit World Without Exploitation, said,
• 12:40
  Speaker 1: After listening to so many survivors and hearing the devastating
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: harm caused by Ghislaine Maxwell, I can't imagine anybody would
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  Speaker 1: give the idea of a pardon a moment's thought. It
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  Speaker 1: would be totally egregious. Oh, they don't care about that. What,
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: they care about being egregious? They care about bad optics?
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: Not for one minute. Asked about a pardon, Thomas Massey,
• 13:03
  Speaker 1: a Republican Kentucky congressman who co-sponsored the bipartisan Epstein-Files Transparency Act,
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: said in a statement, I'm adamantly opposed to it. Todd
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: Blanch already inexplicably and inappropriately moved her to a country
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  Speaker 1: club prison. with no new information or indictments of co-conspirators.
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  Speaker 1: And that's a big tell. When we're talking about a cover-up,
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: it's a big deal. And if we had a neutral
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: party looking at this, a special counsel, it would be
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  Speaker 1: bad news for Todd Blanch and Donald Trump. Julie Roginski,
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: who filed sexual harassment lawsuit against Roger Ailes, the former
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  Speaker 1: Fox News CEO and co-founded the Survivors Advocacy non-profit Lift
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  Speaker 1: Our Voices, said an act of clemency would be a
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  Speaker 1: monumental slap in the face for survivors, but she didn't
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  Speaker 1: rule it out. She already got a sweetheart deal by
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: being moved not just into club fed, but by given
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: privileges that nobody else in her position would be given,
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  Speaker 1: Roginski said, referring to Maxwell's controversial transfer to a low-security prison.
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  Speaker 1: Roginski also pointed to Blanche's interview of Maxwell, which the
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: now Attorney General conducted, while he was the Justice Department's
• 14:17
  Speaker 1: second-ranking official. I think we already understand that the fix
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: is in for her, and I don't know whether she
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: had some sort of guarantee that once the president is
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: on his way out, as one of his last acts
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  Speaker 1: of commutation, he will commute her sentence or just give
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: her a full pardon, Roginski said. Nothing would surprise me. Well, look,
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  Speaker 1: me either. And when it comes to Ghislaine Maxwell and
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: her jihad to get herself released from prison, Trump is
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: the last stop. He's the last watering hole that hasn't
• 14:48
  Speaker 1: been poisoned. And if Glenn Maxwell wants to drink, become free,
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  Speaker 1: then it's going to be Donald Trump that helps her
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  Speaker 1: get there. The question is, will he do it? All
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  Speaker 1: the information that goes with this episode can be found
• 15:05
  Speaker 1: in the description box.