Vance: Admin 'Screwed Up' Epstein Comms07/16 06:19

   

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Vice President JD Vance says the Trump administration 
"absolutely" mishandled the communications surrounding the Jeffrey Epstein 
files.

   During a lengthy podcast interview with Joe Rogan released Wednesday, Vance 
pointed largely to former Attorney General Pam Bondi, who infamously stated 
that an alleged "client list" of Epstein's was "sitting on my desk right now." 
Epstein was a convicted sex offender who was known for his wide web of 
connections to the world's elite.

   In addition to those comments, the Justice Department under Bondi had also 
offered conservative commentators and influencers binders that were called "The 
Epstein files: Phase 1" and "Declassified."

   "I know Pam. I like Pam. I don't think there was anything malicious going 
on," Vance told Rogan. "I think Pam was trying to respond to the political 
moment. I think she overstated what we had and what we didn't have."

   As a result, Vance said, Bondi was "roasted" publicly for it and led people 
to "mistrust" the administration's transparency efforts on the Epstein files.

   "We absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files. Like, we just 
did," Vance said. "But do I think the reason we screwed up the comms is because 
we were trying to hide something? No."

   The controversy over the Epstein files dogged the administration for much of 
last year, with lawmakers eventually passing a measure that compelled the 
release of a massive trove of documents in the government's possession related 
to its investigations of the disgraced financier. The Justice Department began 
releasing the documents in late December, which included photos, call logs, 
grand jury testimony and interview transcripts.