Hi all, I hope your Sunday is going well. Hopefully you are finding time to relax, watch the Olympics, and tune into the Super Bowl.
While we were cheering on our athletes at the Winter Olympics, Trump was doing the opposite. The day began with Donald Trump lashing out at a member of the United States Winter Olympics team. In a Truth Social post, Trump attacked freestyle skier Hunter Henderson, calling him “a real loser” and claiming he does not represent the country. Henderson is currently competing on the world stage for the United States, yet the president of the United States chose to publicly smear him.
Trump’s post was triggered by comments Henderson made about the moral conflict he feels representing the United States at a time when he believes the government is terrorizing migrant communities through aggressive immigration enforcement. Henderson explained that wearing the flag does not mean he supports everything the government does, and that he is competing for his friends, family, and those who helped him get there.
Think about how petty and reckless this is. A sitting president attacking an American Olympian while that athlete is actively competing for the country. It is hard to imagine a clearer example of how Trump personalizes everything and weaponizes the presidency against anyone who does not flatter and pledge fealty to him.
But while Trump was busy ranting online, the American people were not taking the bait on his distractions. Trump’s cover-up of the Epstein Files continues to blow up in his face, and things are only getting worse for him.
We learned earlier that Ghislaine Maxwell will invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and refuse to answer all substantive questions during her scheduled deposition before the House Oversight Committee on Monday. This comes after Maxwell delayed her testimony while waiting on a Supreme Court ruling that ultimately went against her months ago.
What makes this especially alarming is that Maxwell previously met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s former criminal defense attorney. Blanche is the same lawyer Trump hired in the case where he was found guilty on 34 felony counts, and then rewarded with one of the top jobs at the Department of Justice. During those meetings with Blanche, Maxwell did not invoke the Fifth Amendment, even though the subject matter overlapped with what Congress is now seeking to ask her about.
This morning, Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna sent a letter to House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, a letter that the MeidasTouch Network exclusively obtained and published. In it, Khanna lays out serious concerns about what is happening and why Maxwell’s sudden blanket refusal to testify raises red flags.
Khanna explains that Maxwell plans to assert the Fifth Amendment across the board by reading a prepared statement and refusing to answer any questions individually. He notes that this posture directly contradicts her prior conduct when she spoke with Blanche about substantially similar topics.
To remove any ambiguity, Khanna formally submitted the exact questions he intends to ask Maxwell and requested confirmation that she will invoke the Fifth Amendment as to each one. They include whether Maxwell’s habeas petition accurately stated that four named co-conspirators and 25 men who allegedly abused minors were never indicted, who those individuals are, and why they were not charged.
She is also being asked whether she or Jeffrey Epstein ever arranged or facilitated access to underage girls for Donald Trump, whether there were discussions about a pardon or sentence reduction in exchange for her silence, whether Epstein maintained client lists, and whether he shared information with foreign governments or intelligence services, including Russia and Israel.
Maxwell plans to refuse to answer all of it.
At the same time, she has been moved from a maximum-security prison to a minimum-security facility in Texas, despite being a convicted child sex trafficker who should never qualify for such placement.
Now compare how this is being handled in the United States with what just happened in the United Kingdom. There, Morgan McSweeney, the chief of staff to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, resigned under pressure over his role in appointing Peter Mandelson, a known Epstein associate, as ambassador to the United States. Starmer admitted the vetting process failed, and accountability followed quickly (and the fallout is remains ongoing).
Here in the U.S., the center of the Epstein network remains intertwined with power, protected rather than exposed.
We also need to be clear about undisputed facts. Donald Trump was found liable by a federal jury for sexual assault. He has bragged on tape about grabbing women without consent. He praised Epstein as someone who “likes girls on the younger side.” When given the chance to testify in his own sexual assault case, Trump fled the country rather than face questioning.
We also now know that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick lied about the extent of his relationship with Epstein. Despite claiming he cut ties in 2005, documents show continued contact and business dealings after Epstein’s conviction, including evidence pointing to travel to Epstein’s island.
Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, co-author of the Epstein Transparency Act, said plainly that Lutnick should resign. He pointed out that in the United Kingdom, people have lost titles and positions for far less.
Massie also condemned Trump for posting racist content depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes, saying Trump should apologize and that attacks on spouses and racist tropes cross basic lines of decency.
This pattern of rot does not stop there. We are watching administration officials lie brazenly about public health as the country faces its worst measles outbreak in decades, falsely claiming they have supported vaccines all along. We are seeing empty claims about trade deals with China that exist only in words, not documents, while American farmers continue to suffer.
And we are watching supposed “moderate” Republicans excuse Trump’s behavior as he withholds infrastructure funding unless projects are named after him and sues the government for billions of taxpayer dollars for his own benefit.
That is where things stand this afternoon.
Later today, MeidasTouch Editor in Chief Ron Filipkowski will publish his full weekend recap, completely paywall free, with even more detail on these developments. Thanks for your support of MeidasTouch and this Substack, and enjoy the rest of your weekend.
