In a fiery twist to the Jeffrey Epstein saga, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has come under scrutiny for saying “we didn’t put it out” when pressed about why Democrats failed to release Epstein-related files. The statement has set social media ablaze, with critics accusing both parties of stonewalling justice. Jeffries, however, deflected blame onto the Trump administration, demanding full transparency and immediate disclosure of all Epstein documents. With Epstein’s client list still sealed and survivors still seeking accountability, the tension is skyrocketing. Is this a turning point in the scandal — or just more political finger-pointing? Watch Jeffries’ full remarks.
00:00The American people desperately want an economy that is affordable for hard-working taxpayers.
00:12Donald Trump and House Republicans promised that costs would go down in the United States of America.
00:19Costs aren't going down, they're going up.
00:21They certainly have not gone down on day one, as Republicans promised the American people.
00:30Inflation is on the way up, life is getting more expensive, and Donald Trump and House Republicans are driving the economy off of a cliff.
00:43Donald Trump and House Republicans have done nothing, nothing, not a single thing, to make life more affordable for hard-working American taxpayers.
00:53The one big ugly law will do nothing to meaningfully address the cost-of-living crisis that we have in this country.
01:05In fact, the one big ugly law will make life more expensive for everyday Americans, particularly as it relates to utility bills in this country.
01:17Utility bills are going to go up as a result of the actions that have been taken by Donald Trump and Republicans.
01:28Well, the 17 million people are going to lose their health care as a result of the action taken by Donald Trump and Republicans.
01:36Children, veterans and seniors who are hungry are going to lose their nutritional assistance as it relates to the actions taken by Donald Trump and House Republicans connected to the one big ugly law.
01:57Well, and all of this has been done to reward billionaires with massive tax breaks, and at the same time skyrocket and explode the debt by more than $3 trillion.
02:16It's unconscionable what Donald Trump and House Republicans have done to hurt the American people.
02:27The job of those of us who are in public service should be at all times to make life better for everyday Americans, to improve the quality of life for the American people,
02:43to ensure, as Democrats are focused on, that when you work hard and play by the rules in the United States of America,
02:52you should be able to afford to live the good life, good paying job, good housing, good health care, good education for your children, and a good retirement.
03:07That's the American dream, and far too many people are unable to achieve it, even though they're working hard and playing by the rules.
03:18Republicans haven't made it easier to achieve the American dream.
03:25They are making it harder for everyday Americans, and that's a shame.
03:33President?
03:34Mr. Leader, good morning, good afternoon, I should say.
03:37See you.
03:38Do you expect any delay tactics tonight to try to stall this?
03:42You set a record with a speech just a couple of weeks ago.
03:45Well, it's not clear what the challenges are right now in terms of why Republicans have been unable to bring these bills to the floor so we can actually debate them
03:58and lay out for the American people why their efforts to slash and burn funding is going to hurt public health, public safety,
04:12and the dissemination of public information to places like small towns and rural America.
04:18That's going to be the impact of the rescissions package, and so as of the moment, we're just looking forward to an active and robust debate on the House floor
04:31so we can lay out for the American people why Republicans continue to take steps to hurt them as opposed to helping them.
04:40So not anticipating a magic minute like you did a couple of weeks ago?
04:43I do expect to participate in the debate, and I expect that I will speak longer than a minute.
04:50Mr. Leader, though.
04:51Thank you, Mr. Leader.
04:52I want to get your reaction to comments that OMB Director Russ Boat made at a breakfast with reporters this morning
04:59when he said that he didn't think that the appropriations process should be bipartisan going forward.
05:04Do you agree with that?
05:07What are your comments on the appropriations process if this rescissions package passes?
05:14Do you think that that hurts the spirit of bipartisanship that you try to approach these negotiations with?
05:19The Trump administration and House and Senate Republicans are trying to march America toward a painful government shutdown.
05:29That's the reality.
05:31We've known that to be the case, and now Russell Voigt is saying the quiet part out loud.
05:41That the Trump administration has no interest in reaching a spending agreement in a bipartisan manner.
05:51Which means, translation, they are determined to shut the government down and hurt the American people.
05:59Just to be clear, are you considering a possible speech that would be long enough to mean the deadline for passing rescissions tomorrow night could pass?
06:12I'm surprised how much attention the Magic Minute is generating at this particular point in time.
06:17Well, the fate of all this money could come to that.
06:20I think Democrats are going to continue to fight hard and do everything we can to make sure that we are pushing back aggressively against this rescissions package, which is going to hurt the American people.
06:37Mr. Johnson is reportedly considering putting a non-binding resolution on the floor, calling for the release of all the files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
06:47Would that be satisfactory at this moment, or do you think Democrats at this point need to see something like the Kana Amendment, which would actually force the release of those documents?
06:55The Kana Amendment is the most appropriate step that can be taken in order to provide the American people with the transparency they deserve in terms of this whole, sordid, scandalous, and corrupt Jeffrey Epstein matter.
07:17This is very simple.
07:18The American people simply need to know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth as it relates to this situation.
07:30Democrats didn't put this into the public domain.
07:32The conspiracy theory provocateur-in-chief, Donald Trump, is the one, along with his extreme MAGA Republican associates, who put this whole thing into the public domain for years.
07:58And now they are reaping what they have sown.
08:00On that same topic, do you expect all Democrats to be signing on to the discharge petition to release obscene information?
08:08It's my understanding that the discharge petition may not even ripen until after we return from the August district work period.
08:16So let's take one step at a time.
08:19And the most important thing that can be done at this moment is for Congress to act in a bipartisan way
08:25to demand that the American people get the transparency that they deserve.
08:32What is the Trump administration hiding from the American people?
08:38That's the question that needs to be answered.
08:41What are you hoping to learn from your meeting, provided it happens tomorrow, with Assemblyman Mamdani?
08:49And on top of that, Republicans are certainly trying to cast him as a liability for Democrats.
08:54Do you see him as such?
08:56We're going to have a very robust discussion in the event that we are able to proceed tomorrow,
09:01but at some point shortly thereafter, if we are not about quality of life issues important to the people that I represent
09:11in the 8th Congressional District in New York.
09:15At the same period of time, I do look forward to having a conversation with our Democratic nominee,
09:45about the importance of everyone being on the same page in terms of taking back control of the House of Representatives in 2026.
09:59On the issue of redistricting, you were asked a couple of days ago about whether governors in blue states
10:05should draw up mid-decade lines to counter the efforts in Texas and North Carolina.
10:10You would defer to those governors.
10:11Since then, Gavin Newsom has come out pretty strongly and said he's ready to pull the trigger
10:17and do that to counter what's going on in Texas.
10:21Given that development, can you weigh in a little bit more?
10:24Do you think it's a good idea, a bad idea?
10:26Does it set a bad precedent?
10:27And are you in discussions with the governor about doing that very thing?
10:31It's all options on the table at this moment because of the existential threat that Republicans have posed
10:43to the health, safety, and economic well-being of the American people.
10:48As Democrats, we just want fair maps across the country.
10:55And to the extent that governors in different states throughout the nation conclude
11:05that a reevaluation as to whether their current maps are as fair as possible should take place,
11:14that certainly is a decision that makes sense to me in this environment.
11:22The House is expected to vote on a trio of crypto bills later today or perhaps tomorrow.
11:28I'm just wondering if you know yet how you'll be planning to vote because I know Democratic leaders
11:32aren't planning to whip those bills.
11:34I certainly will make a decision about all three bills in advance of me arriving on the floor
11:40of the House of Representatives.
11:41We, as you have pointed out, have made the decision not to whip those bills.
11:46And so every single member, myself included, are evaluating the individual merits of each
11:53of those pieces of legislation to determine what makes the most sense for the communities
11:58that we're privileged to represent.
12:02And relatedly with the defense bill, the total defense spending this year is going to be
12:07at or above a trillion dollars for the first time.
12:09I'm wondering if you have any specific concerns about the spending there, allocations,
12:13if you think it should be different in any significant ways.
12:17Here's the thing about Donald Trump, House Republicans, and the GOP.
12:23These are people who have for years claimed to be the party of fiscal responsibility.
12:28They're not the party of fiscal responsibility.
12:31These people are reckless and irresponsible as it relates to taxpayer dollars.
12:37The Republicans just passed this one big ugly law that explodes the debt and the deficit
12:46and is leading America down a path of potential economic disaster and bankruptcy
12:57as a result of Republicans jamming this extreme partisan bill down the throats of the American people.
13:07We clearly have to get our fiscal house in order, but it is certainly the case that Republicans have zero credibility
13:18as it relates to spending taxpayer dollars in a manner that is efficient, effective, and equitable.
13:27Politics, at the end of the day, is about the management of public money.
13:33And the one thing that is clear right now is that Republicans have determined to manage that money
13:39in a way that hurts everyday Americans and rewards billionaires with massive tax breaks.
13:48And they clearly are also in the business of rewarding their donors and special interests
13:56that they feel will serve their political interests, but that we know undermine the public interests.
14:07Last question.
14:08Well, let me first make the observation that Social Security and Medicare are not entitlement programs.
14:35Republicans call them entitlement programs because they believe, these extremists, that they're entitled to cut them.
14:43Social Security and Medicare are earned benefits.
14:49Hardworking American taxpayers pay into those programs through the FICA tax every single working day of their lives.
15:01They've earned those benefits.
15:03They've paid into those benefits.
15:04They deserve their Social Security and Medicare benefits.
15:08By the way, in this one big ugly law, it is likely to trigger more than $500 billion in cuts to Medicare, which is extraordinary.
15:22And we know the Republicans also have put Social Security on the chopping block.
15:27The 60th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid is going to take place on July 30th.
15:41And House Democrats will have a Medicare Matters and Medicaid Matters Day of Action,
15:48talking about our efforts to both protect and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid and push back against the dramatic cuts to Medicaid that were part of the one big ugly law.
16:00A few weeks after that, on August 7th, I believe, that is the 90th anniversary of Social Security.
16:10And we'll be having a safe Social Security Day of Action, and we'll have more to say about that as we approach it.
16:19But certainly, I'm greatly appreciative of the effort of leaders like John Larson and Richie Neal,
16:27who have previously put forth legislation, Social Security 2100 Act,
16:36that is an important part of our strategy to both protect Social Security and strengthen Social Security.
16:49There's a big difference between Democrats and Republicans.
16:54And we are going to continue to fight for everyday Americans, for children, for veterans, for farmers,
17:01for hardworking American families, and for older Americans,
17:08which means our message to Republicans will continue to be clear.
17:14Keep your hands off of Social Security and Medicare.
