Epstein Clash | “Protecting Pedophiles?”: Jim McGovern’s Explosive Claim Rocks House Hearing

A fiery moment in the House Rules Committee hearing stunned Washington as Rep. Jim McGovern (D–Massachusetts) accused Republican leaders of blocking the swearing-in of Arizona’s first Latina congresswoman, allegedly because she supported releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files.

McGovern’s statement — “more concerned about protecting pedophiles than getting the truth out for survivors” — has ignited political outrage on both sides of the aisle.

#JimMcGovern #EpsteinFiles #CongressHearing

Transcript

00:00tend to do something about the 20 million Americans

00:02who are about to see their health care premium soar

00:05or the 4 million people who could lose their coverage altogether?

00:11You don't even have a health care plan.

00:14You've been promising one for over a decade

00:15and we've never seen it because it doesn't exist.

00:18Or maybe it's simply just hiding behind the missing appropriation bills

00:22that this Republican majority hasn't passed.

00:25I don't know.

00:26But what I do know is this.

00:28Republicans have been in charge for 292 days.

00:31That's 292 days to do something, anything, to lower costs,

00:36to bring down prices, to make America more affordable,

00:40to do something about health care, tariffs, grocery prices, rent, or heating bills.

00:46And what did you do?

00:47You handed out tax breaks to billionaires

00:49and took the longest paid vacation in modern history.

00:53Even your own colleagues called it out.

00:55Even Marjorie Taylor Greene says,

00:57you guys messed up.

00:59When Marjorie Taylor Greene thinks you've gone too far,

01:01you might want to rethink things.

01:03And by the way,

01:05you also refused to even swear in our new colleague,

01:08the duly elected representative from Arizona's 7th District,

01:12Adelita Grijalva.

01:13Why?

01:14Because she will represent the 218th signature

01:17on a discharge petition to release the Epstein files.

01:20Oh, we didn't forget about those either.

01:23Don't worry.

01:24We won't forget that the Speaker of the House

01:27refused to swear in the first Latina ever elected to represent Arizona

01:31because he was more concerned about protecting pedophiles

01:34than getting the truth out there for the survivors.

01:38But that's just the perfect metaphor for the Trump economy.

01:41If you're rich and powerful, you get ahead.

01:43If you're a regular person,

01:45Republicans will not lift a finger to help you.

01:47And I want to be crystal clear.

01:50House Democrats represents something very different.

01:53We refuse to accept a government that moves at lightning speed

01:56to give tax breaks to billionaires,

01:58but then goes home for eight weeks

02:00when it comes to ensuring health care is affordable for working families.

02:04We've said it from day one of this shutdown.

02:07We will sit down with any Republicans,

02:10any time, any place, anywhere,

02:12in order to find a path forward

02:14that would reopen the government

02:15and finds a solution to Republicans' health care crisis.

02:20But we're not just going to roll over

02:23and accept your way,

02:25your my way or the highway approach to governance.

02:28If you need our votes,

02:30you need to work with us.

02:32But you refuse because you're more interested

02:34in extremism than governance.

02:37But here's the thing.

02:38The beautiful thing about politics

02:40is that you don't really lose until you quit trying.

02:45And Democrats are going to keep trying

02:46because people are counting on us to do something

02:49about this health care crisis.

02:51And when their health care premiums double and triple,

02:54and they will,

02:56and your constituents,

02:58I'm sure you're getting the calls,

03:00Republicans will own it.

03:02Every premium spike,

03:04every family forced off coverage,

03:06every life put at risk,

03:07you own it.

03:09And good luck going home to your constituents

03:11to explain why you sold them out

03:13in order to appease the millionaires and billionaires.

03:16Extending these tax credits is the right thing to do.

03:19It is the moral thing to do.

03:22Thirteen House Republicans have said

03:24it needs to be done

03:25because soaring health care costs

03:27will devastate our constituents

03:29whether they live in a red state or a blue state.

03:32So I want people to know

03:33that we will keep fighting.

03:35I will keep fighting.

03:37My colleagues on this committee

03:38on the Democratic side

03:39will keep fighting for a government

03:41that puts the working class first

03:43and for a Congress that actually shows up

03:46and does their damn job.

03:48I yield back my time.

03:52Thank you, Mr. McGovern.

03:54And I want to welcome all the members.

03:56I should have said that.

03:57I'm very pleased to see everyone.

04:00Without objection,

04:01any prepared statements that our witnesses may have

04:04will be included in the record.

04:05And now welcome our first panel,

04:09Chairman Cole and Ranking Member DeLauro

04:11from the Committee on Appropriations.

04:14Your full statement will be submitted for the record.

04:17We ask that you summarize your statement in five minutes.

04:21Chairman Cole, I welcome your testimony

04:23and welcome you back to the Rules Committee.

04:26Thank you very much, Madam Chairman.

04:29Chairwoman Fox, Ranking Member McGovern,

04:32and esteemed members of the Rules Committee,

04:34I thank you for your warm welcome

04:35and your kind invitation to testify today.

04:38As members of this committee are all too painfully aware,

04:42for the last six weeks,

04:43the federal government has been shut down.

04:45Millions of workers have gone unpaid.

04:48Air traffic control functions have slowed to a near halt.

04:51SNAP benefits expired, forcing millions of Americans

04:55to either find assistance from food banks or else go hungry.

05:00Seniors saw telepath resources suspended,

05:03and Head Start education programs for children have been closing.

05:07These are just a few of the examples of the harm

05:10being inflicted on our nation.

05:12Yet it didn't have to be this way.

05:14Nearly two months ago,

05:16the House passed a continuing resolution

05:18that would have kept the government open and operating.

05:21This would have allowed Congress time

05:23to keep working on the FY2026 appropriations process

05:27through regular order.

05:28But instead, Senate Democrats blocked its passage.

05:32The result of this political temper tantrum

05:35has been the longest government shutdown

05:37in the nation's history.

05:39For 42 days and counting,

05:41Democrats have held the country hostage.

05:44Make no mistake,

05:45all the pain,

05:46all the suffering,

05:47and all the difficulty Americans have endured

05:50in these past six weeks

05:51could have and should have been avoided.

05:54Instead,

05:55the hardship and damage

05:56caused by an intentional choice

05:59made by Democratic leadership.

06:01Minority leaders Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer

06:04led their caucus to shut down the government.

06:08And for 42 days,

06:09the American people have borne the brunt

06:11of that decision

06:12and have been mere pawns

06:14at the partisan hands of the Democrats.

06:17At long last,

06:18reason has prevailed

06:19and the measure before us

06:21will finally end this pointless shutdown.

06:25Today's bill will not only reopen the government,

06:28but it will also move

06:30the FY2026 appropriations process forward,

06:34representing a return to regular order.

06:36This legislation includes

06:38three bipartisan,

06:40bicameral,

06:41full-year appropriations measures

06:43covering the military construction

06:45and veterans affairs,

06:46legislative branch,

06:47and agriculture,

06:49rural development,

06:50and food and drug administration divisions.

06:53These three bills

06:54have been negotiated

06:55between the two chambers

06:56and reflect a final,

06:58full,

06:58and bipartisan agreement.

07:01With passage of these three divisions,

07:03we will have full-year funding in place

07:06for many of our most crucial programs.

07:08Military construction needs

07:10will be met for a full year,

07:12as will medical programs

07:14for our nation's veterans.

07:15The legislative branch

07:17will be fully funded,

07:18including critical funding enhancements

07:20for the Capitol Police

07:22and for member security.

07:24The Department of Agriculture

07:25and Food and Drug Administration

07:27will also be fully funded,

07:29as will the WIC program

07:31to ensure that pregnant women

07:32and young children

07:34will get the food and nutrition

07:35they need to survive

07:36and to thrive.

07:38Importantly,

07:39the agreement encompasses

07:40community project funding

07:42in both the military construction

07:44and agriculture divisions,

07:46reflecting Congress's clear control

07:48over the power of the purse.

07:50Inclusion of these projects

07:52was a high priority

07:54for the Appropriations Committee,

07:55and it accomplishes this goal

07:57while holding the line

07:59on overall spending levels.

08:01We also break Senator Schumer's

08:03beloved end-of-the-year

08:04holiday omnibus habit.

08:07No more thousand-page spending

08:09behemoths at midnight.

08:12Republicans have restored

08:14an open line-by-line process.

08:17As we continue to make strong progress

08:19on full-year FY26 bills,

08:22we've included a continuing resolution

08:24to fund the remainder of the government

08:26through January 30, 2026.

08:28This extension supports

08:30our ongoing work on this front,

08:33especially given the time lost

08:36during the Democratic shutdown.

08:38The simplest truth today is this.

08:41Reopening the government

08:42will put an end to the chaos

08:44Democratic leadership

08:45has inflicted on Americans.

08:47It will also ensure

08:49that SNAP funds

08:50are made available

08:51to ensure that no American

08:53goes hungry.

08:54It will reestablish

08:56control of the skies,

08:57keeping our nation's

08:58air traffic moving

08:59during the holiday season.

09:01All right.

09:01So,

09:03so,

09:04let's open the

09:05city,

09:05to shut the

09:07florida,

09:07and say,

09:08let's open the

09:08VoIP basin.

09:08Let's leave it

09:09before you go.

09:10So,

09:10it says none of

09:11the beibel.

09:16There is a

09:19auch

09:20von

09:20let's

09:23ril

09:23go.

09:24So,

09:25we

09:27d

09:27you

Epstein Clash | “Protecting Pedophiles?”: Jim McGovern’s Explosive Claim Rocks House Hearing | APT

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