Bill Gates Testifies On Epstein LIVE: Congress Grills Billionaire Over His Ties To Jeffrey Epstein

[0:02] I didn't do it, but I was surprised [0:03] that there was a lot of time in the year [0:05] that I was going to get. [0:07] I guess we're all in the yard for that question. [0:08] We got to call it. [0:10] And handle it. [0:11] And you. [0:12] And you. [0:13] And you. [0:14] And you. [0:15] And you. [0:22] And then don't see it. [0:27] And you're going to hear it. [0:30] I don't know. [0:31] I don't know. [0:33] I don't know. [0:34] I don't know. [0:35] I don't know. [0:36] I don't know. [0:37] I don't know. [0:56] I don't know. [0:58] But you guys should know. [1:04] Thank you. [1:35] Thank you so much, everyone has all this, it's been so sweet, so yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. [1:57] Well, position then and when we know more, I guess, well, yeah. [2:00] Thank you so much. [2:05] Thank you. [2:36] Thank you. [2:38] Thank you. [2:39] Thank you. [2:43] Thank you. [2:45] Thank you. [2:48] Thank you. [2:52] Thank you. [2:54] Thank you. [3:01] Thank you. [3:04] Thank you. [3:06] Thank you. [3:13] Thank you. [3:15] Thank you. [3:17] Thank you. [3:19] Thank you. [3:21] Thank you. [3:51] Thank you. [4:21] Thank you. [4:51] Thank you. [5:23] Thank you. [5:53] Thank you. [6:24] Thank you. [6:55] Thank you. [7:27] Thank you. [8:04] Thank you. [8:43] Thank you. [9:14] Thank you. [9:45] Thank you. [10:18] Thank you. [11:13] Thank you. [11:52] Thank you. [12:27] Thank you. [12:59] Thank you. [13:30] Thank you. [14:10] Thank you. [14:43] Thank you. [15:14] Thank you. [48:58] Thank you. [49:33] Thank you. [50:10] Thank you. [50:50] Thank you. [51:24] Thank you. [52:07] Thank you. [52:39] Thank you. [53:09] Thank you. [53:40] Thank you. [54:13] Thank you. [54:43] Thank you. [55:14] Thank you. [55:44] Thank you. [56:17] Thank you. [56:50] Thank you. [57:39] Thank you. [58:09] Thank you. [1:01:54] Thank you. [1:02:30] Thank you. [1:03:01] He's got you. [1:03:33] Thank you. [1:04:04] I don't know. [1:04:34] This is about the [1:05:06] one. [1:05:37] Thank you. [1:06:08] Thank you. [1:06:40] Thank you. [1:07:10] Thank you. [1:07:41] Thank you. [1:08:12] Thank you. [1:08:44] Thank you. [1:09:17] Thank you. [1:10:04] Thank you. [1:10:34] Thank you. [1:11:04] Thank you. [1:12:24] Thank you. [1:12:55] Thank you. [1:13:31] Thank you. [1:14:04] Thank you. [1:14:35] Thank you. [1:18:13] Thank you. [1:18:43] Thank you. [1:19:15] Thank you. [1:19:45] Thank you. [1:20:26] Thank you. [1:20:56] Thank you. [1:21:26] Thank you. [1:23:41] Thank you. [1:24:11] Thank you. [1:24:42] Thank you. [1:25:12] Thank you. [1:25:42] Thank you. [1:26:13] Thank you. [1:26:44] Thank you. [1:27:15] Thank you. [1:28:58] Thank you. [1:29:29] Thank you. [1:30:30] Thank you. [1:31:51] Thank you. [1:33:14] Thank you. [1:42:31] Thank you. [1:43:01] Thank you. [1:43:39] Thank you. [1:44:15] Thank you. [1:44:57] Thank you. [1:45:29] Thank you. [1:47:27] Thank you. [1:49:57] Thank you. [1:50:30] Thank you. [1:51:00] Thank you. [1:51:29] Thank you. [1:51:59] Thank you. [1:52:29] Thank you. [1:52:59] Thank you. [1:53:29] Thank you. [1:54:34] Thank you. [1:55:12] Thank you. [1:55:42] Thank you. [1:56:12] Thank you. [1:56:42] Thank you. [1:57:12] Thank you. [1:58:03] Thank you. [2:04:31] Thank you. [2:05:02] Thank you. [2:05:40] Thank you. [2:06:15] Thank you. [2:06:57] Thank you. [2:07:28] Thank you. [2:09:22] Thank you. [2:09:58] Thank you. [2:10:28] Thank you. [2:10:58] Thank you. [2:12:12] Thank you. [2:13:48] Thank you. [2:14:21] Thank you. [2:14:52] Thank you. [2:15:24] Thank you. [2:16:16] Thank you. [2:16:49] Thank you. [2:17:25] Thank you. [2:17:55] Thank you. [2:18:28] Thank you. [2:18:59] Thank you. [2:19:30] Thank you. [2:20:01] Thank you. [2:20:32] Thank you. [2:21:04] Thank you. [2:21:34] Thank you. [2:22:05] Thank you. [2:22:36] Thank you. [2:23:07] Thank you. [2:23:40] Thank you. [2:24:13] Thank you. [2:25:01] Thank you. [2:25:31] Thank you. [2:26:01] Thank you. [2:26:31] Thank you. [2:27:01] Thank you. [2:27:02] Thank you. [2:27:32] Thank you. [2:28:02] Thank you. [2:28:33] Thank you. [2:29:03] Thank you. [2:29:04] Thank you. [2:29:34] Thank you. [2:29:36] Thank you. [2:30:05] Thank you. [2:30:06] Thank you. [2:30:07] Thank you. [2:30:52] Thank you. [2:30:53] Thank you. [2:30:54] Thank you. [2:30:55] Thank you. [2:30:56] Thank you. [2:30:57] Thank you. [2:31:12] Thank you. [2:31:13] Thank you. [2:31:23] Thank you. [2:31:24] Thank you. [2:31:56] Thank you. [2:31:57] Thank you. [2:31:58] Exactly. [2:31:59] Thank you. [2:32:00] Thank you. [2:32:01] Thank you. [2:32:02] Thank you. [2:32:03] Thank you. [2:32:05] It's going to be the show. [2:32:06] Well, it's a deposition that is under oath and it's videotaped and released to the American [2:32:07] public. [2:32:07] have to have Blanche under oath. It's got to be videotaped and released to the public. That was our full request of Chairman Comer as it relates to Blanche and we're going to continue to make to make that request. As it relates to Mr. Gates obviously we just started the the the questioning. We are very interested in understanding who was in Epstein's orbit. What did what did Mr. Gates actually see. We're certainly going to be asking about some of those some of the emails that were in the files as they relate to Mr. Gates possible activities with [2:32:37] Mr. Epstein. But anyone that was around Jeffrey Epstein we want to hear from. And like I said before we don't care if they're a Democrat or Republican or how influential they are. If they were involved with Epstein we want to get to that truth. So that's what today is going to be about. So we haven't gotten anything directly from from from James from Mr. Comer yet. But our request isn't very clear is that it has to be a videotape under oath deposition. We're talking now about the nominee to be attorney general on the Senate side. This is not acting. He's not [2:33:15] the deputy and the the the he may be the when he gets here or not. And so if that's the case it has to be under oath. And quite frankly it should be public hearing. I mean that would be ideal. But if it's going to be an interview behind closed doors it needs to be a deposition under oath. [2:33:35] I think it's great. I mean look we that's someone that obviously was very involved with Jeffrey Epstein. I think it's something that we need to hear from. And we should we should want to hear from any person that was in that circle. Look yesterday we heard obviously from Miss Groff who was [2:33:47] a very close assistant worked for for Epstein for 18 years. And she provided a lot of names of individuals that worked in the Epstein orbit [2:33:57] that many of whom we've heard from from other survivors that we want to speak with. And so there's going to be a lot of interviews ahead [2:34:05] for us to to sit down with and really get more information about what what really happened and who knew what. [2:34:10] I share those concerns. I think that there have been numerous interviews that we've conducted where I found the witness to be [2:34:32] not credible and certainly to spend 18 years with someone and to not remember or have not really acknowledge the fact that there was [2:34:43] rape and trafficking and abuse of minors happening. And this is a woman who knew that Jeffrey Epstein had pleaded guilty of a horrific [2:34:53] crime and then continued to work for him for many years after. And so there are additional questions. Look and I'll just want to say this there's a lot of folks that we have interviewed [2:35:03] over the last six months eight months that we're going to want to hear from again as we gather more information and evidence as well. Any final final questions? [2:35:12] OK thanks guys. Well thank you all for being here. Hopefully everybody can hear me OK. [2:35:57] We are about to begin the interview with Bill Gates. This will be our 15th interview. There are a couple of things I want to mention about yesterday [2:36:07] based on the testimony from Miss Groff as well as a meeting that I had afterwards with several of the Epstein survivors. [2:36:23] We I am going to ask Alan Dershowitz to come in. We will have questions for him. We're going to give him an opportunity to come in and [2:36:36] answer several several questions that arose yesterday based on Miss Groff testimony and some things that some of the Epstein survivors said. So we're proceeding along. [2:36:49] Hopefully this interview today will be productive and help us learn more and help us in our investigation as we move forward. I'll be happy to answer a couple of questions. [2:36:59] Well the same information I think other members of Congress have said we just want to know about his relationship with Mr. Epstein and Miss Maxwell. What what did he see? Did he know what was going on? Was he involved in any of this? [2:37:19] So I'm sure as as we ask questions more questions will arise. I will say this. No one's accusing Bill Gates of any wrongdoing and I certainly appreciate him coming in voluntarily. [2:37:32] I'm communicating with the Department of Justice. I would like for Todd Blanche to come in in July. [2:37:38] Well he's got he's got you know I think we all know he has a big confirmation coming up. So but I've always wanted Blanche to come in. Now let me let me be very clear. [2:38:02] Todd Blanche came in a month ago. He came in with Pam Bondi to answer questions from the Oversight Committee and the Democrats stormed out and ran to you all to try to be the first to get on MSNBC and and talk about their outrage. [2:38:19] What a missed opportunity for the Democrats. But but Todd Blanche answered questions that Republicans had for several hours as did Miss Bondi. [2:38:27] But we brought Miss Bondi back in and we're working to bring Todd Blanche in. [2:38:34] But if overall there were emails in the files relating to Bill Gates a draft email alleging there was some kind of a request to get medication for STD. [2:38:46] Yeah. Is there potential for a criminal wrongdoing there asking someone for a medication that may not otherwise be available? [2:38:54] I don't know about that but that email will be addressed in the first hour of questioning I can assure you with the majority will have one hour question the minority will have one hour question. [2:39:04] I hope that you all review the transcripts of all these interviews that we do and look at the depth of the questions that the Republicans asked versus the depth of the questions that the Democrats asked. [2:39:17] Yesterday right right off the bat the Democrats asked questions about Mar-a-Lago and Donald Trump and Donald Trump and this is about the survivors of Epstein and Maxwell. [2:39:30] This is about trying to figure out how the government failed and this this goes back several administrations several attorneys general this is definitely been a failure in justice. [2:39:43] We're trying to get the truth to the American people and we're trying to provide some type of justice for the survivors so I really hope that you all are reviewing the transcripts because it's inevitable that after every interview the Democrats march out here actually they tiptoe out here and they go and tell you all this stuff they're outraged that Lutnik said or that Bondi said well then then the transcript comes out and no one ever questions on it. [2:40:10] It's real frustrating because it's real frustrating because the Democrats have been nothing but dead weight in this investigation but I feel like we've accomplished a lot we're bringing people in and one thing that's clear is many of these people have never been interviewed by the government they've never been interviewed by the FBI they've never been interviewed by the Department of Justice so this is the first time there's been a substantive investigation and I'm happy with the work that we've done thus far [2:40:40] it's disappointing because I think that all of us would agree that some of the things that everyone we've brought in to interview have said are hard to believe it was hard to believe some of the things Miss Groff said yesterday especially with respect to scheduling the massages every day massive list of girls that's hard to believe that she never suspected anything but that's what she testified it's hard to believe Lex Wexner didn't know anything going on but that's what he testified so we're going to continue to [2:41:13] continue to bring people in and ask the tough questions I hope you're reviewing the transcripts to see the question and then the last thing I want to add we're also communicating or I am and my staff oversight said we're communicating with the survivors we're making sure the survivors read the transcripts and if the survivors see [2:41:44] And he was looking at the familiars and the survivors read the origins of the victims of the victims and the survivors where it came out and then the host was told to get evidence to figure out if the witnesses were lying so this is a very substantive investigation and hopefully today we'll get some more information and I think you've seen the list we've got Staley and Leon Black who is a very big person of interest in this investigation coming in very soon [2:42:15] minutes and trot out, talking points that I have found not to be true and hopefully [2:42:20] if you read the transcripts you'll see they're not true. [2:42:22] Mr. Chairman, just on the overall timeline, I mean we're already in mid-June, what is [2:42:26] your expectation for what you can really get done before the end of the year? [2:42:30] Well that's true, we're on a time clock. We've got Leon Black coming in and Doug Band [2:42:37] this month. Then we have Kathy Rumler, Jess Staley and as I said we're going to try to bring in [2:42:42] Dershowitz and hopefully we'll hear from Todd Blanche. So we'd like to do all that in July. [2:42:48] Do you want to hear from Blanche in a transcribed interview or how are you hoping? [2:42:52] We just have questions, we just have questions for Mr. Blanche but again I want to make sure [2:42:58] everyone gets this. He came in and if the Democrats had stayed, Pam Bondi said during that briefing [2:43:06] that Todd Blanche was the one in charge of the Epson investigation. That wasn't news [2:43:11] when Bondi came in for her interview. That wasn't news. She said that in the briefing but the Democrats [2:43:19] weren't there because they tiptoed out to cry to you all. So I think that the main thing that we have [2:43:29] for Blanche is the question on what if any documents are left out. So that's the main question that we have [2:43:38] for Blanche. He's already, he's already come in once. Are you just questioning Mr. Gates' personal [2:43:44] conduct or the Gates founding entirely? Well, I'm sure there'll be lots of questions from lots of [2:43:50] different members. I know the first hour but that that email is definitely going to be addressed. I [2:43:57] mean I think that everybody in America has questions about that that email. From the foundation. [2:44:02] Yeah, we'll see. We'll see. I don't want to say anything to spook the attorneys who are watching [2:44:09] this right now to go on. So thank you all. We'll be out and give you a briefing soon. [2:44:12] It'll be easier if we just go in. [2:44:14] Great. Not expecting anything else until 1230-ish. [2:44:35] Yeah, it'll be after, it'll be after their first round of questions. [2:44:50] Thank you. [2:44:57] We'll head back. [2:44:59] Main event. [2:45:01] He's going to tug a bit. [2:45:33] Wait, wait, just make sure we're rolling. [2:46:03] Well, I think we want to understand whether the public statements that Mr. Gates has made [2:46:28] about his relationship with Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [2:46:34] Obviously, the files contain some interesting and troubling emails. [2:46:42] Epstein's clear attempt to leverage or perhaps even blackmail Gates over his relationship [2:46:49] with one of the Russian women and Epstein providing payments to that woman [2:46:55] and the email from Epstein to Gates asking for reimbursement of those payments. [2:47:00] We don't know whether or how Gates responded to that. [2:47:04] I think that's important, the relationship between Epstein, Gates, [2:47:09] and Ms. Walker, who says she was introduced to Epstein by Donald Trump. [2:47:14] I want to learn more about all of that. [2:47:18] So a lot of important questions today. [2:47:20] You also mentioned that he said it was hard to believe some of the testimony you guys got [2:47:26] from Wesley Crawford and from Wes Wexner. [2:47:29] He said the committee's going to be seeking to figure out whether there were [2:47:32] approvably false statements there. [2:47:34] I agree with the chairman, Ms. Groff, especially hard to believe 18 years [2:47:44] as Epstein's assistant had no knowledge of the crimes that were being committed, [2:47:48] the crimes that she scheduled, quite frankly. [2:47:51] Hard to believe that. [2:47:53] It's one of the reasons why I and other Democrats have been pushing the Department of Justice [2:47:57] to reopen these investigations. [2:47:59] You mentioned Les Wexner, never even questioned by the FBI. [2:48:04] Kahn and Indyke, never questioned by the FBI. [2:48:07] Basic investigative work that was never done across multiple administrations. [2:48:11] But right now, the Trump administration and Todd Blanchard, [2:48:15] the Department of Justice, have the opportunity to reopen this investigation, [2:48:19] ask these questions, determine whether there are new prosecutions that need to be pursued, [2:48:23] and that's what we want to see. [2:48:25] Thank you. [2:48:26] I heard that five minutes ago. [2:48:38] If that's true, I'm very glad to hear that. [2:48:41] Yesterday, Chairman Comer was saying he didn't think Todd Blanchard needed to come in. [2:48:45] I'm glad he's changed his mind if that's the case. [2:48:48] I'm certainly going to be pushing for that to be in public, at least videotaped so the American people can see, [2:48:55] especially if Todd Blanchard is potentially going to be the permanent attorney general. [2:48:59] It shouldn't be behind closed doors like this. [2:49:02] It should be out for the media and the public to see. [2:49:05] I've seen former attorney Alan Dershowitz, he wants to come in. [2:49:10] What questions do you have? [2:49:11] And is there anything in these transcripts that's planned and maybe for the committee to feel [2:49:15] that his former attorney is the one that needs to come in? [2:49:18] Any? [2:49:18] I think, look, obviously, given that he was Epstein's attorney, had a close relationship, [2:49:24] he could have additional information that we haven't yet revealed over the course of our investigation, [2:49:29] so I think that's an appropriate conversation to have, no question. [2:49:32] And apologies, Representative, I missed, what are you planning to ask Mr. Gates today? [2:49:37] What's an appreciate to you? [2:49:37] I want to find out whether his public statements about the limits of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein [2:49:44] are fully truthful and accurate. [2:49:47] I'm interested in the email exchange where it's clear that Jeffrey Epstein was using one of the Russian women [2:49:55] that Gates was involved in to try to get leverage or potentially blackmail him. [2:50:01] Epstein emailed Gates asking for reimbursement for money that Epstein provided to this woman. [2:50:08] We don't have any response from Gates in the files. [2:50:12] We'd like to know whether or how he responded to that and what he felt Epstein was trying to do in that moment. [2:50:20] Thank you all. [2:50:21] I'm sorry about that. [2:50:37] I tried to put it a little bit, but I can put it out a little bit now. [2:50:43] Now that this line is gone, we can push it back out a little bit. [2:50:49] So if you want to just, like, hang it up out here, here, and then come up. [2:50:54] Are you still? [2:51:09] No, no. [2:51:10] Are you still? [2:51:10] Okay. [2:51:24] Sarah, do you want more? [2:51:27] I'm just going to make a quick statement before we get started. [2:51:33] So let me just first say that I'm really glad that Chairman Comer finally agreed to bring in Todd Blanche. [2:51:41] Just yesterday, he was saying that he didn't think we needed to hear from Todd Blanche. [2:51:44] And so the fact that he's agreed to bring him in, I think, is really, really important. [2:51:50] But I do want to add that it's very important to us that that is a deposition that is under oath [2:51:56] and that's videotaped and released to the American public. [2:51:59] And that was actually our full request. [2:52:01] So it's not enough to just get Blanche in. [2:52:04] We have to have Blanche under oath. [2:52:06] It's got to be videotaped and released to the public. [2:52:08] That was our full request of Chairman Comer as it relates to Blanche. [2:52:12] And we're going to continue to make that request. [2:52:14] As it relates to Mr. Gates, obviously, we just started the questioning. [2:52:18] We are very interested in understanding who was in Epstein's orbit. [2:52:23] What did Mr. Gates actually see? [2:52:26] We're certainly going to be asking about some of the emails that were in the files as they relate to Mr. Gates' possible activities with Mr. Epstein. [2:52:35] But anyone that was around Jeffrey Epstein, we want to hear from. [2:52:39] And like I said before, we don't care if they're a Democrat or Republican or how influential they are. [2:52:44] If they were involved with Epstein, we want to get to that truth. [2:52:47] So that's what today is going to be about. [2:52:48] So we haven't gotten anything directly from James, from Mr. Comer yet. [2:53:01] But our request isn't very clear, is that it has to be a videotape under oath deposition. [2:53:06] We're talking now about the nominee to be attorney general. [2:53:09] On the Senate side, this is not acting. [2:53:11] He's not the deputy. [2:53:13] And he may be the attorney when he gets here or not. [2:53:18] And so if that's the case, it has to be under oath. [2:53:20] And quite frankly, it should be a public hearing. [2:53:22] I mean, that would be ideal. [2:53:23] But if it's going to be an interview behind closed doors, it needs to be a deposition under oath. [2:53:28] I think that's great. [2:53:33] I mean, look, that's someone that obviously was very involved with Jeffrey Epstein. [2:53:37] I think it's something that we need to hear from. [2:53:38] And we should want to hear from any person that was in that circle. [2:53:41] Look, yesterday we heard obviously from Ms. Groff, who was a very close assistant, worked for Epstein for 18 years. [2:53:49] And she provided a lot of names of individuals that worked in the Epstein orbit, [2:53:54] that many of whom we've heard from from other survivors that we want to speak with. [2:54:00] And so there's going to be a lot of interviews ahead for us to sit down with [2:54:04] and really get more information about what really happened and who knew what. [2:54:07] Do you share a piece or anything? [2:54:21] I share those concerns. [2:54:22] I think that there have been numerous interviews that we've conducted where I've found the witness to be not credible [2:54:30] and certainly to spend 18 years with someone and to not remember or have not really acknowledged the fact [2:54:39] that there was rape and trafficking and abuse of minors happening. [2:54:43] I mean, this is a woman who knew that Jeffrey Epstein had pleaded guilty of a horrific crime [2:54:50] and then continued to work for him for many years after. [2:54:54] And so there are additional questions. [2:54:56] And I'll just want to say this. [2:54:57] There's a lot of folks that we have interviewed over the last six months, eight months, [2:55:02] that we're going to want to hear from again as we gather more information and evidence as well. [2:55:08] Any final questions? [2:55:09] Okay. [2:55:10] Thanks, guys. [2:55:49] Well, thank you all for being here. [2:55:50] Hopefully everybody can hear me okay. [2:55:52] We are about to begin the interview with Bill Gates. [2:55:57] This will be our 15th interview. [2:56:00] There are a couple of things I want to mention about yesterday based on the testimony from Ms. Groff [2:56:12] as well as a meeting that I had afterwards with several of the Epstein survivors. [2:56:21] I am going to ask Alan Dershowitz to come in. [2:56:26] We will have questions for him. [2:56:28] We're going to give him an opportunity to come in and answer several questions that arose yesterday based on Ms. Groff's testimony [2:56:39] and some things that some of the Epstein survivors said. [2:56:44] So we're proceeding along. [2:56:46] Hopefully this interview today will be productive and help us learn more and help us in our investigation as we move forward. [2:56:54] I'll be happy to answer a couple of questions. [2:56:56] Chairman, how are you hoping to get from him? [2:57:02] Well, the same information I think other members of Congress have said. [2:57:05] We just want to know about his relationship with Mr. Epstein and Ms. Maxwell. [2:57:10] What did he see? [2:57:12] Did he know what was going on? [2:57:14] Was he involved in any of this? [2:57:16] Yes. [2:57:17] So I'm sure as we ask questions, more questions will arise. [2:57:22] I will say this. [2:57:24] No one's accusing Bill Gates of any wrongdoing, and I certainly appreciate him coming in voluntarily. [2:57:30] Mr. Chairman, thank you. [2:57:31] So clearly the investigation is still ongoing, given you're now asking Mr. Gershams to come in. [2:57:36] Are there any plans to formally ask Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to come in? [2:57:40] I'm communicating with the Department of Justice I would like for Todd Blanche to come in in July. [2:57:46] Well, he's got, you know, I think we all know he has a big confirmation coming up. [2:57:52] So, but I've always wanted Blanche to come in. [2:57:56] Now, let me be very clear. [2:57:59] Todd Blanche came in a month ago. [2:58:02] He came in with Pam Bondi to answer questions from the Oversight Committee, and the Democrats [2:58:08] stormed out and ran to you all to try to be the first to get on MSNBC and talk about their [2:58:15] outrage. [2:58:16] What a missed opportunity for the Democrats. [2:58:19] But Todd Blanche answered questions that Republicans had for several hours, as did Ms. [2:58:24] Bondi. [2:58:25] But we brought Ms. Bondi back in, and we're working to bring Todd Blanche in. [2:58:30] But if overall emails and files relating to Bill Gates, a draft email alleging there was [2:58:38] some kind of request to get medication for an STD or anything, is there potential for a [2:58:45] criminal wrongdoing there asking someone for a medication that may not otherwise be available? [2:58:51] I don't know about that, but that email will be addressed in the first hour of questions. [2:58:55] I can assure you. [2:58:56] The majority will have one hour of questioning. [2:58:58] The minority will have one hour of questioning. [2:59:00] I hope that you all review the transcripts of all these interviews that we do and look [2:59:07] at the depth of the questions that the Republicans asked versus the depth of the questions that [2:59:13] the Democrats asked. [2:59:15] Yesterday, right off the bat, the Democrats asked questions about Mar-a-Lago and Donald Trump [2:59:20] and this is about the survivors of Epstein and Maxwell. [2:59:27] This is about trying to figure out how the government failed. [2:59:33] And this goes back to several administrations, several attorneys general. [2:59:37] This has definitely been a failure in justice. [2:59:40] We're trying to get the truth to the American people and we're trying to provide some type [2:59:44] of justice for the survivors. [2:59:47] So, I really hope that you all are reviewing the transcripts because it's inevitable that [2:59:53] after every interview, the Democrats march out here. [2:59:56] Actually, they tiptoe out here and they go and tell you all this stuff, they're outraged, [3:00:00] that Lutnik said or that Bondi said. [3:00:02] Well, then the transcript comes out and no one ever questions on it. [3:00:07] It's real frustrating because the Democrats have been nothing but dead weight in this investigation. [3:00:14] But I feel like we've accomplished a lot. [3:00:16] We're bringing people in. [3:00:17] And one thing that's clear is many of these people have never been interviewed by the government. [3:00:25] They've never been interviewed by the FBI. [3:00:27] They've never been interviewed by the Department of Justice. [3:00:29] So, this is the first time there's been a substantive investigation. [3:00:33] And I'm happy with the work that we've done thus far. [3:00:38] It's disappointing because I think that all of us would agree that some of the things that [3:00:43] everyone we've brought in to interview have said are hard to believe. [3:00:47] It was hard to believe some of the things Ms. Groff said yesterday, especially with respect to [3:00:52] scheduling the massages every day, a massive list of girls. [3:00:59] That's hard to believe that she never suspected anything. [3:01:01] But that's what she testified. [3:01:03] It's hard to believe Lex Wexner didn't know anything was going on. [3:01:07] But that's what he testified. [3:01:08] So, we're going to continue to bring people in and ask the tough questions. [3:01:13] I hope you're reviewing the transcripts to see the question. [3:01:17] And then the last thing I want to add, we're also communicating, or I am, and my staff, [3:01:22] Oversight staff, we're communicating with the survivors. [3:01:25] We're making sure the survivors read the transcripts. [3:01:29] And if the survivors see any things that were said in the depositions and [3:01:37] interviews that aren't true, we're working with them to try to get [3:01:42] evidence to figure out if the witnesses were lying. [3:01:45] So, this is a very substantive investigation. [3:01:50] And hopefully today, we'll get some more information. [3:01:53] And I think you've seen the list. [3:01:55] We've got Staley and Leon Black, who is a very big person of interest in this [3:02:01] investigation, coming in very soon. [3:02:05] So, we'll brief you. [3:02:07] Just be careful what you hear from certain members that stay in there for [3:02:11] five minutes and trot out, talking points that I have found not to be [3:02:15] true. [3:02:16] And hopefully, if you read the transcripts, you'll see they're not [3:02:18] true. [3:02:19] Mr. Chairman, just on the overall topic of the [3:02:21] timeline. [3:02:22] I mean, we're already in mid-June. [3:02:23] What is your expectation for what you can really get done before the [3:02:26] end of the year? [3:02:27] Well, that's true. [3:02:28] We're on a time clock. [3:02:30] We've got Leon Black coming in and Doug Band this month. [3:02:35] Then we have Kathy Rumler, Jess Staley. [3:02:37] And as I said, we're going to try to bring in Dershowitz. [3:02:40] And hopefully, we'll hear from Todd Blanche. [3:02:43] So, we'd like to do all that in July. [3:02:45] Do you want to hear from Blanche in the transcribed interview? [3:02:47] Or how are you hoping? [3:02:48] We just have questions. [3:02:49] We just have questions for Mr. Blanche. [3:02:53] But again, I want to make sure everyone gets this. [3:02:56] He came in. [3:02:57] And if the Democrats had stayed, Pam Bondi said during that briefing that [3:03:02] Todd Blanche was the one in charge of the Epstein investigation. [3:03:06] That wasn't news when Bondi came in for her interview. [3:03:11] That wasn't news. [3:03:12] She said that in the briefing. [3:03:14] But the Democrats weren't there because they tiptoed out to cry to you all. [3:03:19] So, I think that the main thing that we have for Blanche is the question on what, if any, documents are left out there. [3:03:31] So, that's the main question that we have for Blanche. [3:03:34] He's already come in once. [3:03:38] Are you just questioning Mr. Gates' personal conduct or the Gates Foundation in the entirety? [3:03:43] Well, I'm sure there will be lots of questions from lots of different members. [3:03:47] I know it's the first hour. [3:03:51] But that email is definitely going to be addressed. [3:03:54] I mean, I think that everybody in America has questions about that email. [3:03:57] Who will the Foundation? [3:03:59] Yeah. [3:04:00] We'll see. [3:04:02] We'll see. [3:04:03] I don't want to say anything to spook the attorneys who are watching this right now to go on. [3:04:07] So, thank you all. [3:04:08] We'll be out and give you a briefing soon. [3:04:09] It'll be easier if we just go in. [3:04:10] Great. [3:04:29] Not expecting anything else until 12-30ish. [3:04:30] Three seconds. [3:04:31] Three seconds. [3:04:32] The depths. [3:04:33] The depths. [3:04:34] The depths. [3:04:35] The depths. [3:04:36] It'll be after their first round of questions. [3:04:39] Democrats? [3:04:40] Yes. [3:04:41] Yes. [3:04:42] Yes. [3:04:43] Yes. [3:04:44] Yes. [3:04:45] Yes. [3:04:46] Yes. [3:04:47] Yes. [3:04:48] Yes. [3:04:49] Yes. [3:04:50] Yes. [3:04:51] Yes. [3:04:52] Yes. [3:04:53] Yes. [3:04:54] Yes. [3:04:55] Yes. [3:04:56] So, that's a worthy group. [3:04:58] Amen? [3:04:59] Yes. [3:05:00] It's good. [3:05:01] Yes. [3:05:02] Yes. [3:05:04] Yes. [3:05:05] Yes. [3:05:06] Yes. [3:05:09] Yes. [3:05:10] Yes. [3:05:11] Oh, yes. [3:05:21] Yes, picture. [3:05:22] Yes. [3:05:23] Nice. [3:05:24] Thank you. [3:05:54] Wait, wait, just make sure that we're rolling. [3:06:10] We're seeking today from Bill Gates. [3:06:13] We've been trying to be over on the same. [3:06:15] There's been no alleged quads, and obviously we can't provide some insight. [3:06:18] What do you want me to get from this thing? [3:06:20] Well, I think we want to understand whether the public statements that Mr. Gates has made [3:06:25] about his relationship with Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [3:06:31] Obviously, the files contain some interesting and troubling emails. [3:06:39] Epstein's clear attempt to leverage or perhaps even blackmail Gates over his relationship [3:06:45] with one of the Russian women and Epstein, you know, providing payments to that woman [3:06:51] and the email from Epstein to Gates asking for reimbursement of those payments. [3:06:57] We don't know whether or how Gates responded to that. [3:07:01] I think that's important. [3:07:03] The relationship between Epstein, Gates, and Ms. Walker, who says she was introduced to [3:07:09] Epstein by Donald Trump, want to learn more about all of that. [3:07:15] So a lot of important questions today. [3:07:16] You also mentioned that he said it was hard to believe some of the testimony you guys got [3:07:22] from Wes Groff and from Wes Wexner. [3:07:25] He said the committee's going to be seeking to figure out whether there were probably false statements there. [3:07:30] I agree with the chairman, Ms. Groff, especially hard to believe 18 years as Epstein's assistant [3:07:42] had no knowledge of the crimes that were being committed, the crimes that she scheduled, quite frankly. [3:07:48] Hard to believe that. [3:07:50] It's one of the reasons why I and other Democrats have been pushing the Department of Justice [3:07:53] to reopen these investigations. [3:07:56] You mentioned Les Wexner, never even questioned by the FBI. [3:08:00] Kahn and Indyke, never questioned by the FBI. [3:08:04] Basic investigative work that was never done across multiple administrations. [3:08:08] But right now, the Trump administration and Todd Blanchard, the Department of Justice, [3:08:12] have the opportunity to reopen this investigation, ask these questions, [3:08:17] determine whether there are new prosecutions that need to be pursued, [3:08:20] and that's what we want to see. [3:08:22] Thank you. [3:08:22] I heard that five minutes ago. [3:08:35] If that's true, I'm very glad to hear that. [3:08:38] Yesterday, Chairman Comer was saying he didn't think Todd Blanchard needed to come in. [3:08:42] I'm glad he's changed his mind if that's the case. [3:08:44] I'm certainly going to be pushing for that to be in public, at least videotaped so the American people can see, [3:08:51] especially if Todd Blanchard is potentially going to be the permanent attorney general. [3:08:56] It shouldn't be behind closed doors like this. [3:08:58] It should be out for the media and the public to see. [3:09:01] I think, look, obviously, given that he was Epstein's attorney, had a close relationship, [3:09:21] he could have additional information that we haven't yet revealed over the course of our investigation. [3:09:25] So I think that's an appropriate conversation to have, no question. [3:09:29] And apologies, Representative. [3:09:30] I missed. [3:09:31] What are you planning to ask Mr. Gates today? [3:09:33] What's more appropriate to you? [3:09:35] I want to find out whether his public statements about the limits of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [3:09:43] I'm interested in the email exchange where it's clear that Jeffrey Epstein was using one of the Russian women that Gates was involved in to try to get leverage or potentially blackmail him. [3:09:59] Epstein emailed Gates asking for reimbursement for money that Epstein provided to this woman. [3:10:05] We don't have any response from Gates in the files. [3:10:09] I'd like to know whether or how he responded to that and what he felt Epstein was trying to do in that moment. [3:10:15] Thank you. [3:10:17] Thank you all. [3:10:18] Okay, so I guess people are right about that. [3:10:34] I tried to put it a little bit, but I can put it out a little bit now. [3:10:39] Now that this line is gone, we can push it back out a little bit. [3:10:45] So if you want to just like hang it up out here and here. [3:10:51] No, no. [3:11:11] Sir, just going to make a quick statement before we get started. [3:11:29] So let me just first say that I'm really glad that Chairman Comer finally agreed to bring in Todd Blanche. [3:11:38] Just yesterday, he was saying that he didn't think we needed to hear from Todd Blanche. [3:11:41] And so the fact that he's agreed to bring him in, I think is really, really important. [3:11:46] But I do want to add that it's very important to us that that is a deposition that is under oath and it's videotaped and released to the American public. [3:11:56] And that was actually our full request. [3:11:58] So it's not enough to just get Blanche in. [3:12:00] We have to have Blanche under oath. [3:12:02] It's got to be videotaped and released to the public. [3:12:04] That was our full request of Chairman Comer as it relates to Blanche. [3:12:09] And we're going to continue to make to make that request. [3:12:11] As it relates to Mr. Gates, obviously, we just started the the the questioning. [3:12:15] We are very interested in understanding who was in Epstein's orbit. [3:12:20] What did what did Mr. Gates actually see? [3:12:23] We're certainly going to be asking about some of those some of the emails that were in the files as they relate to Mr. Gates possible activities with Mr. Epstein. [3:12:32] But anyone that was around Jeffrey Epstein, we want to hear from. [3:12:37] And like I said before, we don't care if they're a Democrat or Republican or how influential they are. [3:12:41] If they were involved with Epstein, we want to get to that truth. [3:12:43] So that's what today is going to be about. [3:12:53] So we haven't gotten anything directly from from from James from Mr. Comer yet. [3:12:58] But our request isn't very clear is that it has to be a videotape under oath deposition. [3:13:02] We're talking now about the nominee to be attorney general on the Senate side. [3:13:07] This is not acting. He's not the deputy. [3:13:10] And the the he may be the when he gets here or not. [3:13:15] And so if that's the case, it has to be under oath. [3:13:17] And quite frankly, it should be public hearing. [3:13:19] I mean, that would be ideal. [3:13:20] But if it's going to be an interview behind closed doors, it needs to be a deposition under oath. [3:13:24] We also heard once I was going to be asking, can we get your phone out? [3:13:29] I think that's great. [3:13:30] I mean, look, we that's someone that obviously was very involved with Jeffrey Epstein. [3:13:34] I think it's something that we need to hear from. [3:13:35] And we should we should want to hear from any person that was in that circle. [3:13:38] Look, yesterday we heard obviously from Miss Groff, who was a very close assistant, worked for Epstein for 18 years. [3:13:45] And she provided a lot of names of individuals that worked in the Epstein orbit that many of whom we've heard from from other survivors that we want to speak with. [3:13:56] And so there's going to be a lot of interviews ahead for us to to sit down with and really get more information about what really happened and who knew what. [3:14:04] I share those concerns. [3:14:18] I think that there have been numerous interviews that we've conducted where I found the witness to be not credible. [3:14:27] And certainly to spend 18 years with someone and to not remember or have not really acknowledge the fact that there was rape and trafficking and abuse of minors happening. [3:14:40] And this is a woman who knew that Jeffrey Epstein had pleaded guilty of a horrific crime and then continued to work for him for many years after. [3:14:51] And so there are additional questions. [3:14:53] Look, and I'll just want to say this, there's a lot of folks that we have interviewed over the last six months, eight months that we're going to want to hear from again as we gather more information and evidence as well. [3:15:04] Any final or final questions? [3:15:06] OK, thanks, guys. [3:15:45] Well, thank you all for being here. [3:15:47] Hopefully everybody can hear me OK. [3:15:49] We are about to begin the interview with Bill Gates. [3:15:54] This will be our 15th interview. [3:15:56] There are a couple of things I want to mention about yesterday based on the testimony from Ms. Groff, as well as a meeting that I had afterwards with several of the Epstein survivors. [3:16:18] I am going to ask Alan Dershowitz to come in. [3:16:23] We will have questions for him. [3:16:25] We're going to give him an opportunity to come in and answer several questions that arose yesterday based on Ms. Groff's testimony and some things that some of the Epstein survivors said. [3:16:41] So we're proceeding along. [3:16:43] Hopefully this interview today will be productive and help us learn more and help us in our investigation as we move forward. [3:16:51] I'll be happy to answer a couple of questions. [3:16:53] Chairman, yes. [3:16:53] Well, the same information I think other members of Congress have said. [3:17:02] We just want to know about his relationship with Mr. Epstein and Ms. Maxwell. [3:17:07] What did he see? [3:17:09] Did he know what was going on? [3:17:11] Was he involved in any of this? [3:17:14] So I'm sure as we ask questions, more questions will arise. [3:17:20] I will say this. [3:17:21] No one's accusing Bill Gates of any wrongdoing. [3:17:23] And I certainly appreciate him coming in voluntarily. [3:17:27] Mr. Chairman, thank you. [3:17:29] So the investigation is still ongoing given you're now asking Mr. Rochers to come in. [3:17:33] Are there any plans to formally ask Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to come in? [3:17:37] I'm communicating with the Department of Justice I would like for Todd Blanche to come in in July. [3:17:43] Mr. Rochers. [3:17:44] Well, he's got, he's got, you know, I think we all know he has a big confirmation coming up. [3:17:49] So, but I've always wanted Blanche to come in. [3:17:53] Now, let me, let me be very clear. [3:17:55] Todd Blanche came in a month ago. [3:17:59] He came in with Pam Bondi to answer questions from the Oversight Committee. [3:18:04] And the Democrats stormed out and ran to you all to try to be the first to get on MSNBC and, and talk about their outrage. [3:18:13] What a missed opportunity for the Democrats. [3:18:15] But, but Todd Blanche answered questions that Republicans had for several hours, as did Ms. Bondi. [3:18:21] But we brought Ms. Bondi back in and we're working to bring Todd Blanche in. [3:18:27] But if overall, there were emails in the files relating to Bill Gates, a draft email alleging there was some kind of request to get medication for STD or anything. [3:18:39] Is there a potential for a criminal wrongdoing there asking someone a procure a medication that may not otherwise be available? [3:18:48] I don't know about that, but that email will be addressed in the first hour of questioning. [3:18:53] I can assure you. [3:18:54] The majority will have one hour of questioning. [3:18:56] The minority will have one hour of questioning. [3:18:58] I hope that you all review the transcripts of all these interviews that we do and look at the depth of the questions that the Republicans ask [3:19:07] Versus the depth of the questions that the Democrats asked. [3:19:11] Yesterday, right, right off the bat, the Democrats asked questions about Mar-a-Lago and Donald Trump and Donald Trump. [3:19:18] And this is about the survivors of Epstein and Maxwell. [3:19:24] This is about trying to figure out how the government failed. [3:19:30] And this, this goes back several administrations, several attorneys general. [3:19:34] This has definitely been a failure in justice. [3:19:37] We're trying to get the truth to the American people and we're trying to provide some type of justice for the survivors. [3:19:44] So, I really hope that you all are reviewing the transcripts because it's inevitable that after every interview, the Democrats march out here. [3:19:53] Actually, they tiptoe out here and they go and tell you all this stuff, they're outraged that Lutnik said or that Bondi said. [3:19:59] Well, then the, then the transcript comes out and no one ever questions on it. [3:20:04] It's real frustrating because the Democrats have been nothing but dead weight in this investigation. [3:20:11] But I feel like we've accomplished a lot. [3:20:13] We're bringing people in. [3:20:14] And one thing that's clear is many of these people have never been interviewed by the government. [3:20:21] They've never been interviewed by the FBI. [3:20:23] They've never been interviewed by the Department of Justice. [3:20:26] So, this is the first time there's been a substantive investigation. [3:20:30] And I'm, I'm happy with the work that we've done thus far. [3:20:34] It's disappointing because I think that all of us would agree that some of the things that everyone we've brought in to interview have said are hard to believe. [3:20:44] It was hard to believe some of the things Ms. Groff said yesterday, especially with respect to scheduling the massages every day, massive list of girls. [3:20:56] That's hard to believe that she never suspected anything, but that's what she testified. [3:21:00] It's hard to believe Lex Wexner didn't know anything going on, but that's what he testified. [3:21:06] So, we're going to continue to bring people in and ask the tough questions. [3:21:11] I hope you're reviewing the transcripts to see the question. [3:21:14] And then the last thing I want to add, we're also communicating, or I am, and my staff, oversight staff, we're communicating with the survivors. [3:21:23] We're making sure the survivors read the transcripts. [3:21:26] And if the survivors see any things that were said in the depositions and interviews that aren't true, [3:21:35] we're working with them to try to get evidence to figure out if the witnesses were lying. [3:21:42] So, this is a very substantive investigation, and hopefully today we'll get some more information. [3:21:51] And I think you've seen the list. [3:21:52] We've got Staley and Leon Black, who is a very big person of interest in this investigation, coming in very soon. [3:22:02] So, we'll brief you. [3:22:04] Just be careful what you hear from certain members that stay in there for five minutes and trot out, talking points that I have found not to be true. [3:22:13] And hopefully if you read the transcripts, you'll see they're not true. [3:22:15] Mr. Chairman, just on the overall timeline, I mean, we're already in mid-June. [3:22:19] What is your expectation for what you can really get done before the end of the year? [3:22:24] Well, that's true. [3:22:25] We're on a time clock. [3:22:27] We've got Leon Black coming in and Doug Band this month. [3:22:32] Then we have Kathy Rumler, Jess Staley. [3:22:34] And as I said, we're going to try to bring in Dershowitz, and hopefully we'll hear from Todd Blanche. [3:22:40] So, we'd like to do all that in July. [3:22:42] Do you want to hear from Blanche in a transcribed interview? [3:22:44] Or how are you hoping? [3:22:45] We just have questions for Mr. Blanche. [3:22:50] But again, I want to make sure everyone gets this. [3:22:52] He came in, and if the Democrats had stayed, Pam Bondi said during that briefing that Todd Blanche was the one in charge of the Epstein investigation. [3:23:03] That wasn't news when Bondi came in for her interview. [3:23:08] That wasn't news. [3:23:09] She said that in the briefing. [3:23:12] But the Democrats weren't there because they tiptoed out to cry to you all. [3:23:16] So, I think that the main thing that we have for Blanche is the question on what, if any, documents are left out there. [3:23:29] So, that's the main question that we have for Blanche. [3:23:32] But again, he's already come in once. [3:23:36] Are you just questioning Mr. Gates' personal conduct or the Gates' value of the entirety? [3:23:40] Well, I'm sure there'll be lots of questions from lots of different members. [3:23:45] I know it's the first hour. [3:23:48] But that email is definitely going to be addressed. [3:23:51] I mean, I think that everybody in America has questions about that email. [3:23:54] Who the foundation is? [3:23:56] Yeah. [3:23:58] We'll see. [3:23:59] We'll see. [3:23:59] I don't want to say anything to spook the attorneys who are watching this right now to go on. [3:24:04] So, thank you all. [3:24:05] We'll be out and give you a briefing soon. [3:24:06] It'll be easier if we just go in. [3:24:25] Great. [3:24:26] Not expecting anything else until 1230-ish. [3:24:30] Teresa. [3:24:31] Teresa. [3:24:32] The depths. [3:24:35] The depths. [3:24:38] It'll be after their first round question. [3:24:42] The depths. [3:24:47] Yes. [3:24:49] We'll head back. [3:24:50] Okay. [3:24:51] The main event is... [3:24:54] So, how do we do this? [3:24:55] He's going to tuck you in a little bit. [3:24:57] Here, you know, we'll see the... [3:24:58] There's a session. [3:25:00] He's going to have to say it goes to the next phase. [3:25:04] There's a session. [3:25:05] We're going to have a next phase. [3:25:07] We're going to have to do this. [3:25:08] We'll have to do this. [3:25:09] Thanks. [3:25:09] Thanks. [3:25:09] Thanks. [3:25:10] Thanks. [3:25:10] Thanks. [3:25:15] Thanks. [3:25:17] Thanks. [3:25:18] Thanks. [3:25:22] Thanks. [3:25:23] Thanks. [3:25:23] You're going to have to cut your heads. [3:25:23] I [3:25:51] Just make sure [3:25:53] I [3:25:57] Just [3:26:03] What [3:26:05] What [3:26:07] We're seeking [3:26:08] today from Bill Gates [3:26:10] and we heard Sherman [3:26:10] We're saying [3:26:11] there's been no [3:26:12] election [3:26:12] quons and obviously [3:26:14] ten per nine summons [3:26:15] tonight. What are you hoping [3:26:16] to get from this point? [3:26:17] Well, I think we want to [3:26:18] understand whether the [3:26:20] public statements that [3:26:21] Mr. Gates has made about his relationship with Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [3:26:28] Obviously the files contain some interesting and troubling emails. [3:26:36] Epstein's clear attempt to leverage or perhaps even blackmail Gates over his relationship [3:26:42] with one of the Russian women and Epstein providing payments to that woman and the email [3:26:49] from Epstein to Gates asking for reimbursement of those payments. [3:26:54] We don't know whether or how Gates responded to that. [3:26:58] I think that's important. [3:27:00] The relationship between Epstein, Gates and Ms. Walker, who says she was introduced to [3:27:06] Epstein by Donald Trump, want to learn more about all of that. [3:27:11] So a lot of important questions today. [3:27:13] You also mentioned that he said it was hard to believe some of the testimony you guys [3:27:20] got from Wes Groff and from Wes Wexner. [3:27:22] He said the committee is going to be seeking to figure out whether you're approvably false [3:27:26] statements there. [3:27:27] Your take on that? [3:27:28] Do you think crimes are committed by people making false statements statements? [3:27:32] I agree with the chairman, Ms. Groff, especially hard to believe 18 years as Epstein's assistant [3:27:38] had no knowledge of the crimes that were being committed, the crimes that she scheduled, [3:27:43] quite frankly. [3:27:44] Hard to believe that. [3:27:46] It's one of the reasons why I and other Democrats have been pushing the Department of Justice [3:27:50] to reopen these investigations. [3:27:52] You mentioned Les Wexner, never even questioned by the FBI. [3:27:56] Kahn and Indyke, never questioned by the FBI. [3:28:00] Basic investigative work that was never done across multiple administrations. [3:28:04] But right now, the Trump administration and Todd Blanche or the Department of Justice [3:28:08] have the opportunity to reopen this investigation, ask these questions, determine whether there [3:28:13] are new prosecutions that need to be pursued. [3:28:16] And that's what we want to see. [3:28:17] Thank you. [3:28:19] I heard that five minutes ago. [3:28:31] If that's true, I'm very glad to hear that. [3:28:34] Yesterday, Chairman Comer was saying he didn't think Todd Blanche needed to come in. [3:28:39] I'm glad he's changed his mind if that's the case. [3:28:42] I'm certainly going to be pushing for that to be in public, at least videotaped so the [3:28:47] American people can see, especially if Todd Blanche is potentially going to be the permanent [3:28:52] attorney general. [3:28:53] It shouldn't be behind closed doors like this. [3:28:55] It should be out for the media and the public to see. [3:28:58] I think, look, obviously, given that he was Epstein's attorney, had a close relationship, [3:29:17] he could have additional information that we haven't yet revealed over the course of our investigation. [3:29:22] So I think that's an appropriate conversation to have. [3:29:24] No question. [3:29:25] And apologies, Representative. [3:29:27] I missed. [3:29:28] What are you planning to ask Mr. Gates today? [3:29:30] What's important to you? [3:29:31] I want to find out whether his public statements about the limits of his relationship with Jeffrey [3:29:37] Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [3:29:40] I'm interested in the email exchange where it's clear that Jeffrey Epstein was using one of [3:29:48] the Russian women that Gates was involved in to try to get leverage or potentially blackmail him. [3:29:55] Epstein emailed Gates asking for reimbursement for money that Epstein provided to this woman. [3:30:01] We don't have any response from Gates in the files. [3:30:06] I'd like to know whether or how he responded to that and what he felt Epstein was trying [3:30:11] to do in that moment. [3:30:12] Thank you all. [3:30:14] I'm sorry about that. [3:30:30] I tried to put a little bit, but we can put it out a little bit now. [3:30:36] Now that this line is gone, we can push it back out a little bit. [3:30:41] So if you want to just, like, come up here and come up. [3:30:47] Just gonna make a quick statement before we get started. [3:31:26] So let me just first say that I'm really glad that Chairman Comer finally agreed to bring [3:31:33] in Todd Blanche. [3:31:34] Just yesterday, he was saying that he didn't think we needed to hear from Todd Blanche. [3:31:37] And so the fact that he's agreed to bring him in I think is really, really important. [3:31:42] But I do want to add that it's very important to us that that is a deposition that is under oath [3:31:50] and it's videotaped and released to the American public. [3:31:52] And that was actually our full request. [3:31:54] So it's not enough to just get Blanche in. [3:31:57] We have to have Blanche under oath. [3:31:59] It's got to be videotaped and released to the public. [3:32:01] That was our full request of Chairman Comer as it relates to Blanche. [3:32:05] And we're going to continue to make that request. [3:32:08] As it relates to Mr. Gates, obviously, we just started the questioning. [3:32:12] We are very interested in understanding who was in Epstein's orbit. [3:32:16] What did Mr. Gates actually see? [3:32:19] We're certainly going to be asking about some of those, some of the emails that were in the files [3:32:24] as they relate to Mr. Gates' possible activities with Mr. Epstein. [3:32:28] But anyone that was around Jeffrey Epstein, we want to hear from. [3:32:33] And like I said before, we don't care if they're a Democrat or Republican or how influential they are. [3:32:37] If they were involved with Epstein, we want to get to that truth. [3:32:40] So that's what today is going to be about. [3:32:48] So we haven't gotten anything directly from James from Mr. Comer yet. [3:32:54] But our request has been very clear is that it has to be a videotape under oath deposition. [3:32:59] We're talking now about the nominee to be Attorney General on the Senate side. [3:33:03] This is not acting. He's not the deputy. And he may be the attorney when he gets here or not. [3:33:10] And so if that's the case, it has to be under oath. And quite frankly, it should be a public hearing. [3:33:15] I mean, that would be ideal. But if it's going to be an interview behind closed doors, it needs to be a deposition under oath. [3:33:20] I think it's great. I mean, look, that's someone that obviously was very involved with Jeffrey Epstein. [3:33:29] I think it's something that we need to hear from. And we should we should want to hear from any person that was in that circle. [3:33:34] Look, yesterday we heard obviously from Miss Groff, who was a very close assistant, worked for Epstein for 18 years. [3:33:42] And she provided a lot of names of individuals that worked in the Epstein orbit that many of whom we've heard from from other survivors that we want to speak with. [3:33:53] And so there's going to be a lot of interviews ahead for us to to sit down with and really get more information about what really happened. [3:34:00] And who knew what. I share those concerns. I think that there have been numerous interviews that we've conducted where I found the witness to be not credible. [3:34:24] And certainly to spend 18 years with someone and to not remember or have not really acknowledge the fact that there was rape and trafficking and abuse of minors happening. [3:34:37] And this is a woman who knew that Jeffrey Epstein had pleaded guilty of a horrific crime and then continued to work for him for many years after. [3:34:48] And so there are additional questions. Look, and I'll just want to say this. [3:34:51] There's a lot of folks that we have interviewed over the last six months, eight months that we're going to want to hear from again as we gather more information and evidence as well. [3:35:01] Any final final questions? OK, thanks guys. Well, thank you all for being here. Hopefully everybody can hear me OK. [3:35:45] We are about to begin the interview with Bill Gates. This will be our 15th interview. [3:35:53] There are a couple of things I want to mention about yesterday based on the testimony from Miss Groff, as well as a meeting that I had afterwards with several of the Epstein survivors. [3:36:14] We I am going to ask Alan Dershowitz to come in. We will have questions for him. We're going to give him an opportunity to come in and answer several several questions that arose yesterday based on Miss Groff testimony and some things that some of the Epstein survivors said. [3:36:37] So we're proceeding along. Hopefully this interview today will be productive and help us learn more and help us in our investigation as we move forward. [3:36:47] I'll be happy to answer a couple of questions. Well, the same information I think other members of Congress have said. [3:36:59] We just want to know about his relationship with Mr. Epstein and Miss Maxwell. What what did he see? Did he know what was going on? Was he involved in any of this? [3:37:10] So I'm sure as as we ask questions, more questions will arise. But I will say this. No one's accusing Bill Gates of any wrongdoing. And I certainly appreciate him coming in voluntarily. [3:37:24] Mr. Chairman. Thank you. So clearly the investigation is still ongoing given you're now asking Mr. Richards to come in. Are there any plans to formally ask Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to come in? [3:37:33] I'm communicating with the Department of Justice. I would like for Todd Blanche to come in in July. [3:37:39] Well, he's got he's got, you know, I think we all know he has a big confirmation coming up. So but I've always wanted Blanche to come in. [3:37:50] Now, let me let me be very clear. Todd Blanche came in a month ago. He came in with Pam Bondi to answer questions from the Oversight Committee. [3:38:01] And the Democrats stormed out and ran to you all to try to be the first to get on MSNBC and and talk about their outrage. What a missed opportunity for the Democrats. [3:38:11] But but Todd Blanche answered questions that Republicans had for several hours, as did Miss Bondi. But we brought Miss Bondi back in and we're working to bring Todd Blanche in. [3:38:23] I don't know about that, but that email will be addressed in the first hour of questioning. I can assure you, the majority will have one hour of questioning. The minority will have one hour of questioning. [3:38:39] I hope that you all review the transcripts of all these interviews that we do and look at the depth of the questions that the Republicans asked versus the depth of the questions that the Democrats asked yesterday. [3:38:55] Right, right off the bat, the Democrats asked questions about Mar-a-Lago and Donald Trump and Donald Trump. And this is about the survivors of Epstein and Maxwell. This is about trying to figure out how the government failed. And this, this goes back to the [3:39:28] several administrations, several attorneys general. This has definitely been a failure in justice. We're trying to get the truth to the American people and we're trying to provide some type of justice for the survivors. So I really hope that you all are reviewing the transcripts because it's inevitable that after every interview, the Democrats march out here. Actually, they tiptoe out here and they go and tell you all this stuff. They're outraged that Lutnik said or that Bondi said. Well, then then the, then the, [3:39:58] the transcript comes out and no one ever questions on it. It's real frustrating because the Democrats have been nothing but dead weight in this investigation. But I feel like we've accomplished a lot. We're bringing people in. And one thing that's clear is many of these people have never been interviewed by the government. They've never been interviewed by the FBI. They've never been interviewed by the Department of Justice. [3:40:28] We're happy with the Department of Justice. We're happy with the work that we've done thus far. It's disappointing because I think that all of us would agree that some of the things that everyone we've brought in to interview have said are hard to believe. It was hard to believe some of the things Miss Groff said yesterday, especially with respect to scheduling the massages every day, massive list of girls. That's hard to believe that she never suspected anything, but that's what she testified. [3:41:01] But that's what he testified. So we're going to continue to bring people in and ask the tough questions. I hope you're reviewing the transcripts to see the question. And then the last thing I want to add, we're also communicating, or I am, and my staff, oversight staff, we're communicating with the survivors. [3:41:32] We're working with the survivors. We're working with the survivors. We're working with them to try to get evidence to figure out if the witnesses were lying. So this is a very substantive investigation. And hopefully today we'll get some more information. And I think you've seen the list. We've got Staley and Leon Black, who is a very big person of interest in this investigation, coming in very soon. So we'll brief you. Just be careful. [3:42:02] What you hear from certain members that stay in there for five minutes and trot out, talking points that I have found not to be true. And hopefully if you read the transcripts, you'll see they're not true. [3:42:12] Mr. Chairman, just on the overall timeline, I mean, we're already in mid-June. What is your expectation for what you can really get done before the end of the year? [3:42:21] Well, that's true. We're on a time clock. We've got Leon Black coming in and Doug Band this month. Then we have Kathy Rumler, Jess Staley. [3:42:31] And as I said, we're going to try to bring in Dershowitz. And hopefully we'll hear from Todd Blanche. So we'd like to do all that in July. [3:42:39] Do you want to hear from Blanche in a transcribed interview? [3:42:41] Or how are you hoping? [3:42:42] We just have questions. We just have questions for Mr. Blanche. But again, I want to make sure everyone gets this. [3:42:49] He came in. And if the Democrats had stayed, Pam Bondi said during that briefing that Todd Blanche was the one in charge of the Epson investigation. [3:43:00] That wasn't news when Bondi came in for her interview. That wasn't news. She said that in the briefing. [3:43:08] But the Democrats weren't there because they tiptoed out to cry to you all. [3:43:13] So I think that the main thing that we have for Blanche is the question on, you know, what, if any, documents are left out there. [3:43:25] So that's the main question that we have for Blanche. [3:43:29] Is there any Mr. Gates? [3:43:30] He's already come in once. [3:43:32] Are you just questioning Mr. Gates' personal conduct or the Gates' value of the entirety? [3:43:36] Well, I'm sure there'll be lots of questions from lots of different members. [3:43:41] I know the first hour. But that email is definitely going to be addressed. [3:43:48] I mean, I think that everybody in America has questions about that email. [3:43:51] What would be your first question? [3:43:52] From the foundation. [3:43:53] Yeah, we'll see. We'll see. I don't want to say anything to spook the attorneys who are watching this right now to go on. [3:44:01] So thank you all. We'll be out and give you a briefing soon. [3:44:03] It'll be easier if we just go in. [3:44:22] Great. Not expecting anything else until 1230-ish. [3:44:25] I'm just going to talk a little bit. [3:44:56] Thank you. [3:45:26] Thank you. [3:45:56] Thank you. [3:45:58] Thank you. [3:46:03] Thank you. [3:46:04] Thank you. [3:46:05] Thank you. [3:46:06] Thank you. [3:46:07] Thank you. [3:46:08] Thank you. [3:46:09] Thank you. [3:46:10] Thank you. [3:46:11] Thank you. [3:46:12] Thank you. [3:46:13] Thank you. [3:46:14] Thank you. [3:46:15] Well, I think we want to understand whether the public statements that Mr. Gates has made [3:46:19] about his relationship with Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [3:46:24] But obviously the files contain some interesting and troubling emails. [3:46:31] Epstein's clear attempt to leverage or perhaps even blackmail Gates over his relationship with [3:46:39] one of the Russian women and Epstein, you know, providing payments to that woman and the email [3:46:46] from Epstein to Gates asking for reimbursement of those payments. [3:46:50] We don't know whether or how Gates responded to that. [3:46:54] I think that's important, the relationship between Epstein Gates and Ms. Walker, who says she [3:47:01] was introduced to Epstein by Donald Trump. [3:47:04] I want to learn more about all of that. [3:47:07] So a lot of important questions today. [3:47:08] Homer also mentioned that he said it was hard to believe some of the testimony you guys got [3:47:14] from Wes Groff and from Wes Wexner. [3:47:18] He said committees are going to be seeking to figure out whether there were probably false statements [3:47:23] there. [3:47:24] Your take on that, do you think crimes are committed by people making false statements here? [3:47:29] I agree with the chairman, Ms. Groff, especially hard to believe 18 years as Epstein's [3:47:35] assistant, had no knowledge of the crimes that were being committed, the crimes that she [3:47:39] scheduled, quite frankly. [3:47:41] Hard to believe that. [3:47:43] It's one of the reasons why I and other Democrats have been pushing the Department of Justice [3:47:47] to reopen these investigations. [3:47:50] You mentioned Les Wexner, never even questioned by the FBI. [3:47:54] Kahn and Indyke, never questioned by the FBI. [3:47:57] Basic investigative work that was never done across multiple administrations, but right now [3:48:02] the Trump administration and Todd Blanchard, the Department of Justice, have the opportunity [3:48:07] to reopen this investigation, ask these questions, determine whether there are new prosecutions [3:48:12] that need to be pursued, and that's what we want to see. [3:48:15] Thank you. [3:48:18] I heard that five minutes ago. [3:48:29] If that's true, I'm very glad to hear that. [3:48:31] Yesterday, Chairman Comer was saying he didn't think Todd Blanchard needed to come in. [3:48:36] I'm glad he's changed his mind if that's the case. [3:48:39] I'm certainly going to be pushing for that to be in public, at least videotaped so the [3:48:44] American people can see, especially if Todd Blanchard is potentially going to be the permanent [3:48:49] Attorney General. [3:48:50] It shouldn't be behind closed doors like this. [3:48:52] It should be out for the media and the public to see. [3:48:57] Look, obviously, given that he was Epstein's attorney, had a close relationship, he could [3:49:15] have additional information that we haven't yet revealed over the course of our investigation. [3:49:19] So I think that's an appropriate conversation to have, no question. [3:49:23] And apologies, Representative. [3:49:24] I missed. [3:49:25] What are you planning to ask Mr. Gates today? [3:49:27] What's more appropriate to you? [3:49:28] I want to find out whether his public statements about the limits of his relationship with Jeffrey [3:49:34] Epstein are fully truthful and accurate. [3:49:37] I'm interested in the email exchange where it's clear that Jeffrey Epstein was using one of the [3:49:45] Russian women that Gates was involved in to try to get leverage or potentially blackmail him. [3:49:52] Epstein emailed Gates asking for reimbursement for money that Epstein provided to this woman. [3:49:58] We don't have any response from Gates in the files. [3:50:03] I'd like to know whether or how he responded to that and what he felt Epstein was trying to do in that moment. [3:50:09] Thank you all. [3:50:12] So I guess people were talking about that. [3:50:27] I tried to put it a little bit, but put it out a little bit now. [3:50:32] Now that this line is gone, we can push it back out a little bit. [3:50:37] So if you want to just like hang it up out here, here, and then come up. [3:50:44] You want your stool? [3:51:00] No, no. [3:51:01] You want your stool? [3:51:02] No, no. [3:51:11] Okay. [3:51:12] Sarah, go ahead. [3:51:14] Come on. [3:51:17] Just going to make a quick statement before we get started. [3:51:22] So let me just first say that I'm really glad that Chairman Comer finally agreed to bring in Todd Blanche. [3:51:31] Just yesterday, he was saying that he didn't think we needed to hear from Todd Blanche. [3:51:34] And so the fact that he's agreed to bring him in, I think is really, really important. [3:51:39] But I do want to add that it's very important to us that that is a deposition that is under oath and it's videotaped and released to the American public. [3:51:49] And that was actually our full request. [3:51:51] So it's not enough to just get Blanche in. [3:51:54] We have to have Blanche under oath. [3:51:56] It's got to be videotaped and released to the public. [3:51:58] That was our full request of Chairman Comer as it relates to Blanche. [3:52:02] And we're going to continue to make that request. [3:52:04] As it relates to Mr. Gates, obviously, we just started the questioning. [3:52:09] We are very interested in understanding who was in Epstein's orbit. [3:52:13] What did what did Mr. Gates actually see? [3:52:16] We're certainly going to be asking about some of those some of the emails that were in the files as they relate to Mr. Gates possible activities with Mr. Epstein. [3:52:25] But anyone that was around Jeffrey Epstein, we want to hear from. [3:52:30] And like I said before, we don't care if they're a Democrat or Republican or how influential they are. [3:52:34] If they were involved with Epstein, we want to get to that truth. [3:52:37] So that's what today is going to be about. [3:52:46] So we haven't gotten anything directly from from from James from Mr. Comer yet. [3:52:51] But our request isn't very clear is that it has to be a videotaped under oath deposition. [3:52:55] We're talking now about the nominee to be attorney general on the Senate side. [3:53:00] This is not acting. He's not the deputy. And the the the he may be the when he gets here or not. [3:53:07] And so if that's the case, it has to be under oath. And quite frankly, it should be public hearing. [3:53:12] I mean, that would be ideal. But if it's going to be an interview behind closed doors, it needs to be a deposition. [3:53:17] I think it's great. I mean, look, we that's someone that obviously was very involved with Jeffrey Epstein. [3:53:26] I think it's something that we need to hear from. And we should we should want to hear from any person that was in that circle. [3:53:31] Look, yesterday we heard obviously from Miss Groff, who was a very close assistant, worked for for Epstein for 18 years. [3:53:39] And she provided a lot of names of individuals that worked in the Epstein orbit that many of whom we've heard from from other survivors that we want to speak with. [3:53:49] And so there's going to be a lot of interviews ahead for us to to sit down with and really get more information about what what really happened. [3:53:56] And who knew what I share those concerns. I think that there have been numerous interviews that we've conducted where I found the witness to be not credible. [3:54:21] And certainly to spend 18 years with someone and to not remember or have not really acknowledge the fact that there was rape and trafficking and abuse of minors happening. [3:54:33] And this is a woman who knew that Jeffrey Epstein had pleaded guilty of a horrific crime and then continued to work for him for many years after. [3:54:43] And so there are additional questions. Look, and I'll just want to say this. There's a lot of folks that we have interviewed over the last six months, eight months that we're going to want to hear from again as we gather more information and evidence as well. [3:54:58] Any final final final questions? OK, thanks, guys. Well, thank you all for being here. Hopefully everybody can hear me OK. [3:55:42] We are about to begin the interview with Bill Gates. This will be our 15th interview. There are a couple of things I want to mention about yesterday based on the testimony from Miss Groff, as well as a meeting that I had afterwards with several of the Epstein survivors. [3:56:11] We I am going to ask Alan Dershowitz to come in. We will have questions for him. We're going to give him an opportunity to come in and answer several several questions that arose yesterday based on Miss Groff testimony and some things that some of the Epstein survivors said. [3:56:34] So we're proceeding along. Hopefully this interview today will be productive and help us learn more and help us in our investigation as we move forward. [3:56:44] I'll be happy to answer a couple of questions. Well, the same information I think other members of Congress have said. [3:56:55] We just want to know about his relationship with Mr. Epstein and Miss Maxwell. What what did he see? [3:57:02] Did he know what was going on? Was he involved in any of this? So I'm sure as as we ask questions, more questions will arise. [3:57:12] I will say this. No one's accusing Bill Gates of any wrongdoing, and I certainly appreciate him coming in voluntarily. [3:57:20] I'm communicating with the Department of Justice. I would like for Todd Blanche to come in in July. [3:57:36] Well, he's got he's got, you know, I think we all know he has a big confirmation coming up. [3:57:42] So but I've always wanted Blanche to come in. Now, let me let me be very. Todd Blanche came in a month ago. [3:57:51] He came in with Pam Bondi to answer questions from the Oversight Committee and the Democrats stormed out and ran to you all to try to be the first to get on MSNBC and and talk about their outrage. [3:58:06] What a missed opportunity for the Democrats. But but Todd Blanche answered questions that Republicans had for several hours, as did Miss Bondi. [3:58:14] But we brought Miss Bondi back in and we're working to bring Todd Blanche in. [3:58:21] Emails and files relating to Bill Gates. A draft email alleging there was some kind of request to get medication for STD. [3:58:33] Is there a potential for a criminal wrongdoing there asking someone to procure a medication?