Latest news with #BillClinton
Fox News
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Charlamagne tha God slams 'liberal media' for ignoring Bill Clinton's ties to Epstein
Charlamagne tha God of the Breakfast Club on Tuesday slammed the "liberal media" for ignoring former President Bill Clinton's past ties with Jeffrey Epstein. "You know, it's interesting, too, 'cause it's just funny how the news works 'cause Bill Clinton, you know, wrote a letter to Jeffrey Epstein as well for his birthday, but nobody's talking about that. And Jeffrey Epstein had a picture of Bill Clinton in a dress in high heels in his New York mansion, but nobody's talking about that," Charlamagne said. He continued, "My thing is this. I don't care who's on the list. Everybody got to go. Burn it all down. Like, that's just simple as that. Mutually assured destruction. Whoever's on that list need to go. Nobody needs to be protecting pedophiles." Charlamagne's comments, which were first flagged by Mediaite, came after President Donald Trump said that those asking about the late financier Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking case should direct their attention to Clinton and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers. Trump's remarks come a day after U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell in Florida amid heightened scrutiny about the case after the Trump administration announced it would not unseal investigation materials concerning Epstein. "You ought to be speaking about Larry Summers. You ought to be speaking about some of his friends that are hedge fund guys," Trump told reporters Friday while departing for Scotland. "They're all over the place. You ought to be speaking about Bill Clinton." Trump then accused Clinton of visiting Epstein's private island. Trump said he'd never visited the island before. Clinton has also denied that he has ever visited the island. In his new memoir "Citizen," released in 2024, Clinton said he'd never gone to the island and that he wished he'd never even met Epstein in the first place. Spokespeople for Summers and Clinton did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Summers previously served as treasury secretary for Clinton, as well as the director of the National Economic Council for former President Barack Obama. Neither Summers nor Clinton have been accused of engaging in any illegal conduct in connection with his ties to Epstein. Charlamagne said party affiliation is irrelevant to the issues associated with Epstein. The co-host of "The Breakfast Club," Morgan Wood pushed back on Charlamagne. "And you know, to that point though, you know, Clinton is not the president right now. You know, if he was, you think that. Anyway, I think he would still be under scrutiny if he was the president right now," Wood said. "I don't care what party they are. No. Period. No, he wouldn't because liberal media wouldn't push the issue. Oh, okay. Well, this comes as, speaking of liberal media," Charlamagne responded.
New York Times
a day ago
- Business
- New York Times
Lina Khan: What Democrats Can Learn From Zohran Mamdani
One of the most underappreciated aspects of Zohran Mamdani's successful primary campaign for New York City mayor was its connection to small business. He stopped by halal carts and bodegas and asked what challenges they faced. It is the kind of outreach that teaches policymakers about real problems in our economy and can help build trust and lasting relationships. It is also too rare. Fighting for an economy where small businesses can thrive was once core to the Democratic Party. Democrats built a lasting coalition by shifting economic power to ordinary Americans, checking the power of big business, and expanding the middle class. But for decades, the party has largely ceded issues important to small businesses to Republicans. During the New Deal, small businesses were a key part of Democrats' coalition, with President Franklin Roosevelt championing 'economic freedom for the wage earner and the farmer and the small-business man.' The government gave workers greater rights and protections and checked the power of big business in banking, retailing and agriculture. Placing checks on big business while ensuring fair opportunity for labor and small business was recognized as a path for ensuring dignified work and growing the middle class. Since President Bill Clinton, however, the mainstream of the Democratic Party has too often treated small business as little more than a talking point. Mr. Clinton may have heaped praise on 'the entrepreneurial spirit' of small-business leaders, but his embrace of President Ronald Reagan's 'big is better' antitrust policy fueled industry consolidation and allowed monopolists to squeeze out smaller rivals. Clinton-era deregulation also spurred a soaring number of bank mergers, reducing the number of places where an entrepreneur could get a loan. From 1980 to 2020, as the share of the economy accounted for by small businesses fell, big business interests began spending heavily in elections, bending the ears of many Democrats and sometimes skewing how they saw the economy. Even when Democratic policies were better for small businesses than Republican policies, Democrats didn't make a sustained effort to court small-business owners and turn them into a reliable base of support. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
The Australian
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Australian
Trump says he turned down an offer to visit Jeffrey Epstein's private island
Donald Trump says he turned down an offer to travel to Jeffrey Epstein's private island, where the convicted sex offender was known to have abused underage girls, describing it as 'one of my very good moments.' The US President was forced to explain – on the world stage – the nature of his own relationship with the disgraced financier, who committed suicide in 2019 at the Metropolitan Correctional Centre in New York where he was awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Elements of the MAGA base have turned on Mr Trump after his administration refused to release the files from the investigation into Epstein and dismissed the existence of a 'client list', with the President describing the issue as a 'hoax'. Speaking alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at his Turnberry resort on the west coast of Scotland, Mr Trump explained that he fell out with Epstein and banned him from his Mar-a-Lago resort because he 'stole people that worked for me'. He also made clear that he never travelled to Epstein's private island in the US Virgin Islands. 'I never went to the island,' Mr Trump said. 'And Bill Clinton went there supposedly 28 times. I never went to the island, but (former US Treasury secretary) Larry Summers I hear went there … and many other people that are very big people. Nobody ever talks about them. I never had the privilege of going to his island. And I did turn it down. 'In one of my very good moments, I turned it down. I didn't want to go to his island.' Mr Trump has become increasingly frustrated at the ongoing interest in his connections with Epstein and the interest in the 'Epstein files', declaring 'I haven't been overly interested in it. It's a hoax that's been built up way beyond proportion'. The President said that if there was anything that reflected negatively on him in the Epstein files, the previous administration would have released it all before the last election. 'Those files were run by the worst scum on Earth,' Mr Trump said. 'They were run by (former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation James) Comey. They were run by (former US attorney-general Merrick) Garland. They were run by (former president Joe) Biden. And all of the people that actually ran the government including the autopen. 'Those files were run for four years by those people. If they had anything I assume they would have released it. If they had anything why didn't they use it when I was killing Joe (Biden)? … If there was anything in there, they would have used them for the election.' Mr Trump said people were not buying into the issue, arguing that his poll numbers had gone up since his handling of the Epstein matter had come into public focus. He also continued to reject the substance of a report carried in The Wall Street Journal that said he penned a bawdy letter for an album marking Epstein's 50th birthday and contributed what also appeared to be the hand-drawn outline of a naked woman. The letter was reported to have concluded: 'Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret.' Mr Trump, who is suing The Wall Street Journal for $US10bn ($15.3bn) over the story, continued to defend himself and declared that 'I don't do drawings'. 'I'm not a drawing person … I don't do drawings of women, that I can tell you. They say there's a drawing of a woman and I don't do drawings of women,' he said. 'Also, Epstein was always a very controversial guy. I was at a very high position. Pretty much all my life in all fairness. I've been doing this for a long time. I had the top show on television. I have the number one bestsellers. I had everything, right? And I was a very successful business guy. Who would do a controversial drawing? 'Now, with that being said, they say there were many letters done by many people.' Asked why he banned Epstein from his Mar-a-Lago resort at Florida's Palm Beach, Mr Trump said it was 'such old history. Very easy to explain. But I don't want to waste your time by explaining it'. 'For years I wouldn't talk to Jeffrey Epstein. I wouldn't talk. Because he did something that was inappropriate,' Mr Trump said. 'He hired help. And I said to him, 'don't ever do that again'. He stole people that worked for me. I said, 'don't ever do that again'. He did it again. And I threw him out of the place, persona non grata … I'm glad I did, if you want to know the truth.' In Florida, lawyers for Mr Trump asked a federal judge to expedite a deposition of Rupert Murdoch in the President's $10bn defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, citing the media baron's advanced age. His legal team asked District Judge Darrin Gayles to compel an 'expedited deposition'. Judge Gayles gave lawyers for Mr Murdoch until August 4 to respond. Read related topics: Donald Trump
New York Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Trump Says He Declined Epstein's Invitation to Visit His Island: ‘I Never Had the Privilege of Going'
President Trump said on Monday that he had 'never had the privilege' of visiting Jeffrey Epstein's private Caribbean island because he had turned down an invitation from the financier. As part of a continued effort by Mr. Trump to distract, deny and deflect from his long-running relationship with Mr. Epstein, the president vigorously denied that he had ever visited Mr. Epstein's private islands in the Caribbean, while in the same breath baselessly accusing his predecessor, former President Bill Clinton, of visiting the islands, his latest bid at conspiracy deflection. 'I never went to the island, and Bill Clinton went there supposedly' a number of times, Mr. Trump said during a trip to Scotland. Mr. Epstein owned two islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands — Little St. James and Great St. James, where he entertained famous friends and allegedly trafficked underage girls for sex. He continued, 'I never had the privilege of going to his island, and I did turn it down, but a lot of people in Palm Beach were invited to his island. In one of my very good moments, I turned it down.' Mr. Clinton has denied visiting the islands or having any knowledge of Mr. Epstein's criminal behavior, and has said he wishes he had never met him. When asked about Mr. Trump's accusations, an aide to Mr. Clinton pointed to that original denial, adding that it had been 20 years since Mr. Clinton had been in contact with Mr. Epstein. In 2002, Mr. Clinton had flown on a private jet owned by Mr. Epstein as part of a visit to Africa — a trip which brought a flurry of media attention — but the former president has not been linked by prosecutors or officials to any of the criminal accusations against Mr. Epstein. Between 1993 and 1997, while Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein remained friendly, Mr. Trump's name appeared seven times in Mr. Epstein's flight logs. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Politico
2 days ago
- Politics
- Politico
Federal employees can pray and preach in the workplace under new Trump rules
'Federal employees should never have to choose between their faith and their career,' OPR Director Scott Kupor said in a statement outlining the policy. 'This guidance ensures the federal workplace is not just compliant with the law but welcoming to Americans of all faiths.' The White House also pointed to a memo with similar language and protections issued under former President Bill Clinton. Still, religious liberty advocates were disturbed. Mikey Weinstein, president and founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, said the guidelines appeared to be in conflict with the Constitution and the rights of workers. 'If your supervisor decides to sit down and make it very clear that it's important to her or him, that you accept this weaponized version of the gospel of Jesus Christ, what do you think your chances are for advancement?' Weinstein said. But Andrew Walker, an associate dean at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary said the new policy merely 'resets' the rules back to neutrality. 'I have no problem with it whatsoever,' Walker said. 'To me, that's simply reaffirming the First Amendment, that has proper caveats if you're not engaging in harassing behavior. I think this is just reiterating basic principles of the First Amendment.' President Donald Trump's administration has appeared to embrace religion to a significant degree, establishing a White House Faith Office, directing State Department employees to report anti-Christian bias from colleagues and issuing an executive order to create a presidential commission on religious liberty.
