Washington Journal 02/11/2026 explores DHS funding deadlines expiring at midnight Friday amid partisan clashes over immigration enforcement, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune citing Republican red lines. Unsealed Epstein files reveal Commerce Secretary Lutnick’s 2012 island visit post-2008 conviction and Trump’s alleged 2006 awareness of Epstein’s crimes, sparking debates on victim agency, accountability, and historical parallels—from Nazi comparisons to U.S. elite impunity. Callers clash over ICE funding, media bias, and First Amendment risks, while questioning Ivanka Trump’s ties and mask-wearing policies, underscoring deepening distrust in institutions and polarizing narratives around justice and power. [Automatically generated summary]
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Coming up on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, the Washington Examiner's Christian Day Talk on the White House reaction to Homeland Security Funds expiring Friday and legislators' response to viewing the unredacted Epstein files.
Then, first-term Virginia Democratic Congressman James Walkinshaw will talk about the Friday deadline for DHS funding, the Epstein investigation, and other congressional news of the week.
And the chair of the Committee to Protect Journalists, Jacob Weisberg, on recent Trump administration actions and threats to First Amendment rights.
Washington Journal starts now.
Good morning.
It's Wednesday, February 11th.
We begin today with two major storylines.
On Capitol Hill, negotiations over funding for the Department of Homeland Security have stalled again.
Lawmakers remain divided over immigration enforcement and DHS authority.
Funding for the department is set to lapse Friday at midnight.
And the release of newly unsealed documents related to Jeffrey Epstein is generating fresh fallout.
The files include interviews, correspondence, investigative records, photos, and videos that have renewed public scrutiny of Epstein's network and broader questions of accountability.
This morning, we want to hear from you on either or both of those stories.
Here are the numbers.
Republicans 202-748-8001.
Democrats 202-748-8000.
And Independents 202-748-8002.
You can send a text to 202-748-8003.
Include your first name in your city-state.
And we're on Facebook at facebook.com/slash C-SPAN and X at C-SPANWJ.
Welcome to today's Washington Journal.
Let's start with Politico with this headline on DHS.
ICE Chief defends his officers to Congress as lawmakers mull DHS funding.
Democrats were not satisfied with Todd Lyons' explanations about ICE's training and its tactics.
Well, here is an exchange during that House hearing between the ICE acting director, Todd Lyons, and Democrat from California, Eric Swalwell.
How many ICE agents have been fired for their conduct under your leadership?
Sir, I can get you that data.
I'll get that back to you.
Is it more than one?
I'm not going to speak about personnel actions, but I'll get you that data.
Can you tell us if at least, God, I hope at least one person has been fired for their conduct since these operations have begun?
Are you telling us you can't even say one person's been fired?
Sir, I'm not going to talk about personnel actions, but we will get back to you.
But two people have been killed so far.
Is that right?
A nurse named Pretty and a mom named Good.
Two people have been killed so far.
Yes, sir.
Mr. Lyons, will you apologize to the family of Renee Good for being called a domestic terrorist by the president and his leadership?
No, sir.
Why not?
Sir, I welcome the opportunity to speak to the family in private, but I'm not going to comment on any active investigation.
Is she a domestic terrorist?
Sir, I'm not going to comment on the investigation.
And the president and secretary Noam are elected officials.
That's your right to their comments, but as law enforcement, career law enforcement, we won't speak to any.
Do you agree with their comments?
Sir, I'm not going to go ahead and talk about any ongoing investigation.
Will you apologize to the family of Alex Preddy for also being called a domestic terrorist?
Sir, again, I'm not going to speak to any ongoing investigation.
And that full hearing is on our website at c-span.org.
This morning, we're getting your thoughts on either or both.
DHS funding talks stalling and the Epstein files fallout.
Regarding that, here is Politico.
Lutnick confirms Jeffrey Epstein lunch as scrutiny intensifies.
It says Commerce Secretary confirms a meeting with a financier as Democrats question his credibility at a Senate hearing.
Well, here is a portion of that.
Here's an exchange with Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
Secretary Luttnick, I think you understand the root of concern here.
It's the way you described very emphatically your first encounter with him in his apartment, said you were disgusted, would never have any contact with him again.
Did you, in fact, make the visit to Jeffrey Epstein's private island?
I did have lunch with him as I was on a boat going across on a family vacation.
My wife was with me, as were my four children and nannies.
I had another couple with they were there as well with their children, and we had lunch on the island.
That is true for an hour, and we left with all of my children, with my nannies, and my wife all together.
We were on family vacation.
We were not apart to suggest there was anything untoward about that in 2012.
I don't recall why we did it, but.
Mr. Secretary, again, as I said, there's not an indication that you yourself engaged in any wrongdoing with Jeffrey Epstein.
It's the fact that you believe that you misled the country and the Congress based on your earlier statements, suggesting that you'd cut off all contact when, in fact, you had not.
When you visited the private island, did you see anything inappropriate during that visit?
The only thing I saw with my wife and my children and the other couple and their children was staff who worked for Mr. Epstein on that island.
And you realize that this visit took place after he'd been convicted, right?
I mean, you made a very big point of saying that you sensed that this was a bad person in 2005.
And then, of course, in 2008, he was convicted of soliciting prostitution of a minor.
And yet, you went and had this trip and other interactions.
And here is Greg on Facebook sent us this: DHS is making us less secure, not more secure.
Hold public hearings for everyone mentioned in the Epstein files.
Trump's Warning to Ryder00:02:33
Yes, even him.
And the Miami Herald is reporting On this, the headline, Trump told Palm Beach police chief, quote, everyone knew about Epstein and that Maxwell was evil.
It says this, President Donald Trump has repeatedly maintained that he had no knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein's sex crimes.
But in July 2006, just as Jeffrey Epstein's criminal sex charge became public, Trump called then Palm Beach police chief Michael Ryder to tell him that Epstein's activities with teenage girls were well known in both New York and Palm Beach.
Quote, thank goodness you're stopping him.
Everyone has known he's been doing this, Trump told Ryder, according to a 2019 FBI interview with Ryder contained in the Justice Department's Epstein case files.
That's at the Miami Herald.
We'll go to calls now and start with Paul in Idaho on the line for Republicans.
Good morning.
Good morning.
It's hard to say who's guilty of what on that island.
It's not sovereign territory for the United States of America.
See, you can't adjudicate anybody except maybe morally.
And it's where your morals lie that you would have an answer for that, everybody individually, maybe not collectively, but individually.
And so I just, you wouldn't have found me on that island, but I find it strange that some of the most important people in the United States of America made it to that island.
And some of them deny the fact that they had any knowledge of what they were getting into, but it's kind of obvious why they were going there.
And who knows what was going through their heads when they were going there?
I mean, I think their lower nature obviously was driving them, but their brain was the main combustion engine to get to think that way.
So, Paul, initially, you said that the island is not part of the United States.
Are you saying that American law doesn't apply to anything and that crimes can't be like it doesn't matter what crimes are happening on that island as far as law goes?
Adult Choices And Power Disparity00:05:31
Yeah.
Not because it doesn't matter.
Of course it matters.
Yeah, but I'm saying with respect to the law, I didn't mean does it matter morally, as you said.
Yeah.
No, yeah, it does.
But as far as the law is concerned about American citizens going to an island that's not owned by the United States of America, how could they conceivably be arrested and convicted of anything?
That's what I don't understand.
Yeah, that's an interesting American territory.
Like it's, you know, Puerto Rico or something.
That would be a different story.
They could nail them.
Yeah, that's an interesting legal question.
I'll have to ask an attorney about that.
Guy in Stigler, Oklahoma, Independent Line, good morning.
Hey, good morning, Mimi.
It's been a long time since we talked.
The last time I talked to you was with Henry Olson on the show regarding, you know, things that are over the pail.
And it also I mentioned about the propaganda campaign against Trump and how effective it's been working over the last 10 years.
It's completely divided our country.
Anyway, going to Epstein, 30 years ago, there was an affiliation between Epstein and the CIA.
It was a CIA op to get dirt on political people around the world, the world's most powerful people.
I'd really like to see you look into that.
In fact, there was a report that just came out from Peter Schweiser about a week or two ago regarding that particular issue.
And these girls, everybody refers to them as victims, the poor girls.
Well, it also came out in his report that only about three or four of the girls were under 18.
The vast majority of these several thousand of women were adults.
And, you know, they made a choice.
It was about money flying around the world in private jets, hanging out with rich, powerful people.
They made a choice.
Guy, I'm not sure that's correct as far as what happened in Palm Beach.
There were a lot more girls that were not 18.
Right.
I'm talking about the ones who were actually working for Epstein.
The girl in Palm Beach, Epstein approached her and tried to recruit her, and she was a teenager.
No, no, no, no.
There isn't just one girl in Palm Beach.
There were a lot of girls in Palm Beach because what would happen is he would give them $200.
You come and give a massage in quotations.
And then I'll give you $200 for every girl you bring me.
So he was using them, not only abusing them, but also getting them to bring their friends.
And these are friends from like middle school and high school.
Right.
Yeah.
Palm Beach was a recruiting center.
And when Trump found out, he kicked him out and, you know, end the relationship.
No, this was in his, but this was in his Palm Beach home, not in Mar-a-Lago.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Right.
But anyway, in general, over 30 years or 35 years he's been doing this, the great majority of the women that were being slowned around the world were adults.
And they made their decision, just like girls get their pornography.
It's an adult decision they make for the money, typically.
So I'm tired of everybody calling these poor girls victims or these women victims.
And the other thing is, they all signed MBAs and took money, so they can never talk about it because everybody keeps saying, well, why don't these girls come out and say who they were with and the people?
So they all took the money and signed MBAs.
So I'm tired of this victim thing.
I understand your point that technically some of the women had turned 18.
They were 18, 19.
But again, I would point out the disparity in the age and in the power between these very, very young women who are teenagers who might not be making good choices, who might be afraid of somebody like Jeffrey Epstein, given his wealth and his power.
You see who he was hanging out with.
And it's one thing to say, you know, I want you to do this.
I'm going to pay you this much.
And maybe they agreed and realized this was a really bad choice.
But I get your point, Guy.
And we'll move on to Beth in Chicago in Line for Democrats.
Good morning, Amy.
Thank you for taking my call.
That man made me really mad.
To not call these women, these girls, victims is really disgusting to me to put people through something like this.
I'm sorry.
I've read a lot of this and I've heard a lot of people talk.
And I can't believe that people don't see the fact that these girls, when you're at that age and you don't have the mindset of an adult and you're easily manipulated, and people can take advantage of you and they promise you things.
And, you know, for a simple massage, you don't think much of that.
But when it turns into something else and with the threats, I've heard threats, you're going to end up like Maria if you don't comply Or using other victims' names, just to keep people in line.
Moral Reckoning for This Country00:15:25
And for all the emails that have come out with all the powerful names that are on them, other countries are reacting and they're pulling people out of their high positions.
And United States of America used to be the country that other countries look to kind of for guidance, even though we're the youngest.
We had a moral standard, a moral compass of what was right and what was wrong.
And the office of the president was always one of respect.
And the man that is in office, he doesn't garner that respect.
And he's racist, and he shows it every single day.
And he's just hiding and protecting people.
Past presidents didn't work this closely with the DOJ.
I think when Obama became president, I think he shook the guy's hand and said, I hope I never see you for the rest of my term because they're all supposed to be separate and independent powers.
All right, Beth.
And this is a text from Kevin in Windsor, Connecticut.
Yes, Epstein files is a big cover-up.
This fake investigation is a black eye to the victims, while the billionaires are laughing all the way to the bank.
And this is from Senator Adam Schiff of California, who says, there is still a lot we need to know about the remaining Epstein files.
But one thing we know for sure, this administration has been lying consistently about the Epstein files and their attempts to cover up his connections to them and Trump himself.
And Jason on Facebook says, we should restructure ICE funding back to Obama era.
He and Tom Homan deported more faster on one-tenth of the budget.
Trump is a failure.
Let's take a look at the Senate Majority Leader, John Thune.
This is from yesterday afternoon, commenting on the state of DHS funding talks.
How much more time do you think these negotiations need?
Hard to say exactly how much time, but probably more time than at the end of the week.
The Democrats took the better part of a week and a half to get their proposal in, and now the White House has reacted to it, responded, submitted a counterproposal, which the Democrats are evaluating.
And I think, like I said, I believe that that to me represents and demonstrates progress.
I don't know how much more time would be required, but I think it's fair to say that it's going to take some amount of time, and we should at least extend the continuing resolution to allow for that to continue.
And in terms of with what's respected pieces and the individual proposals that have been made, I think you all know what the top-level issues are.
There are certain sort of red lines I think both sides have, things they're not going to negotiate on, but there are some things they are going to negotiate on, and that's where I think the potential deal space is here.
And we ought to give both sides an opportunity to try and find it.
But as I said earlier, we are very committed to making sure that federal law enforcement officers are able to do their jobs and to be safe doing them.
And we are certainly not going to be in favor of anything that makes it easier for dangerous illegal aliens to be, or I should say it makes it harder for dangerous illegal aliens to be detained and deported.
So those are kind of the parameters I would say with respect to where I think Republicans are.
But there are a number of areas of, I think there's a range of ideas there that we could find some resolution on.
So hopefully we'll have time to do that.
And this is Republican Representative Nancy Mace, who posted this on X. After today's review of the Epstein files at the DOJ, I have a list of names I will be requesting the House Oversight Committee invite to testify and if necessary, subpoena.
I have questions.
And Butch in a Republican in Fort Smith, Arkansas, Republican.
Good morning, Butch.
Good morning, ma'am.
Yes, I was just like to ask a couple questions.
When Swalwell went to, I mean, Van Holland went to down to Central America and had a meeting in Martini's with the leader down there.
What did that accomplish?
Swanwell is married to a Chinese spy.
And Obama, one last thing I'm going to say is why did Obama send lawyers to Mexico and Central America before the invasion started?
Thank you very much.
Ted, Independent in Boston, you're on the air, Ted.
Good morning.
I don't know, man, from Arkansas.
Is that another conspiracy that your news max told you?
The reason I called in was because of one of these other guy callers who, you know, to me is a sorry excuse for a man to be purporting this misinformation about this issue.
And you, Mimi, are good enough to correct this person.
And to me, this is a whole case study on what your average Republican is.
For my whole life, these people deny every basic tenet of reality.
So, Ted, but get to your comments on either DHS funding or the Epstein files.
The Epstein files, I think these Republicans are terrible human beings.
And this is another case study that shows exactly every little bit of what goes on in their brains.
And these are the same guys that grew up as, you know, terrible, terrible, poor excuses of pathetic men.
Okay, so the men in the Epstein files are not just Republicans, though, Ted.
Yeah, my contention here is the Republican interpretation and misinformation and denial and smearing of victims.
And you corrected it.
And, you know, we have to listen to these low-grade people call in on C-SPAN and waste our time with their conspiracy theories right out of the garbage pit of Arkansas because they can't understand.
All right, Ted.
Sue in Pennsylvania, line for Democrats.
Good morning, Sue.
I just have a couple of comments where people are talking about the girls' ages with Epstein files.
You know, when somebody's like even 18 or under 18 or 19, their brain isn't fully developed.
And they're going to make some dumb mistakes.
So, I mean, I could understand how these things happen.
And I think we should have more sympathy for these girls instead of saying that they're adults, blah, It's just horrible.
And that's all I have to say.
All right.
And here is an interview on YouTube with Congressman Roe Khanna of California, who saw the unredacted version of the Epstein files.
And he is describing the worst thing that he saw.
Final question here.
What's the worst thing you've seen in these files?
I've seen some pretty sick things.
I mean, just the grotesque nature of what they did to young girls.
I mean, it's much worse than just raising.
I mean, it's violent, it's ugly, it's sick.
And that is just stomach churning.
And then the scale of it.
I don't think people understand how many of these young girls were caught up in this.
And the class issue is at the core of this.
That's why I said Epstein class, because a lot of these girls were working class.
A lot of them didn't have fathers.
They were targeted.
They were preyed upon by rich and powerful people.
And then they were told, don't call the police, nothing is going to happen.
Don't call the FBI.
Nothing's going to happen.
And the person who did call the FBI in 1996, she was called a liar.
This is a moral reckoning for this country.
It's an elite governing class that is immature, that is callow, that is reckless, that is arrogant, that is self-entitled, and that has done horrendous things.
And the question is, are we just going to try to brush it aside and move on, as the president says, or are we actually going to have a moral reckoning, have a new moral vision, and be rooted in the values that built this country?
Wonder what you think about that.
We'll talk to Randy, a Republican, Hager City, Wisconsin.
Hi, Randy.
Good morning, C-SPAN.
Thanks for taking my call.
I'd like to speak quick on both your topics this morning.
Number one, on the funding.
We've got to have that funding.
I mean, really, it's already funded until 2029.
So I don't know what the big fuss is all about.
I mean, the Democrats want to cut it off because they want those illegals to stay here.
And look what they're doing.
They're terrorizing our country.
So funding has got to get through.
And I really believe it's going to.
On the Epstein files, goodness sakes.
ABC News last night, I think they must have run about a five-minute deal on this Epstein news.
Everything was about Trump.
Trump, Trump, Trump.
Even today, it's Trump trumped up.
You guys bring up Epstein and Trump all the time.
I mean, the Democratic Party, C-SPAN, and the Democrats all are trying to nail Trump to these Epstein files, and there's nothing there.
He did it in 92006.
Look what he did.
Why doesn't the security or the committee get these girls off to stage so you don't see them and ask them questions?
Bring them in.
Bring them girls in.
I feel sorry for these girls for what they went through, but let them speak.
They were there.
Nobody else was there.
It was other than Democrats.
There are some Republicans there.
But bring these girls in.
That's the main thing.
You know?
So anyway, C-SPAN, you have a good day.
Okay, Randy, and let's talk about what Randy brought up.
And this is White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt.
She was asked about the reports in the Miami Herald that I showed you earlier about President Trump talking to the police chief and that everyone knew about Epstein's crimes.
According to movie release files, the president had a conversation with the Palm Beach police chief in the early 2000s, according to the police chief in 2019.
The president has gone on record before and he's told reporters that he said at Jeffrey Edwards that he had no idea about Jeffrey Epstein's crimes.
During this conversation with the police chief, however, he did say, according to this recounting of it, that thank goodness you're stopping him.
He also called the late Maxwell people.
My two questions are, did that conversation of the Palm Beach police chief happen?
And can you explain the discrepancy?
What I will say is that the president has always remained consistent and that he kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of his club at Mar-a-Lago because, frankly, Jeffrey Epstein was a creep.
And unlike many other people who are named in these files, President Trump cut off his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and was honest and transparent about that for years and years.
And so I think what the president has said all along has always remained true.
And the release of more than three million documents related to Jeffrey Epstein and his heinous, disgusting crimes just shows the level of transparency that this president and administration has committed to in bringing these files to light.
But did he call the chief?
Caroline, did he call the chief?
Look, it was a phone call that may or may not have happened in 2006.
I don't know the answer to that question.
What I'm telling you is that what President Trump has always said is that he kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of his Mar-a-Lago club because Jeffrey Epstein was a creep, and that remains true.
And this call, if it did happen, corroborates exactly what President Trump has said from the beginning.
And I'm sure many of you, when you read that alleged FBI report, probably thought to yourself, wow, this really cracks our narrative that we've been trying to push about this president for many years.
So we're moving on from that.
Jeffrey and Kentucky, Independent Line, you're on the air.
Yes, I'm calling about the DHS finding.
Sure.
It's just a scheme.
Where is all that money going to?
I don't believe that all that money is going where it's supposed to go.
And I believe Donald Trump in some kind of way is getting kicked back from that funding.
It's extreme to fund that they gave the deep HS.
And there were reports in there about how many true criminals are arrested and how many people are arrested for traffic kickets and minute things that is totally ridiculous.
This is the racism of America.
And that's being filed.
I can't believe how they come from there.
These girls are truly victims.
What's coming now?
This country is known for rape and theft.
And I'll be saying, I don't understand how some of these men can talk about how that these women are playing victims and they're not.
All right, Jeffrey and Rob is next.
Democrat in Richmond, Virginia.
Good morning.
I just wanted to alert people to some facts that they don't know or probably don't know about U.S. history.
It started when the colonizers came over here to America.
A lot of the Native American women were underage women, were raped and treated horribly by the supposed Christians that came here.
A wise woman once said that the people that are calling hi to God the most proclaiming to be the best are the worst sinners.
Secondly, one of our presidents, Thomas Jefferson, was with an underage person named Sally Hemmings, 14 at the time.
I think she gave birth to her first child at 16.
Illegal Aliens and Endangerment00:04:07
So these powerful people think they've got a God complex and they get away with things.
And a lot of the things that are being told about in this Epstein file, they know about it, you know, from both sides.
And I don't honestly believe anything is going to get done about this.
But from just a contextual history standpoint, it's been going on for ages here.
Trump editing his deposition about, you know, rich, powerful people who've been doing it for millions of years, you know, according to him.
But so they're not, I don't think anything is going to get done about this.
And the DHS, as for that component of it, ICE budget, just ICE, not the DHS, but ICE's budget, $29 billion last year, is more than a lot of other countries, developed countries like Spain, their military budget.
So put that in context.
So people like R. Kelly and Tough Daddy, they did things that were horrible.
They're being punished for their time.
But all these other wealthy people that are in these Epstein files, not going to see anything.
A lot of them have passed on.
A lot of them have, they've hidden from the truth.
So hopefully everybody gets privy to this and realizes that this country is headed in the wrong direction.
And Rob, the DHS got, sorry, ICE got $75 billion from the bill that was passed in the summer.
And the Hill says Speaker Johnson backs full year DHS bill as thun eyes a stopgap.
So there's still disagreement there between the House and the Senate with that funding bill set to lapse at midnight on Friday.
John in Florence, Massachusetts, Independent Line, you're on the air.
Good morning, Amy.
I'm just curious if that lady from Illinois that was crying about the girls from Epstein Island was crying about the 300,000 illegal unaccompanied minors that came across the border and who knows what happened to them because oversight was lost or if she cares about any of the underage kids that get their bodies mutilated during their gender transformations.
But anyways, I'm just curious Democrats think that law enforcement doing their jobs is a danger to American citizens and that they're justice officers, yet they don't think that all the illegal aliens that can't speak English and can drive trucks, get CDL licenses, can't speak English, aren't a danger to us.
Or they say it's an unconstitutional invasion that the ICE is in their cities.
But however, the 20 million illegal aliens that came across the border, that would be racist if I said that that was an invasion.
And since two U.S. citizens were killed, I guess ICE should be abolished, but we shouldn't get rid of all the illegal aliens because thousands of Americans have been raped, killed, molested, murdered, carjacked, maimed, and disabled by illegal aliens.
That's different.
And it wasn't child endangerment when they sent all these kids across the border, unaccompanied minors.
That wasn't child endangerment, or when that guy took off from his kid and ran away and left his kid unaccompanied on the street.
That's not child endangerment.
But if an American does that, suddenly that is.
And as for Alex Preeti, who you said, you know, maybe he kept fighting with law enforcement after his gun was taken.
Yes.
And he had two clips on him.
Maybe they didn't know what those were in his pocket, that he was still fighting with them.
Why was he still fighting with law enforcement?
He was in the street blocking traffic.
He was not supposed to be doing that.
Your gun license is revoked and not null and void if you commit another crime or a crime during the possession of it.
That means your license is revoked.
So he was committing another crime just by being in the street and blocking traffic and obstructing ICE.
Just as also you can see a new video that shows three minutes before what this Renee Good was doing in the street, blocking ICE, obstructing them, beeping her horn, blowing her whistle.
You don't need to do that.
And it doesn't take five minutes and 40 turns and stopping for 30 seconds to beep your horn and blow your whistle and let your partner get out of your car to and this is the front page of the Washington Times with this headline.
Immigration enforcers face fury on Capitol Hill.
Capitol Hill Fury00:14:35
Democrats decry blood on your hands.
It says this.
The government's top immigration enforcers came to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, that was yesterday, to deliver their first defense after the killings of two American citizens in Minnesota, facing vicious attacks from Democrats who compared them to Nazis and slave patrols and suggested that the head of ICE face eternal damnation.
Quote: How do you think Judgment Day will work for you with so much blood on your hands?
Representative LaMonica McIver, New Jersey Democrat, challenged Acting Director Todd Lyons.
Quote, do you think you're going to hell?
It's at the Washington Times on the front page.
And Henrietta is calling us from Fort Pierce, Florida, Republican line.
Good morning.
Yes, good morning.
With respect to immigration, I say get rid of them all, the Abuelas and all of them.
Why?
Because we don't want these people filling out the census.
And that's all the Democrats want.
Some more representatives in blue states because they're losing population because their policies stink out loud.
With respect to Epstein, you know, I don't feel sorry for these girls.
They are willing participants.
They made their own bed and now they're sleeping in it.
And they're looking back and they're embarrassed about their behavior.
And that's exactly why they're crying today.
Oh, I was taking advantage of.
No, you weren't.
President Trump was right when he spoke to Billy Bush about they'll let you do anything to them if you're famous.
That's right.
The famous little quote: they will, and it wasn't anything.
It was a specific thing.
And yes, they would.
Were you alive in the 80s?
Did you go out to the clubs?
Do you know what it was like?
They were all would be, I'll want to be better.
You can make my life better.
I'll hang out with you because you have money.
I'll sit with you and I will have sex with you.
Why?
Because I think things will get better for me.
So, you know, don't feel sorry for the young, I'm going to use this loosely, ladies.
None of them.
And for putting them up on the hill, my God, that would be dreadful.
You drag them through their embarrassment again.
And we don't want to see that.
We wish you'd stop it.
You know, the truth is that men and power do bad things.
Guess what?
Women with power and money do bad things too.
It's just the nature of the beast.
And these little would-be, oh, I'm a victim now, no, they were willing participants.
And I thank you very much for your time today.
Alex is in Brooklyn, New York, Line for Democrats.
You're on the air, Alex.
Wow, Mimi, I can almost can't even speak after the garbage of the last two calls that just caught.
Yeah, it's just leaving me almost speechless.
Mimi, first off, I just want to apologize.
The last time we spoke, a man basically called up and said that men morally are better than women to lead.
That was the last interaction I had with you several weeks ago.
The last two callers are everything that is wrong with this country.
Excusing men with power to treat women like objects for what Rocana said in the most evil ways.
And you have this last caller who is a woman that has probably lived through this power struggle, just accepted.
I mean, this is where we are as a country.
I have two points to make.
Please, Mimi, just let me make them.
And I know you have to get to other colors.
To all these disgusting idiot men that are calling and saying that these women are victims because they allowed themselves to have this happen to them.
Let me just tell you a quick story and then I'll get to my point.
My girlfriend, when I was in my 20s, she was 25, I was 28.
She knew Epstein.
He paid for her education when she was going to college here.
She was studying media.
She was 25 years old.
She went on a yacht and she was in Miami.
And she came back and she simply said to me, I am never going back.
And she never talked about this again.
I have no idea what happened to her.
This is a 25-year-old woman.
I never asked again because I don't know what happened.
I just said, are you okay?
She said yes.
And that was the end of it.
I never talked to her again.
This is a 25-year-old woman.
You mean to tell me an 18-year-old girl that comes from a broken home is going to make the right choices?
I mean, how could you people in the United States listening to this program of C-SPAN think that?
You would think that you people are probably a little better than the garbage that's out there in the rest of this country, but apparently not.
My last point, and I will say this: in the UK, they are dealing with the fallout from these Epstein files.
The ambassador to Washington had to resign over this because he came out in the files.
Two people come out in the files in the UK, and the Prime Minister almost has to resign here in the United States.
We have Steve Bannon and the rest of this garbage of people in these files, and nothing comes out because no one is held responsible.
It is disgusting what we have become as a country.
It is utter disgust that I have for the way you people are calling.
And I apologize, Mimi.
And for all you women out there that think that this is the way it is, it is not.
There are men like me, many others that feel that these victims should have their day in court.
Their stories should be heard, and the truth should come out, whether it's Republicans or Democrats.
Everybody should be held accountable.
All right, Alex.
Let's go to Caleb next.
Independent Line, Durham, North Carolina.
Good morning, Caleb.
Good morning.
Thank you for taking my call.
So, or I agree with the guy's sentiment.
I'm just going to kind of go straight into my feelings on both matters.
As far as the Epstein files go, I think that people are seeing a lot of fallout from sorry, my mind's going blank as soon as I receive a phone call.
I think that people are going to jump, and their gut reaction is going to be burn it all down.
I think that people need to still offer some level of one of the things that makes America great is the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.
I think the same thing goes for the DHS people who have, you know, who are going through their investigations, their trials.
Everyone has their opinion, and there's the court of the public opinion.
But people need to allow some level of trust in the judicial system and how we have set it up.
And I think as far as both cases go, whether the DHS process or the Epstein files, I think people need to get more involved in their local governments.
I mean, people need to learn who their representatives are and see where they stand.
I think that people need to work from the ground up, not from the top down.
There's this weird hyperfixation on the federal government and the federal level when you have the most amount of power on the local and state levels where you reside.
I think people need to remember that.
All right.
And this is on the Senate floor.
Yesterday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer talked about Democrats' demands for ICE in order to support funding for DHS.
What Democrats propose is the definition of common sense.
We simply want ICE to follow the same standards that most law enforcement agencies across America already follow.
We must end droving patrols.
We must have a code of conduct.
We must end secret police who are not identified.
And I want to be very clear about something else.
These guardrails on ICE must apply across the board, including to operations funded through the Republican so-called Big Beautiful bill.
We can't have ICE agents claiming they don't need to follow the law because they're being funded by this part of money instead of that part of money.
That would be absurd.
Our reforms must apply to all ICE operations.
The American people proudly support law enforcement, but most agree the status quo with ICE cannot continue.
What ICE has been doing in Minneapolis and other cities is the antithesis of law enforcement.
It's intimidation, coercion, and puts people in danger.
Back to the calls to Tony in Detroit.
Democrat, hi, Tony.
You're on the air.
Hi, Mimi.
Good morning.
You are so beautiful.
You and Kimberly are the main reason I call in, and you are a breath of sunshine.
So I think this is terrible to hear what these callers are subjecting you to this morning.
I mean, a double standard to rape or to talk the way they're talking about little girls.
That is terrible.
Even women are calling, talking about children.
No man has a right to violate a child, no matter what.
And to hear these people call these girls, little girls, women, that's the most sacrilegious thing I've ever heard.
DHS, $75 billion, 3,000 people making people disappear.
This is lawlessness.
This looks like that movie.
What's that movie?
I can't even think of the name of it.
But all of this is terrible.
To see, to see the United States of America, we're isolated.
And they call us peace through strength.
I feel so vulnerable every single day since Donald Trump has been in office.
And to hear Caroline Lovett say they're moving on from it.
At the same time, Donald Trump hasn't moved on from the 2020 election.
Hypocrisy 101.
This is pure evil.
And I hope we survive this.
I really do.
Anyway, Mimi.
All right, Tony.
Let's talk to Margaret, Independent Line, Edgewater, Maryland.
Hi, Margaret.
Hey, good morning.
Yeah, I was just thinking about that Epstein thing.
It is disgusting when you think about it.
And the thing that is offensive as a woman is when other women call in and somehow blame the victim.
You know, what do you know when you're 17, 18, 19-year-old?
Nothing.
You don't know anything about life yet because you're still young.
But when you somehow say that a 60-year-old having sex with a 17 or 16-year-old girl, somehow the girl is to blame.
The question that always comes up for me is who the heck is the adult in the room?
Is it the 16-year-old or is it the 60-year-old pervert that's having sex with the 16-year-old?
And that's the thing.
You know, you have to hold people accountable.
And if you don't, this will just continue and continue and continue.
And I think there was a caller previously who said they should just bring them all in, the women and the girls, and have them pestify.
You know, everybody talks about protecting their identities.
I understand that.
But I just, it's offensive, you know.
And that's all I wanted to say.
Thank you.
Let's talk to Joy next in Illinois, Line for Republicans.
Good morning.
Hi, I'm a former now.
I'm always a conservative Republican, but I just think that we worship the golden calf.
I think that they use the guise of money and racism to lure people who are misinformed to voting for their interests.
And I think their interests are very demonic.
I mean, let's get to the core.
Evil is what it is.
And we worship it.
And I think that the energy has shifted in this country.
You can feel it in the air when you're walking amongst people.
And for people who are going as business as usual, and I think it's a conservative thing to say that they're 14.
I think we know the reality.
It's conservative.
My other question is, are they all straight?
I mean, like, so there are no young boys that are victims?
And I think it's really bad that we don't even mention them.
And we know in reality that they have an appetite for anything, these people.
And so as we worship them and we turn a blind eye, know that they are seeing that and they know that we're desensitized and that they can do anything.
They can do anything to us because we don't care anymore.
People walk among us.
And the woman who called and said that you're a woman yourself, God is watching you.
And, you know, God help you.
Because we, you know, you're going to answer for it when you go before him.
You're going to answer for it.
They all will.
God bless.
People Don't Care Anymore00:15:51
In New Jersey, on the line for Democrats, Dee, good morning.
Good morning.
I have a different subject, the national debt.
Elon Musk was on a podcast.
He said this country is going to go bankrupt if they don't start looking at the national debt.
So Dee, that is an important topic, but we are just talking about DHS funding talks and the Epstein files.
If you don't mind sticking to one of those.
All right.
Now I have another issue.
I don't know what I'm reading is true or correct on the computer anymore.
But George Will came out with a statement that Ivanika, Ivanka Chunk.
Yes?
Devonka Chunk passport has been seized.
She has 23 different offshore accounts.
Is that correct, or is that AI?
I'm not sure about that, Dee.
But we're going to go now to John in New Jersey, Independent Line.
Good morning.
Is that me, John?
Yes, it's you, John.
Yes, okay.
Okay, I didn't hear my name.
The lady before from Illinois made a lot of sense in dealing with the various things that are taking place.
Now, you know, it's always been the Nazi thing dealing.
If you say a lie long enough, people start believing it.
And we're getting into all this Epstein stuff going on and on and on.
Epstein went through the Obama administration, the Clinton administration, and Biden administration, and of course, the one four years for Trump.
And now it's all of a sudden, now it's a big deal.
It's a big deal.
We wouldn't want to talk about the rest of them.
And then the same thing with the DHS stuff that's going on.
Okay.
All the millions of people that came across the border.
We're not talking about that.
We're talking about all the things that are happening.
Well, I guess if you've got a lot more work to do because of what happened, and when they know, know, actually, you see places where the police do their job and then the DHS does their job, that it's valid, just like you're seeing now in Minnesota, what's going on.
And they're still building things out in the middle of the road to deter them, but the police come along and tear them down.
But they're not going in their face.
They're not spitting in their face.
They're not causing all this dissension.
Now, listen, immigration.
My grandfather had to come here.
He had to wait four years.
And his brother had a job for him and a place to live and everything else.
But he had to wait four years.
And then my mother and her twin sister, my grandmother, had to wait another three years to get cleared for immigration.
That was the law.
And guess what?
Two weeks ago, I understand from what I heard on television that the law is basically the same.
So what, I mean, I don't get America, the globalists have bought the news media.
I don't care what news media you talk about.
And they want a one-world government, and that's what they're aiming for.
And there are people that just don't care.
They have no morals.
There is no God anymore.
That's it.
Albert Kirkie on the line for Republicans.
Lita, good morning to you.
Well, good morning.
Thank you for your show.
Thank you so much.
I love to watch it.
The DHS funding, 9-11?
Come on, people.
Have you forgotten, or do you not read the history books?
9-11 happened.
I saw people jumping off of the building.
I saw people dying.
I saw people, I saw the planes flying into the towers.
Come on, guys.
DHS, that's why we have to have that.
And as for the Epstein files, my goodness, I'm a woman.
I was taught by my mother, don't let anybody touch your private parts.
Women, come on.
Didn't you have mothers?
Didn't you have mothers that taught you anything or fathers that taught you anything?
Please come on.
Thank you so much for your show.
I'm sorry, I'm a little bit excited because DHS funding.
We have to protect our homeland from people that would do wrong.
And women?
Got it, Lita.
And regarding DHS funding, just so you know that at 10 a.m. Eastern today on C-SPAN 3, we're going to have a hearing.
So DHS funding would lapse if there's no agreement this Friday at midnight.
But it doesn't include immigration enforcement agencies because that's already been funded through the GOP tax and spending bill that was passed in the summer.
So at 10 o'clock, you're going to hear from officials from agencies that would lose funding, so components of DHS, including the Secret Service and the Coast Guard.
They'll be in front of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Impact of a Potential Shutdown.
Again, that is live at 10 a.m. Eastern on C-SPAN 3.
Marilyn, Crest Hill, Illinois, Democrat.
Good morning, Marilyn.
Good morning, Anna.
I watch your show every morning, no matter whether it's about Republicans or Democrats.
All right, I'm going to put myself on the floor here.
I lived in Palm Beach.
I'm 82 years old.
And excuse my voice, I've had throat surgery.
I lived there before Trump bought Mar-a-Lago and after he bought it and during the whole Epstein trial, the first one.
I've seen them out in Palm Beach.
I know who they are.
My mother dated, because she was a widow, one of the first members of Mary-a-Lago.
And Trump is lying about why he said Epstein had to leave Mer-a-Lago and not be a member anymore.
The members got together and told Trump if he didn't stop Epstein from coming there, they would pull their money.
That's why it happened.
And my mother, so call me a liar if you want, but it's the truth, and my mother told the truth.
Six times she knew of Trump going on Epstein's plane.
Now, they want to come get me and put me in front of court.
I will state it again.
This is what I know, okay?
I know about that AG in Florida that let him off, let Epstein off with that sweet heart deal.
I know about that piece of property that Trump said he had a fight with Epstein over.
No, that piece of property, Trump bought for $38 million and sold it to a Russian oligarch within a year.
Never lived there for $98 million.
What do you think that money went for?
I think maybe it went for Trump's 2016 run.
There's so much in this Epstein file.
First of all, every name that's been brought up should be indicted.
Why wait?
They're guilty.
So that's that.
Now, the other thing, DSA, or whatever it's called, they've already got their money.
What the Democrats are doing and what I feel is right as a human being, they shouldn't wear masks.
Our police don't wear masks.
Why should they wear masks if they're doing law and order just like the police do?
Then they should be under the same rules as the police.
What makes them so special?
What are they hiding?
All right, Marilyn.
This is Stuart in Maryland, Independent Line.
You're on the air, Stuart.
Hi, thank you, and good morning.
One thing I wanted to comment on, and a lot of people haven't brought up, is all these names in the Epstein files go back 20, 30 years or so.
And a lot of the people that were participating were probably heads of state and upcoming senators or whatever.
If you start releasing all these names on all these files right now and you start bringing down a lot of these kings and prime ministers, presidents, whatever, you're going to have worldwide economic problems and probably another world war when you start tearing down republics and democracies and the people that shouldn't be in power get to power.
And I think the whole world would be in trouble, not just the United States.
As far as funding ICE, 110% agree with it.
I'm former United States Coast Guard, and we didn't get much money when I was in.
So any nickels and dimes, we need.
So I praise Trump and I praise the Republican Party.
And Democrats, I really wish you would start thinking outside of the box, take the blinders off, and see what the world, the whole world, is really about.
And Mimi, I thank you.
I've been watching C-SPAN for about seven years, and this is the first time I've called in.
I hope I did well.
Yes, you did, Stuart.
You're fine.
Rainey in Ohio, Independent Line.
You're on the air.
Amy, yes.
So first, I'll address the Epstein file fallout.
I really was Stuart saying about how the files, those go back 20 to 30 years.
I think that as Americans, we should be more concerned that that is how far they went back and that they haven't been addressed throughout all this time.
I keep on hearing all these people say went through Obama and Clinton and Biden and nobody addressed it.
I think that's the problem in it all.
And I think that once it is addressed, that these people do need to be held accountable because when you think back to it, and these girls tried to report this stuff and it got hidden again and again and again and again.
And now that it's coming out, people need to take accountability and we need to hold these people accountable.
And for DHS, I don't understand where everybody, all these mega people want to say to keep funding this agency when Donald Trump has already tried to defund FEMA.
So when we're giving all this money to this agency, we can see where the money is going, which is not to any of the other any of the other outlets that DHS has.
He's already tried to defund FEMA.
He doesn't want to fund FEMA.
He wants to fund ICE.
He wants to fund immigrant crackdown.
And to me, whenever we're talking about federal agents wearing masks and how they're so worried about people finding out about their families and their identifications and all of that stuff, well, if you really think about it, we have Congress lawmakers that go to work every day in Washington that worry about their lives.
They get death threats that come from their constituents.
And everybody in the world knows who they are.
So if you're taking that job status, that's a risk you're taking.
Not to mention that I'm tired of MEGA talking about laws being broken because police agents, no matter what type of policing you're doing, you also have laws in policy to follow.
And like I said, I think that, I mean, hey, if you're really doing a job the way you're supposed to be doing it, then you shouldn't be ashamed to show your face.
All right, Rainy, let's talk to Jesse next.
Democrat, Anaheim, California, you're on the air.
Hi, my name's Jesse, and I thank you for taking my call.
I can't wrap my head around the Republican Party, President Trump, and ICE and all these people that think this is the way people in the United States should be living.
Look, people that are wearing masks, you can bet that I promise you that most of those people were from the insurrection that Trump got them because he pardoned them.
And they're part of the ICE agents that are wearing these masks.
They're not just local police or the government or anything that's normal because, you know, that's not the way we lived or ever lived before Trump got in office started in 16, which I believe the Russians did try to help to make sure that Hillary Clinton was not elected because she was very close to winning.
And things started happening.
But we're talking about now, and this is even worse, and they're getting into our voting machines and the agencies and the recklessness in hurting people with mace and because people are protesting.
Are we back in Germany again?
Voting Machines & ICE Agents00:01:13
All right, Jesse, on the Republican line in Fort Worth, Texas.
Randy, you're on the air.
Good morning.
Yes, thank you for taking my call.
Two quick points.
Let's start off with the ICE agents with the DHS.
A couple calls ahead of me was mentioning the risk of wearing a mask, the threats of the my main concern is the threats of the family members.
Because you've got to remember, when you're taking an oath to be a police officer, whether you're an ICE officer or a regular police officer, but the difference is with the ICE officers, you're putting your life on the line because your job is totally to remove the illegal immigrants from this country.
And there's a lot of people in the United States are against that.
So if you take your mask and put it back, put your name on your shirt, identify yourself, you're asking for trouble.
I mean, no one wants to take this job.
You got to remember the line between the bad guys and the good guys is the ICE officers and law officials.
And my other point I want to make real quick is the Esteeing files.
I'm just turning on, so I didn't catch the whole show.