WOOTWOOT!! BLANCHE SUED OVER FAILURE TO RELEASE ALL EPSTEIN FILES! I HAVE THE FULL COMPLAINT FOR YOU!
Journalist and, ahem, *lawyer* Katie Phang has just sued, ahem, *acting* Attorney General Todd Blanche for his, and I quote, “brazen, shocking, and ongoing violation of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.”
Hooboyhowdy, talk about coming out swinging!!
She then goes into a litany (and I use the term affectionately) of all the ways that Blanche, and Bondi before him, has failed in his duties. (Don’t worry, Notes from the Front members, you’re going to get to read the whole thing!)
Is there anything more of a double threat in the legal arena than a journalist who is also a lawyer – or a lawyer who is also a journalist? With those combined skillsets you just *know* the Complaint is… 👩🏻🍳💋 <--in case that doesn't come through on your screen, that's a chef kiss.
Now, in the pre-counts narrative, Phang explains that "Defendant’s failure to follow the law has harmed Plaintiff, Katie Phang (“Phang”), a journalist, lawyer, and legal analyst who has extensively reported on Jeffrey Epstein and his network. Phang’s inability to report with substance on all of the documents she should be able to access has hurt her ability to do her job, and made it harder to fulfill her mission as a journalist and legal analyst." She then goes on to explain that "The Department of Justice failed to comply with the law. It did so by ignoring the Act’s deadlines, by failing to redact sensitive information, by redacting information it should have disclosed, by failing to explain its redactions, and by redacting, retracting, or withholding entirely materials about Donald Trump and others." And THEN she goes after Trump directly:
"The Department failed to produce documents relating to Trump that other sources confirm exist.
For instance, in one document, a woman accused Trump of forcing her to perform oral sex when she was a minor. The FBI found this accusation sufficiently credible that it interviewed the alleged victim four times.
According to logs, the Department of Justice previously produced fifteen documents about this alleged victim to attorneys for Ghislaine Maxwell in preparation for her own defense. But only seven such documents were produced under the Epstein Act. Contemporary reporting suggests that the withheld materials include 53 pages of interview documents and notes. These remain unproduced." The first 12 pages of the 15-page complaint (again, included for Notes from the Front members) continue with lots and lots of examples of where the Epstein Files Transparency Act (EFTA) was clearly violated.
You see, they didn’t count on things that they withheld being discovered in other ways, so that when people compared the records they could see that things were being withheld that shouldn’t be.
Then there are four counts (to be clear this is a civil lawsuit, not criminal), two based on violations of the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), one alleging 'ultra vires agency action' (meaning the agency has acted outside the bounds of the agency's legal authority), and one requesting that the Court enter a declaratory judgement under the Declaratory Judgment Act, declaring that Phang is entitled to "declaratory and injunctive relief, attorneys’ fees, costs, and any other relief the Court deems just and proper." She then asks the Court to order Blanche and the DOJ to:
a. Remove all unlawful redactions;
b. Explain the bases for any remaining lawful redactions;
c. Re-produce all materials that were produced but then unlawfully retracted;
d. Produce all materials that have not been produced that, by law, should be.
This is going to be such a fun one! I'm off to buy stock in Orville Redenbacher now!
In the meantime, Notes from the Front members this hot-off-the-presses complaint is in your inbox now!
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P.S. If you actually read all the way to the bottom please leave a comment that includes the word "popcorn". It will show me that my efforts aren't in vain and that people actually *do* read these things, and it will drive those who just skim crazy wondering why everyone is talking about popcorn! ;~)
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