Epstein Day open thread

Well my friends, here we are. Today the House of Representatives votes on the discharge petition to release the Jeffrey Epstein investigative files. 

If you remember, Donald Trump ran partly on releasing those files. And then, stupor mundi, he quickly reneged on his pledge, once it became clear that doing so would implicate him and his friends. This volte face engendered rage among his base, and caused Democrats to gather signatures for a discharge petition to get at those documents. Now that the petition will be brought before the House, it is estimated that upwards of one hundred Republicans will vote to disclose the materials. And now Trump, facing a humiliating defeat, is doing this best Pee Wee Herman imitation and averring that he had always wanted the files exposed.

Now, he has also ordered his Attorney General to investigate Democrats found in the files, like former president Bill Clinton. If she does so, she can claim that there is an ongoing investigation which makes the releasing of those files prejudicial to the case. If he does this, however, it will go even worse for him. It's an obvious dodge, seeking to evade transparency by an venal sleight of hand. The convenient nature of these new investigations will be obvious, and simply increase the odeur of a cover-up. Even someone as stupid as Tommy Tuberville is saying he'll vote to release the files. No legal trickery will stifle the broad support for a full examination of the Epstein case. And if all that is delivered are thousands of pages of blacked out, redacted material, that also is a nonstarter. 

Trump is in a pickle of his own making. He promised to expose nefarious liberal child sex trafficking, only to be told that it would implicate him more than anyone he targeted. There is no way out for him—save for the old-fashioned "honorable" way out, but he is too much of a coward to commit seppuku. So, today we will see the House vote to release the Kraken, followed surely by the Senate, and then sent to Trump, who has promised to sign the bill. 

As I always say, it didn't have to be like this. But the majority of voters chose this path, and here we are. We just have to plow through this shitstorm, and hope we have a Republic left at the end of it.

This is your open thread.