Friend of Pedophile Jeffrey Epstein; Trump Guts Office to Combat Human Trafficking

鬼百合

不给糖就捣蛋

The president's latest cuts come as he dodges bipartisan backlash about his administration's handling of evidence in Jeffrey Epstein's 2019 trafficking case

Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein

Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein.Credit : MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images; Neil Rasmus/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

NEED TO KNOW​

  • The Trump administration gutted the State Department office that combats human trafficking on Friday, July 18
  • Federal employees in the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons were "surprised and disappointed" by the mass cuts given that Republicans have made trafficking a major talking point in recent years
  • The recent firings came as the Trump administration faces fierce bipartisan backlash over its handling of evidence in Jeffrey Epstein's 2019 trafficking case
President Donald Trump's administration has made major cuts to the State Department’s anti-trafficking unit — even as criticism swells over his refusal to release all evidence from Jeffrey Epstein's 2019 child sex trafficking case.


Cindy Dyer, who worked at the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, told The 19th that her office had nearly 90 workers at the start of Trump's second administration. About a dozen left as part of the president's voluntary resignation program earlier this year. Then, on Friday, July 18, half of the remaining workers were fired and the other half were demoted, she said.


“We really thought that broad bipartisan support we have had for 25 years — ever since the Trafficking Victims Protection Act passed in 2000 — would provide us some protection, and it did not. And I think people are really both surprised and disappointed,” said Dyer, who also previously worked in the Bush and Biden administrations.


A different federal government employee — who spoke to The 19th anonymously due to fear of retaliation — agreed with Dyer, saying, “To have this administration cut funding so significantly has just been a huge blow to the progress that has been made over the last several decades.”


ecretary of State Marco Rubio speaks alongside U.S. President Donald Trump during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on April 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump convened a Cabinet meeting a day after announcing a 90-day pause on 'reciprocal' tariffs, with the exception of China

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump at an April 10 Cabinet meeting.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty
After campaigning on promises that he would declassify and release more evidence related to the Epstein case, Trump has backtracked in recent weeks, going so far as to accuse the Democrats of creating an "Epstein hoax."


Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel have also backpedaled on the issue following the release of a joint memo from the DOJ and FBI, which stated that their investigation into Epstein's alleged crimes and subsequent death in prison was complete. The memo also stated the investigation found that Epstein's long-rumored "client list" did not exist.


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Portrait of American financier Jeffrey Epstein and real estate developer Donald Trump as they pose together at the Mar-a-Lago estate, Palm Beach, Florida, 1997


Last week, Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence, joined the growing Republican faction calling for the release of the Epstein files amid the president's temperamental outbursts about the alleged evidence.


According to an itemized list from the Department of Justice, the evidence in their custody includes photos, cameras, computers, hard drives and more, including one CD labeled "girl pics nude book 4."


While Pence echoed others' concerns about protecting the names of Epstein's alleged victims, he added, “I think that anyone who participated or was associated with this despicable man ought to be held up to public scrutiny. I just think we ought to get the facts to the American people, and I've always believed in transparency.”


As for the president's claims that the demand for the evidence is being spun against him by the Democrats, Pence pointed out that legal investigation into Epstein's alleged crimes began in 2005, and has continued with both Republicans and Democrats in the White House.


"Jeffrey Epstein's prosecution began during the Bush administration, continued through the Obama years," he said. "I know of no reason why this administration, once the victims' names are protected, should not release all the files on Jeffrey Epstein."


effrey Epstein and real estate developer Donald Trump as they pose together at the Mar-a-Lago estate, Palm Beach, Florida, 1997

Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago in 1997.
Davidoff Studios/Getty
The cuts to the State Department's human trafficking efforts came as a surprise to many. The 19th's anonymous government source said that the issue had been a central focus of Trump's first administration, with the cause receiving increased funding and even interest from first daughter Ivanka Trump, who hosted a summit at the White House in January 2020.


“We’ve just seen a huge shift in this administration, and honestly, it’s sent shock waves through the community,” the employee said.


Varina Winder, who served as chief of staff in the Office of Global Women’s Issues at the State Department during the Biden administration, echoed that concern.


“If you can’t empower the office that is literally ending human slavery, what does that say about your larger ambitions about the value proposition of humans in this administration?” she said.


Meanwhile, Trump has continued to rage at those calling for the Epstein evidence, even going so far as to disown members of his MAGA faithful.


"My PAST supporters have bought into this 'bull----,' hook, line, and sinker,” the president recently wrote on social media. “Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats' work, don’t even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don’t want their support anymore!"
 
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