Newly released documents from the Jeffrey Epstein file dump show the late sex offender was messaging directly with a member of Congress while Michael Cohen was testifying before the House Oversight Committee in February 2019. The Washington Post’s reporting ties the texts to Delegate Stacey Plaskett of the U.S. Virgin Islands, a Democrat who was on the committee that day and later received Epstein-related campaign contributions that drew scrutiny.
The exchanges are jaw-dropping in their familiarity: Epstein complimented the lawmaker’s outfit, asked if she was “chewing,” and even texted tactical suggestions about who to press Cohen on — including a tip about Trump aide Rhona Graff and who the “henchmen” at the Trump Organization might be. Video of the hearing matched to time-stamped messages is how reporters were able to identify Plaskett as the correspondent, and the texts include Epstein congratulating her afterward with a brisk “Good work.”
Put bluntly, this is not the behavior of a concerned constituent offering casual feedback; it’s a convicted sex offender whispering strategy into the ear of a sitting Congresswoman during a high-profile hearing aimed at taking down a political opponent. Epstein had long been a figure of public disgrace by 2019, and yet these documents show he was still meddling in the Capitol — exactly the sort of access and influence the political class insists is a problem only when it helps conservatives.
Democrats spent years using the Epstein scandal as a cudgel against President Trump, demanding transparency and accountability while lurking in three-way relationships with the very man they pretended to detest. The hypocrisy is rank: if the left is going to weaponize alleged connections for political advantage, then every name in Epstein’s phone book and message logs must be treated the same — no exceptions, no selective outrage, and absolutely no cover-ups for partisan allies.
Plaskett’s office offered the familiar, weak defense that she receives messages from “staff, constituents and the public at large,” and that as a former prosecutor she was merely seeking information. That answer won’t satisfy anyone who believes in equal application of the law; receiving real-time coaching from a convicted trafficker while questions were being shaped on the House floor crosses an ethical line and deserves a full, independent inquiry.
Republicans and patriotic Americans should not let the media’s usual reflex to protect Democrats swallow this story whole. The House Oversight release of Epstein’s files should be the beginning, not the end, of transparency: subpoena the records, interview witnesses, and if this was influence-peddling or worse, prosecute it without fear or favor so victims and the public know justice applies universally.
This is a moment for principled outrage, not partisan ducking. The same people who howl about foreign interference, illicit influence, and pay-to-play politics must be held to the same standard; otherwise their moralizing is just theater for the benefit of their donors. America’s working families deserve a system that punishes corruption and protects victims, no matter which party the accused happens to favor.
