November 26, 2025 • 46 mins
A microphone at the Capitol, survivors at the front, and a rare bipartisan agreement to force sunlight on a scandal many believed would stay buried. We walk through the House push to advance the Epstein Transparency Act, unpack the tactics that made a discharge petition work, and spotlight the survivors whose persistence moved Congress after years of delay. The energy is raw, and the demand is simple: release the files without loopholes, carve-outs, or procedural tricks.
As the pressure built, something else cracked: the alliance between Donald Trump and Marjorie Taylor Greene. For years, Greene played the role of Trump’s unshakeable defender. But when the Epstein files returned to center stage, she called for full transparency, and the response was swift. We break down why that single stance triggered a freeze-out, how it reverberated across right-leaning media, and what it reveals about a movement that often prizes loyalty over law. The episode traces a familiar pattern—from Jeff Sessions to Bill Barr, from James Mattis to Mark Milley—showing how truth-telling or simple institutional duty repeatedly collides with personal allegiance.
This isn’t just political theater. It’s a test of whether institutions like the DOJ, CIA, and federal courts will follow through when Congress acts. We connect the dots between survivor testimony, congressional mechanics, and the broader stakes for accountability, rule of law, and trust in government. If the names are released, will elites finally face consequences? If not, what does that say about power in America?
Listen, share with someone who cares about accountability, and tell us where you stand on full disclosure. If this episode resonated, subscribe, leave a review, and help bring more listeners into the conversation.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (01:33):
Welcome back to the Darole McLean Show.
I'm your host, Darrell McLean.
Independent media that won'treinforce tribalism.
We have one planet, nobody isleaving.
So let us reason together.
If you have not been in the uhpaying attention, like I kind of
took off paying attention thisweek because I was getting ready
for a competition, then you misssome very uh pivotal things.
(01:57):
One of them was the fact that umuh the a lot of the victims from
the Epstein scandal, and uhSenator uh Congressman Rokana,
Congressman uh uh uh ThomasMassey, and Congresswoman
Marjorie Taylor Green, alongwith the victims, all uh stood
(02:19):
with the victims, the rightthing to do, to and said this.
I'm gonna go right to the pressconference and we'll meet on the
other side.
SPEAKER_06 (02:31):
Today uh is the first day of real reckoning for
the Epstein class.
We're here to stand withforgotten and abandoned
Americans against an Epsteinclass that had no regard for the
rules or the laws.
Look, this is one of the mosthorrific and disgusting
(02:55):
corruption scandals in ourcountry's history.
You had Jeffrey Epstein, wholiterally set up an island of
rape, a rape island.
And you had rich and powerfulmen, some of the richest people
in the world, who thought thatthey could hang out with
bankers, buy off politicians,and abuse and rape America's
(03:16):
girls with no consequence.
Because survivors spoke up,because of their courage, the
truth is finally going to comeout.
And when it comes out, thiscountry is really going to have
a moral reckoning.
How did we allow this to happen?
There should be no buildingsnamed after people in this
(03:39):
Epstein class.
There should be no scholarshipsnamed after them.
They shouldn't be enjoying theperks of being affiliated with
corporations or universities orwriting op-eds or being
lionized.
And many of the survivors willtell you some of these people
still are celebrated in oursociety.
That's disgusting.
(04:00):
There needs to beaccountability.
I want to recognize first andforemost the survivors.
They are the ones who made todaypossible.
Many of you had uh forgottenabout this issue, and frankly,
for decades we have not doneenough about this issue.
And it's only because of theiradvocacy, them coming here to
(04:21):
the Capitol.
They showed up here uh time andagain and on September 3rd that
the country started to payattention.
And I also want to thank thecourage of two of my colleagues
in particular.
Both of them have suffered, asyou know, extraordinary
political consequences uh forwhat they did.
One, my colleague, uhCongressman Thomas Massey.
(04:44):
This would not have beenpossible if he hadn't led the
discharge petition that got 218signatures uh and is going to
force a vote in the House ofRepresentatives.
And this would not havecertainly been possible if it
were not for the courage ofMarjorie Taylor Green.
She signed the petition, and uhI would keep texting uh Thomas.
(05:07):
Is she is she gonna drop off?
Is she gonna drop off?
Because there was so muchpressure against us, so much
attacks against her.
SPEAKER_01 (05:14):
Oh, trust me, we will be coming back to that big
time.
And I also am gonna address somesome what I what I think of uh
politically falsehoods, like umthe scheme little lawyer talk
that just happened here as well.
SPEAKER_06 (05:31):
But she uh stood with the survivors.
For Thomas or me, this has neverbeen political.
This is not about questions ofTrump or Biden.
This is a question of doing theright thing for survivors.
We're gonna get a vote today.
I expect an overwhelming vote inthe House of Representatives,
and I don't want the D.C.
Swamp playing any games.
(05:51):
They need to pass this in theSenate.
And they should not amend it.
President Trump has said hewould sign the Epstein
Transparency Act.
It's gonna get overwhelmingsupport in the House.
It should go straight to theSenate and it should be signed.
No amendments, no addingloopholes.
Justice is long overdue.
And I want to hand it over to mycolleague, Representative Thomas
(06:13):
Massey.
SPEAKER_01 (06:14):
So look, I'm just gonna say this because I'll have
a lot more to say on the otherside of the the uh break or
whatever, is this this waspretty obvious to anybody who
knows the system.
The reason why this Epsteinstuff, everybody knew about it
(06:37):
and they weren't doing anythingabout it is because Epstein was
connected to everyone, period.
He he hit Democrats,Republicans, Libertarians, he
hit congressmen, senators,college professors, deans,
(06:58):
treasury secretaries, everyone,intelligence officials,
everybody had some level ofhopeability.
And it does not have to be thethe you did something wrong
yourself in particular.
(07:20):
It is just simply that you sawsomething being done wrong and
you know that you did not doanything to stop it, and if you
did not do anything to stop it,you did nothing to report it.
And after uh Mr.
Epstein was uh convicted and tobe a known pedophile, so this is
(07:42):
not uh anything that's conincontrovertible at the time, or
y you know, or I'm sorry, it isnot anything that is
controverted, you know, gonnahave any controversy around it.
Look at the list of people thatare still talking to him and
look into what they said.
Uh people like uh Bill Gatesasking him for financial advice
(08:09):
and uh relationship advice.
Now, Bill Gates is one of therichest people on the planet,
one of the most intelligentpeople on the planet.
You think he can't find afinancial advice from a person
that's anybody else on theplanet that's not a pedophile?
Think Bill Gates can't find thatperson.
Relationship advice.
You think Bill Gates, one of therichest people on the planet,
(08:31):
can't find anybody to give himrelationship advice that is not
a convicted pedophile?
There, okay, there's one.
Now, keep going.
Larry Summers, former presidentof Harvard, former Treasury
Secretary under the Obamaadministration.
What does he have to talk toEpstein about?
Well, in those emails, it umsays it pretty clearly.
(08:54):
And um we're gonna we're gonnalet this play out.
This list did not come out isbecause very powerful people
were on it.
There were so many billionaireson this list.
So many powerful people thateverybody had a gentleman's
agreement and a female'sagreement, a gentlewoman's
(09:17):
agreement, or gentle ladies'agreement, that no, no, no, no,
no.
Uh this will never see the lightof day.
That is the actual truth.
Too many people were being hit,it hit everybody across party
lines, it hit everybody acrosseconomic lines, it hit every c
it it was it was all aboutpeople in elite society.
(09:39):
As we as I said on the previousepisode, big club, you're not in
it.
SPEAKER_08 (09:49):
I want to start by thanking the survivors.
I mean, they're giving everybodyhope in this country.
There are survivors of other sexcrimes in this country wondering
if they should come forward.
They're clouded with shame andconcerned that law enforcement
will do nothing.
And these survivors have steppedforth, taking that same risk,
(10:10):
worried that they will bedefamed themselves.
They have been defamed forstepping forward.
But we're gonna get justice forthem.
And that's gonna happen today inthe people's house.
The founders set up ourgovernment with three branches
and and two branches ofCongress.
And I don't think it's anycoincidence that this fight is
being started and it's being wonin the House of Representatives.
(10:32):
I have people, other survivorsof other sex crimes, who come to
me and say, Thank you.
You give me hope.
You give us hope.
There is hope here.
We fought the president, theattorney general, the FBI
director, the speaker of thehouse, and the vice president to
get this win.
(10:54):
But they never they're on ourside today, though.
So let's give them some creditas well.
Um they've they are finally onthe side of justice.
And as Roe said, don't muck itup in the Senate.
Don't get too cute.
We're all paying attention.
If you want to add someadditional protections for these
survivors, go for it.
(11:15):
But if you do anything thatprevents any disclosure, you are
not for the people and you arenot part of this effort.
Do not muck it up in the Senate.
So um, with that, I just want tosay I am hopeful too.
I didn't know that we wouldsucceed when Roe and I started
this effort.
Most discharge petitions nevermake it.
(11:36):
Uh, maybe only 4%.
So we had long odds, but we hadsome brave women on the
Republican side.
My colleague Marjorie TaylorGreen is one of them, who's here
with us today.
That you cannot even imagine theconsequences that they have
suffered.
My colleague Lauren Boebert andmy colleague Nancy Mays, they
(11:56):
stood so strong.
They put their names on adocument in here, and then they
were pressured in ways that youcannot even imagine.
And they stood strong.
And that's why we're here today.
And they didn't take usseriously over at the executive
branch or in the Senate becausethey always thought they could
flip one of these women.
They could convince them orcontrol them or intimidate them
(12:19):
into taking their names off ofthis petition, but they did not
succeed.
This is a victory for thosewomen and women all over the
country today, and I'm just gladto be a part of it.
With that, I want to introducemy colleague Marjorie Taylor
Green.
SPEAKER_00 (12:37):
Thank you, Thomas.
Thank you, Remote.
I woke up this morning and Iturned to my weather app to
check the temperature, and itwas 32 degrees.
And my first thought was hellhas frozen over.
I want to speak goodness andlove and hope into the women
(13:00):
standing behind me and all ofthe other survivors whose names
you don't even know, but standwith these women.
They are survivors and they arestrong and they are courageous
and they are daughters of God.
They are not victims.
These women have fought the mosthorrific fight that no woman
(13:25):
should have to fight, and theydid it by banding together and
never giving up.
And that's what we did byfighting so hard against the
most powerful people in theworld, even the president of the
United States, in order to makethis vote happen today.
I was called a traitor by a manthat I fought for five, no,
(13:50):
actually six years for.
And I gave him my loyalty forfree.
I won my first election withouthis endorsement, beating eight
men in a primary.
And I've never owed himanything, but I fought for him
for the policies and for Americafirst.
And he called me a traitor forstanding with these women and
(14:12):
refusing to take my name off thedischarge petition.
Let me tell you what a traitoris.
A traitor is an American thatserves foreign countries and
themselves.
A patriot is an American thatserves the United States of
America and Americans like thewomen standing behind me.
(14:36):
And I want to tell you that thisonly became possible today
because the American people whomwe serve as representatives here
in Congress demanded that thisvote happen and they put more
pressure on every single electedpolitician in this city than has
(14:56):
ever been put on them.
And today you are going to seeprobably a unanimous vote in the
House to release the Epsteinfiles, but the fight, the real
fight, will happen after that.
(17:05):
While I want to see every singlename released so that these
women don't have to live in fearand intimidation, which is
something I've had a small tasteof in just the past few days.
Just a small taste.
They've been living it foryears.
But the real test will be willthe Department of Justice
(17:25):
release the files?
Or will it all remain tied up ininvestigations?
Will the CIA release the files?
Will a federal judge, will ajudge in New York, sorry, a
judge in New York release theinformation?
That's information that needs tocome out.
And will the list of names thatthese women privately hold and
(17:47):
they hold it because of theirfear in their heart of what
(19:47):
would happen to them if theyrelease it on their own?
Will that list of names comeout?
That's the real test.
So I want to thank Thomas Masseyand Rokana for your bravery and
doing something, doing somethingthat is much needed in America,
crossing the political aislethat has become bigger than the
(20:08):
Grand Canyon in America.
But these men cross that aisle.
On behalf of these women.
And that is more of what isneeded today in America than
ever in our history.
So thank you so much.
Um, who's next?
Ro, I'll let you introduce.
Thank you.
(20:28):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_07 (20:30):
I'm sorry that she resigned.
I think that she's a thoughtfulperson.
SPEAKER_09 (20:34):
For sure, she could have stayed in this district and
been re-elected many, many, manytimes over.
I also think she was focused onthings that she thought would
get her ahead.
And when that suddenly stopped,that was the end of that
conversation.
SPEAKER_07 (20:50):
There are plenty of opinions about Marjorie Taylor
Green, but there is stilldisbelief hanging in the air
here in her hometown of Rome,Georgia, of course, after her
bombshell decision late lastweek that she is not going to
serve out her congressionalterm.
I mean, people here were justgetting used to the idea that
her feud with President Trumpwas ongoing.
That was shocking enough.
(21:10):
But when she said that she wouldnot serve out her term, it
really sent people intoquestioning why.
I understand what she's sayingabout the the level of vitriol
that's occurred in Washington.
SPEAKER_09 (21:22):
I I disagreed with a lot of the stuff she did early
on in Congress.
I applaud her for breaking awayfrom the fact because that's a
really hard thing to do inpolitics.
Shows bravery on her part, butat the same time, there's a
little bit of self-preservationgoing on, too, I think.
You know, if you see the if yousee that the house is falling
down.
Right.
SPEAKER_04 (21:41):
That had a profound impact on her.
She's had to take a lot of umthreats that have come come
through.
I mean, her house has beenswatted many times, and and
she's very protective of herfamily.
SPEAKER_07 (21:56):
Marjorie Taylor Greene has about a month and a
couple weeks left of serving inCongress.
A rising star, an outspokencritic of so many, she's leaving
now her party in a bit of alurch because that narrow
Republican majority is justgetting a bit narrower.
SPEAKER_00 (22:14):
I'm going back to the people that I love to the to
live my life to the fullest as Ialways have, and I look forward
to a new path ahead.
I'll be resigning from officewith my last day being January
5th, 2026.
My voting record has beensolidly with my party and the
president.
(22:34):
Loyalty should be a two-waystreet, and we should be able to
vote our conscience andrepresent our district's
interests because our job titleis literally representative.
America first should meanAmerica first and only Americans
first, with no other foreigncountry ever being attached to
(22:54):
America first in our halls ofgovernment.
Standing up for American womenwho were raped at 14 years old,
trafficked and used by rich,powerful men, should not result
in me being called a traitor andthreatened by the president of
the United States whom I foughtfor.
SPEAKER_05 (23:23):
It should have happened a long time ago.
The Ukraine war with Russiashould have never happened.
If I were president, it neverwould have happened.
We're trying to get it ended.
One way or the other, we have toget it ended.
Are you willing to forgiveCongresswoman Tilegrine?
Forgive her what?
No, we just I just disagreedwith her philosophy.
(23:46):
Uh she started backing perhapsthe worst Republican congressman
in our history.
This you know, stupid personnamed Massie.
And uh I said, go your own way.
And once I left her, sheresigned because she would have
she would never have survivedthe primary.
But I think she's a nice person.
SPEAKER_04 (24:09):
Do you still plan to deploy the National Guard to New
York City?
SPEAKER_05 (24:14):
If they need it.
Right now, other places need itmore, but if they need it, we
had a very good meetingyesterday.
We talked about that.
Uh, but if they need it, I woulddo it.
SPEAKER_01 (24:23):
All right, guys.
So look.
So let me get into um some ofsome of this analysis here.
And there are moments inpolitics when the truth doesn't
walk through the front door, itbreaks through like a bugler.
And when the Epstein fileshappen to have resurfaced,
(24:45):
that's exactly what happened.
The political establishment inthe United States didn't just
flinch it, it seized up.
Old alliances stiffened,carefully crafted narratives
cracked, and suddenly people whoonce screamed in unison found
themselves whispering in thecorners of the room.
But no split has been morerevealing or more spectacular
(25:08):
than the fracture betweenPresident Donald Trump and
Marjorie Taylor Green.
For years, Marjorie TaylorGreene was Trump's most
relentless defender.
She was a battering ram he couldaim at any institution.
If there was any any sign of acontroversy, she was there.
If there was a scandal, sheexplained it and then explained
(25:30):
it away.
If Trump sneezed wrong, she'dblame it on the deep state or c
contaminating the air and thedemocratic uh hoax.
And Trump loved it.
He loved her fire, herwillingness to alienate
colleagues, voters, journalists,anyone, as long as she was
protecting him.
She was loud, loyal, andunbothered by collateral damage.
(25:54):
Trump's perfect foot soldier.
But that loyalty actually had alimit, and now we're reaching
it.
It collided with the scandal sotoxic it defies spin.
And it's a it's a scandal thatthe people um who were normally
coded as on the right somewhatstoked themselves, and that was
(26:16):
the Epstein files.
The files that broke thealliance.
These documents didn't justrevive a case that that that um
everybody had interested in.
They revived a nightmare, adecades-long web of power,
wealth, manipulation, abuse, andsilence, and a world where
(26:37):
celebrities, politicians,financiers, and world leaders
mingled with a traffical whoseevil was so grotesque it stains
everyone who stood close to him.
So when the files came back intothe public conversation, Trump
expected what he alwaysexpected.
Total defense, no hesitation, nodistance, absolute allegiance.
(27:02):
But Marjorie Taylor Greenehesitated, not because she
suddenly had grown someconscience, but because she
realized this was the type ofscandal that could end careers
and not just bruise them.
Trump wanted her to say, it'sall lies, it's all political,
they're coming after me becausehe's the leader of the movement.
(27:23):
But instead, she called fortransparency.
And to Donald Trump, that wordtransparency is an accusation.
The man who lives off secrecy,branding, and image control,
transparency sounds like athreat.
So when Marjorie Taylor Greenepublicly stated no one should be
(27:44):
protected in Epstein Filesrelease, the message to Trump
was unmistakable.
Your name is not immune anymore.
And from that moment forward,the trust shattered and the
freeze-out began.
Trump withdrew publicly, uhstrategically, and silently.
(28:06):
He stopped acknowledgingMarjorie Teller Green as a key
ally.
He stopped amplifying herstatements, he distanced himself
in that quiet, pushing waypoliticians reserve for the
people they believe to havebecome liabilities.
Marjorie Teller Greene foughtback the only way she knows how,
with volume.
But this time it didn't land inthe audience that she normally
(28:27):
thought of.
It landed with the liberals, itlanded with the libertarians, it
landed with the independents,who are often critical of Donald
Trump, and it landed with peoplewho are on the right, who want
this Epstein stuff out.
And the president did not likeit.
(28:47):
Because when Marjorie TaylorGreene fought back this time
with volume, and it landed, itlanded, and her usual theatrice
couldn't mask the reality thatshe had miscalculated and she
had forgotten the number onerule in the Trump role.
Loyalty cannot be conditional.
(29:08):
It must be absolute.
Even when it drags you into thefire, especially when it does
that.
And the scandal is unlike anyother.
(29:47):
Trump built his brand onpretending to fight that elite
class.
Marjorie Telegreen built herband her brand on shouting about
it as well.
But the irony now is painful.
The moment the light turnedtoward their side of the room,
the alliance disintegrated.
Because the truth, when it'sreal, it actually can't be that
(30:09):
partisan.
It demands integrity, it demandsmore courage.
And neither Trump nor MarjorieTaylor Green built their
political identities on eitherof those things.
And the real reason the falloutmatters is because we have to be
honest.
Political fallouts happen everysingle week because
personalities clash, egoscollide, leaders change
(30:32):
favorites, uh like uh childrenpicking teams for kickball.
But this one, this one revealssomething deeper.
The entire MAGA movement, therallies, the slogans, the us
versus them worldview was builton the illusion of unity.
But the unity built on fear andperformance collapses the moment
(30:53):
accountability actually has toenter the room.
Trump didn't actually abandonMarjorie Taylor Green because of
policy disagreement.
He abandoned her because sheacknowledged the existence of a
truth that he wanted buried.
Marjorie Taylor Greene didn'tdistance herself because she
wanted justice.
She distanced herself becauseshe feared the blowback.
(31:14):
And in that mutual retreat, thewhole movement revealed its
weakest point.
When the truth knocks, theirloyalties fracture.
When the light shines, alliancesfade.
When accountability rises,courage vanishes.
And this is what this means forus going forward.
This fallout is actually just apreview of what is going to
(31:37):
come.
If the Epstein's file stuffcontinues to generate this much
heat, and the headlines you'regoing to see more split, not
just between Trump and MarjorieChiller Green, but across the
entire political ecosystem.
Every politician who stoodshoulder to shoulder with Trump
will be forced to choose, defendhim at all costs or defend
(31:58):
themselves.
Most will choose the latter, andTrump will see every one of them
as traitors.
This isn't a movement anymore.
It's a collapsing star, bright,burning, consuming everything
around it as it falls inward.
The Epstein files didn't ignitethis collapse.
It only revealed the fault linesthat were already there.
They exposed the truth beyondthe spectacle, a movement held
(32:21):
together by um held by notconviction, but mutual fear, not
by shared ideas, but sharedenemies, not by moral clarity,
but a desire to be a part ofsomething powerful, even if that
power came from the darkestcorners of American politics.
Margit Chiller Green and DonaldTrump were never bounded by
principle.
They were bounded by theatrics,attention, ambition, and
(32:44):
attacking common enemies.
So when the darkest scandal oftheir age resurfaced, when
Epstein's vows forced everyoneto stop yelling long enough to
confront actual evidence, thepartnership cracked like glass
and exposed which it took itexposed the rift.
And that crack the crack can'theal because the truth has a way
(33:07):
of splitting apart anything thatwasn't built to withstand it.
This is Darrell McClain, and I'mgonna keep calling this stuff
exactly like it is, because whenthe light is on and the volume
is turned all the way up, itbecomes very easy, very easy to
see who is trying to hide in thedark.
(33:29):
Be right back with more of theDarrell McClain show.
Alright, guys, welcome back tothe Daryl McLean show.
I'm about to wrap this up bydoing the thing that I'd like to
do the most.
Let's talk about the historyhere and the loyalty trap that
always comes with the rise andthe ruin of a long, long list of
people who have stood besideDonald Trump because there's a
(33:50):
pattern in this type of politicsthat is so sharp, it's so
consistent, so brutallypredictable, that historians are
gonna study this era fordecades.
And the pattern is this anyonewho gets close to Donald Trump
eventually becomes an enemy ofDonald Trump.
Not because they changed, butbecause they stood up for what
(34:13):
they had stood up always,because they stopped
surrendering every inch of theiridentity.
And to understand the falloutbetween Marjorie Taylor Green
and uh Donald Trump, you can'tjust look at this moment.
You have to look at the lineage,the hundreds of discarded,
disillusioned, demolishedloyalists who came before her.
(34:35):
And her fall isn't surprising,it's mathematical, it's
inedible, it's a conclusion of asystem built around one rule and
one rule alone.
Loyalty is owed to Donald Trumpand Donald Trump alone.
But loyalty is never returned.
So let's take a tour throughCongress, the Cabinet, the
(34:56):
generals, the intelligenceagencies to see what I'm saying
here.
Marjorie Taylor Greene is notthe first casualty.
She's just the newest.
So let's go to a a a female thatwe all know here by the name of
Liz Cheney.
And the warning that I thinkMarjorie Taylor Green ignored
because before Trump, Liz Cheneywasn't a Fringe figure.
(35:20):
She wasn't controversial.
She wasn't a lightning rod.
She was the daughter of a vicepresident, the heir of a
towering conservative dynasty,architect of neoconservative
foreign policy, defender of theIraq war, backbone of the old
Republican establishment, arising star with deep national
security credentials, uhcredentials in any other
(35:41):
Republican era, she would havebeen leadership speaker
material.
And then came Donald Trump.
And even though, if you go lookat the record, she voted for
Donald Trump 93% of the time.
It didn't matter.
The moment she refused todisagree with him and not say
(36:03):
what he believed, and shebelieved that the 2020 election
was legitimate and that he waslying, she was excommunicated,
cast out, destroyed politically,and the message is clear.
Trump doesn't want allies, hewants disciples.
So Mar Marjorie Teller Green uhshe should she should have known
(36:26):
that it doesn't matter you aregonna go from being one day a
pit bull to a pariah.
So she steps in to this legacy.
The the polar opposite of uh LizCheney.
Before Trump, Marjorie TellaGreene wasn't even a known
political figure.
She was a fringe influencer, aconspiracy evangelist, a
political outsider, armed with acamera phone, and a thirst for
(36:50):
provocation.
I remember her sitting outsideof Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's uh
office saying she needs to comeout and debate her, take off her
diaper, yada yada yada.
She didn't inherit power.
She clawed her way into it byembracing Trumpism louder,
harder, and wilder than anyoneelse in the room.
She wasn't just loyal, she wasfantastically loyal.
(37:12):
She defended him through everyscandal.
She burned bridges on hisbehalf, she made herself a
national villain if it meantprotecting him.
But the Epstein files changedsomething.
It changed everything.
And the moment she said, Letevery name be released, no
expectations, Trump saw that asa threat.
Because in Trump's world, uhlook, it doesn't run on
(37:37):
transparency.
It runs on deflection.
It runs on whataboutisms, itruns on oh but the Democrats.
And Marjorie Taylor Greenehesitated.
She and demanded what she hadalready demanded.
And that hesitation alone gother tossed into the same
wilderness as Liz Cheney,different style.
Same in.
(37:58):
Let's go back even further toJeff Sessions and the true
father of Trumpism, with alongwith Newt Gingrich and Chris
Grisby.
Because before Trump, Sessionswas not a nobody.
He was a four-term U.S.
senator, one of the mostconservative voices in the
chamber, the architect of themodern immigration restriction
(38:20):
movement, and a respected legalfigure in Republican circles.
He was literally the one wholegitimized Trump, but no one
else would pay any attention tohim is in Washington, and nobody
in Washington would touch him.
Trump, I would argue, owes hispresidency, the first term
especially to Jeff Sessions morethan almost anyone else.
(38:41):
And yet, when Sessions followedthe law, the actual written law,
and recused himself from theRussia investigation, Trump
destroyed him publicly, mockedhim, humiliated him, crushed his
Senate comeback.
Because in Trump world, obeyingthe law becomes disloyalty.
(39:02):
And it does not matter how longyou spent, uh how many decades
of your life you gave to theparty, it's a that that that
means nothing to this iteratedthis uh version of Trump
forwards.
And now let's enter RexTillerson, the one of the most
brilliant CEOs who walked intowhat he saw as a circus.
(39:27):
Now, before Trump, Tillerson wasa titan.
He was a CEO of XI Mobil, anegotiator with governments
around the world, known for hisdiscipline, his order, his
long-term down-the-roadplanning.
He had no political ambitionswhatsoever.
He was the type of man who wouldnormally run an administration,
not serving one.
(39:48):
But Trump hired him anyway.
And then tore him apart, but herefused to indulge impulsive
decisions.
Tillerson famously called Trumpa moron.
And for that, uh, when Trumpfound out, Trump fired him via a
tweet.
Now that wasn't a policydisagreement, it was resentment
(40:09):
because competence and actualsuccess threatens chaos.
Now enter John Bolton, the Hawkwe all remember, who expected a
president.
Now, before Donald Trump, JohnBolton was a foreign policy
legend on the right, formerUnited States ambassador, United
Nations ambassador, thearchitect of the Bush-era
(40:32):
national security strategy,Harlein Hawk with decades of
experience, feared and respectedin Washington.
He entered the Trump White Housethinking he was serving a
conservative administration.
What he found out wasimprovisation, inconsistency,
and impulses guided by personalaffinities instead of
strategies.
(40:52):
And so Trump fired him, and thenin classic Trump fashion,
publicly mocked him ever sincethen on things like his
appearance.
Now entered Bill Barr, loyal tothe point of humiliation.
Before Trump, Barr was theRepublican legal establishment,
attorney general under GeorgeH.W.
Bush, legal scholar, deep intouh institutional respect, long
(41:16):
conservative track record.
He defended Trump at every turn.
He bent the law for him.
He spun reports publicly tosoften political fallout.
But when Trump demanded thatBarr declare the 2020 election
fraudulent without evidence,Barr refused.
An insanity that he should heshould he should have uh not
(41:37):
done because he became instantlyknown as disloyal.
Barr is now one of Trump's mostfrequent targets of resentment,
precisely because he refused tolie.
Now we have to go to Mike Pence,the most loyal man in America,
because before Trump, Pence wasa model conservative, former
(42:00):
congressman, former governor ofIndiana, evangelical favorite,
uh former conservative talk showhost, disciplined, predictable,
dutiful, Trump's base adoredMike Pence.
And Pitts served Trump withabsolute loyalty to scandals
through impeachment, throughcrisis, through humiliation.
(42:22):
But Trump demanded Pence breakthe Constitution on January 6th,
and Pitts refused, simply doingwhat the founders wrote in the
law, he believed Trump unleasheda mob.
He had no mercy for Mike Pence,he had no gratitude for Mike
Pence, he had no loyalty forMike Pence.
(42:42):
No loyalty in return.
Now let's go to the military,and we have to talk about some
of these military men, thegenerals, who stared right into
this chaos.
And you and this I'm onlywrapping this up so you can see
how deep this pattern goes.
Let's enter Mad Dog Mattis,James Mattis.
Now, before Trump, he was afour-star general.
(43:03):
He led Marines in Iraq.
He was the what we called awarrior scholar.
He was one of the most respectedmilitary minds of his
generations.
Trump adored him at first, andthen he turned on him when
Mattis defended allies, whenMattis defended stability, and
when Mattis defended democraticnorms around the world.
(43:24):
Mattis resigned and later wrotethat Trump was a danger to the
Constitution.
Trump's response, personalinsults, schoolyard mockery.
Then comes H.R.
McMaster.
Now, before Trump, McMaster is athree-star general,
counter-insurgency genius, polarprize-winning military
strategist, decorated combatveteran.
(43:44):
He tried to bring structure tochaos.
Trump resented it.
McMaster was pushed out andlater labeled soft, disloyal,
and weak.
Then we have John Kelly.
Now, before Trump, John Kelly isa four-star military general,
head of the U.S.
Southern Command, formerSecretary of the Homeland
Security, and man with deepinstitutional respect.
He served as the chief of staff,trying desperately to impose
(44:07):
discipline.
Trump retaliated by insultinghim, his intelligence, and even
his deceased son.
That moment alone will stainAmerican political history
forever.
Now enter Mark Milley.
Before Trump, he is a decoratedgeneral, chair of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, trusted bypresidents of both parties.
(44:27):
When Milley opposed illegalorders or reckless military
impostus, Trump turned againsthim, even suggesting that Milley
deserved execution.
Think about that.
A former U.S.
president, who is now thecurrent U.S.
president, was at the time andmaybe still now implying a
general is a traitor for tellingthe truth.
(44:49):
Then we have Alexander Venmanbefore Trump, Lieutenant
Colonel, Purple Heart recipient,National Security Council expert
on Ukraine, his crime, hetestified and told the truth.
Trump's response was a smear tosmear him, attempt to ruin his
career, and pressure themilitary to discipline him for
what?
Honesty.
(45:10):
And what does all of this tellus?
From Liz Cheney to MarjorieKelly Green, to Jeff Sessions,
to John Kerry, to Bill Barr, toJames Mattis, the story is the
same.
Trump demands loyalty but neverwill give it.
Trump consumes allies but neverprotects them.
(45:30):
Trump pushes his agenda and hepunishes anybody who says
anything against it.
And he only rewards obedienceuntil your obedience becomes
useless.
That is not ideology.
That is not conservatism.
That is not leadership.
This is a political gravitywhere everyone orbits around and
(45:57):
it decays the moment you stopcircling the center.
And now Marjorie Taylor Green isdiscovering the same reality
that Liz Cheney discovered, thatJeff Sessions discovered, that
Mike Pence discovered, and thefour star generals discovered.
No matter who you are, no matterwhat you sacrifice, no matter
how hard you defend him, Trumpwill eventually demand something
(46:19):
that you cannot give.
And when you fail that test, hewill turn on you as if you have
never even existed.
Now my final word for this showis this.
(47:03):
Thank you.
See you on the next episode.
More content to come.
We got a lot to get to.
It's a very, very pressing week.
Shout out of a canon here.
Right back from the cruise.
And we got a lot of stuffcoming.
See you on the next episode.
Welcome back to the Darole McLean Show.
I'm your host, Darrell McLean.
Independent media that won'treinforce tribalism.
We have one planet, nobody isleaving.
So let us reason together.
If you have not been in the uhpaying attention, like I kind of
took off paying attention thisweek because I was getting ready
for a competition, then you misssome very uh pivotal things.
(01:57):
One of them was the fact that umuh the a lot of the victims from
the Epstein scandal, and uhSenator uh Congressman Rokana,
Congressman uh uh uh ThomasMassey, and Congresswoman
Marjorie Taylor Green, alongwith the victims, all uh stood
(02:19):
with the victims, the rightthing to do, to and said this.
I'm gonna go right to the pressconference and we'll meet on the
other side.
SPEAKER_06 (02:31):
Today uh is the first day of real reckoning for
the Epstein class.
We're here to stand withforgotten and abandoned
Americans against an Epsteinclass that had no regard for the
rules or the laws.
Look, this is one of the mosthorrific and disgusting
(02:55):
corruption scandals in ourcountry's history.
You had Jeffrey Epstein, wholiterally set up an island of
rape, a rape island.
And you had rich and powerfulmen, some of the richest people
in the world, who thought thatthey could hang out with
bankers, buy off politicians,and abuse and rape America's
(03:16):
girls with no consequence.
Because survivors spoke up,because of their courage, the
truth is finally going to comeout.
And when it comes out, thiscountry is really going to have
a moral reckoning.
How did we allow this to happen?
There should be no buildingsnamed after people in this
(03:39):
Epstein class.
There should be no scholarshipsnamed after them.
They shouldn't be enjoying theperks of being affiliated with
corporations or universities orwriting op-eds or being
lionized.
And many of the survivors willtell you some of these people
still are celebrated in oursociety.
That's disgusting.
(04:00):
There needs to beaccountability.
I want to recognize first andforemost the survivors.
They are the ones who made todaypossible.
Many of you had uh forgottenabout this issue, and frankly,
for decades we have not doneenough about this issue.
And it's only because of theiradvocacy, them coming here to
(04:21):
the Capitol.
They showed up here uh time andagain and on September 3rd that
the country started to payattention.
And I also want to thank thecourage of two of my colleagues
in particular.
Both of them have suffered, asyou know, extraordinary
political consequences uh forwhat they did.
One, my colleague, uhCongressman Thomas Massey.
(04:44):
This would not have beenpossible if he hadn't led the
discharge petition that got 218signatures uh and is going to
force a vote in the House ofRepresentatives.
And this would not havecertainly been possible if it
were not for the courage ofMarjorie Taylor Green.
She signed the petition, and uhI would keep texting uh Thomas.
(05:07):
Is she is she gonna drop off?
Is she gonna drop off?
Because there was so muchpressure against us, so much
attacks against her.
SPEAKER_01 (05:14):
Oh, trust me, we will be coming back to that big
time.
And I also am gonna address somesome what I what I think of uh
politically falsehoods, like umthe scheme little lawyer talk
that just happened here as well.
SPEAKER_06 (05:31):
But she uh stood with the survivors.
For Thomas or me, this has neverbeen political.
This is not about questions ofTrump or Biden.
This is a question of doing theright thing for survivors.
We're gonna get a vote today.
I expect an overwhelming vote inthe House of Representatives,
and I don't want the D.C.
Swamp playing any games.
(05:51):
They need to pass this in theSenate.
And they should not amend it.
President Trump has said hewould sign the Epstein
Transparency Act.
It's gonna get overwhelmingsupport in the House.
It should go straight to theSenate and it should be signed.
No amendments, no addingloopholes.
Justice is long overdue.
And I want to hand it over to mycolleague, Representative Thomas
(06:13):
Massey.
SPEAKER_01 (06:14):
So look, I'm just gonna say this because I'll have
a lot more to say on the otherside of the the uh break or
whatever, is this this waspretty obvious to anybody who
knows the system.
The reason why this Epsteinstuff, everybody knew about it
(06:37):
and they weren't doing anythingabout it is because Epstein was
connected to everyone, period.
He he hit Democrats,Republicans, Libertarians, he
hit congressmen, senators,college professors, deans,
(06:58):
treasury secretaries, everyone,intelligence officials,
everybody had some level ofhopeability.
And it does not have to be thethe you did something wrong
yourself in particular.
(07:20):
It is just simply that you sawsomething being done wrong and
you know that you did not doanything to stop it, and if you
did not do anything to stop it,you did nothing to report it.
And after uh Mr.
Epstein was uh convicted and tobe a known pedophile, so this is
(07:42):
not uh anything that's conincontrovertible at the time, or
y you know, or I'm sorry, it isnot anything that is
controverted, you know, gonnahave any controversy around it.
Look at the list of people thatare still talking to him and
look into what they said.
Uh people like uh Bill Gatesasking him for financial advice
(08:09):
and uh relationship advice.
Now, Bill Gates is one of therichest people on the planet,
one of the most intelligentpeople on the planet.
You think he can't find afinancial advice from a person
that's anybody else on theplanet that's not a pedophile?
Think Bill Gates can't find thatperson.
Relationship advice.
You think Bill Gates, one of therichest people on the planet,
(08:31):
can't find anybody to give himrelationship advice that is not
a convicted pedophile?
There, okay, there's one.
Now, keep going.
Larry Summers, former presidentof Harvard, former Treasury
Secretary under the Obamaadministration.
What does he have to talk toEpstein about?
Well, in those emails, it umsays it pretty clearly.
(08:54):
And um we're gonna we're gonnalet this play out.
This list did not come out isbecause very powerful people
were on it.
There were so many billionaireson this list.
So many powerful people thateverybody had a gentleman's
agreement and a female'sagreement, a gentlewoman's
(09:17):
agreement, or gentle ladies'agreement, that no, no, no, no,
no.
Uh this will never see the lightof day.
That is the actual truth.
Too many people were being hit,it hit everybody across party
lines, it hit everybody acrosseconomic lines, it hit every c
it it was it was all aboutpeople in elite society.
(09:39):
As we as I said on the previousepisode, big club, you're not in
it.
SPEAKER_08 (09:49):
I want to start by thanking the survivors.
I mean, they're giving everybodyhope in this country.
There are survivors of other sexcrimes in this country wondering
if they should come forward.
They're clouded with shame andconcerned that law enforcement
will do nothing.
And these survivors have steppedforth, taking that same risk,
(10:10):
worried that they will bedefamed themselves.
They have been defamed forstepping forward.
But we're gonna get justice forthem.
And that's gonna happen today inthe people's house.
The founders set up ourgovernment with three branches
and and two branches ofCongress.
And I don't think it's anycoincidence that this fight is
being started and it's being wonin the House of Representatives.
(10:32):
I have people, other survivorsof other sex crimes, who come to
me and say, Thank you.
You give me hope.
You give us hope.
There is hope here.
We fought the president, theattorney general, the FBI
director, the speaker of thehouse, and the vice president to
get this win.
(10:54):
But they never they're on ourside today, though.
So let's give them some creditas well.
Um they've they are finally onthe side of justice.
And as Roe said, don't muck itup in the Senate.
Don't get too cute.
We're all paying attention.
If you want to add someadditional protections for these
survivors, go for it.
(11:15):
But if you do anything thatprevents any disclosure, you are
not for the people and you arenot part of this effort.
Do not muck it up in the Senate.
So um, with that, I just want tosay I am hopeful too.
I didn't know that we wouldsucceed when Roe and I started
this effort.
Most discharge petitions nevermake it.
(11:36):
Uh, maybe only 4%.
So we had long odds, but we hadsome brave women on the
Republican side.
My colleague Marjorie TaylorGreen is one of them, who's here
with us today.
That you cannot even imagine theconsequences that they have
suffered.
My colleague Lauren Boebert andmy colleague Nancy Mays, they
(11:56):
stood so strong.
They put their names on adocument in here, and then they
were pressured in ways that youcannot even imagine.
And they stood strong.
And that's why we're here today.
And they didn't take usseriously over at the executive
branch or in the Senate becausethey always thought they could
flip one of these women.
They could convince them orcontrol them or intimidate them
(12:19):
into taking their names off ofthis petition, but they did not
succeed.
This is a victory for thosewomen and women all over the
country today, and I'm just gladto be a part of it.
With that, I want to introducemy colleague Marjorie Taylor
Green.
SPEAKER_00 (12:37):
Thank you, Thomas.
Thank you, Remote.
I woke up this morning and Iturned to my weather app to
check the temperature, and itwas 32 degrees.
And my first thought was hellhas frozen over.
I want to speak goodness andlove and hope into the women
(13:00):
standing behind me and all ofthe other survivors whose names
you don't even know, but standwith these women.
They are survivors and they arestrong and they are courageous
and they are daughters of God.
They are not victims.
These women have fought the mosthorrific fight that no woman
(13:25):
should have to fight, and theydid it by banding together and
never giving up.
And that's what we did byfighting so hard against the
most powerful people in theworld, even the president of the
United States, in order to makethis vote happen today.
I was called a traitor by a manthat I fought for five, no,
(13:50):
actually six years for.
And I gave him my loyalty forfree.
I won my first election withouthis endorsement, beating eight
men in a primary.
And I've never owed himanything, but I fought for him
for the policies and for Americafirst.
And he called me a traitor forstanding with these women and
(14:12):
refusing to take my name off thedischarge petition.
Let me tell you what a traitoris.
A traitor is an American thatserves foreign countries and
themselves.
A patriot is an American thatserves the United States of
America and Americans like thewomen standing behind me.
(14:36):
And I want to tell you that thisonly became possible today
because the American people whomwe serve as representatives here
in Congress demanded that thisvote happen and they put more
pressure on every single electedpolitician in this city than has
(14:56):
ever been put on them.
And today you are going to seeprobably a unanimous vote in the
House to release the Epsteinfiles, but the fight, the real
fight, will happen after that.
(17:05):
While I want to see every singlename released so that these
women don't have to live in fearand intimidation, which is
something I've had a small tasteof in just the past few days.
Just a small taste.
They've been living it foryears.
But the real test will be willthe Department of Justice
(17:25):
release the files?
Or will it all remain tied up ininvestigations?
Will the CIA release the files?
Will a federal judge, will ajudge in New York, sorry, a
judge in New York release theinformation?
That's information that needs tocome out.
And will the list of names thatthese women privately hold and
(17:47):
they hold it because of theirfear in their heart of what
(19:47):
would happen to them if theyrelease it on their own?
Will that list of names comeout?
That's the real test.
So I want to thank Thomas Masseyand Rokana for your bravery and
doing something, doing somethingthat is much needed in America,
crossing the political aislethat has become bigger than the
(20:08):
Grand Canyon in America.
But these men cross that aisle.
On behalf of these women.
And that is more of what isneeded today in America than
ever in our history.
So thank you so much.
Um, who's next?
Ro, I'll let you introduce.
Thank you.
(20:28):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_07 (20:30):
I'm sorry that she resigned.
I think that she's a thoughtfulperson.
SPEAKER_09 (20:34):
For sure, she could have stayed in this district and
been re-elected many, many, manytimes over.
I also think she was focused onthings that she thought would
get her ahead.
And when that suddenly stopped,that was the end of that
conversation.
SPEAKER_07 (20:50):
There are plenty of opinions about Marjorie Taylor
Green, but there is stilldisbelief hanging in the air
here in her hometown of Rome,Georgia, of course, after her
bombshell decision late lastweek that she is not going to
serve out her congressionalterm.
I mean, people here were justgetting used to the idea that
her feud with President Trumpwas ongoing.
That was shocking enough.
(21:10):
But when she said that she wouldnot serve out her term, it
really sent people intoquestioning why.
I understand what she's sayingabout the the level of vitriol
that's occurred in Washington.
SPEAKER_09 (21:22):
I I disagreed with a lot of the stuff she did early
on in Congress.
I applaud her for breaking awayfrom the fact because that's a
really hard thing to do inpolitics.
Shows bravery on her part, butat the same time, there's a
little bit of self-preservationgoing on, too, I think.
You know, if you see the if yousee that the house is falling
down.
Right.
SPEAKER_04 (21:41):
That had a profound impact on her.
She's had to take a lot of umthreats that have come come
through.
I mean, her house has beenswatted many times, and and
she's very protective of herfamily.
SPEAKER_07 (21:56):
Marjorie Taylor Greene has about a month and a
couple weeks left of serving inCongress.
A rising star, an outspokencritic of so many, she's leaving
now her party in a bit of alurch because that narrow
Republican majority is justgetting a bit narrower.
SPEAKER_00 (22:14):
I'm going back to the people that I love to the to
live my life to the fullest as Ialways have, and I look forward
to a new path ahead.
I'll be resigning from officewith my last day being January
5th, 2026.
My voting record has beensolidly with my party and the
president.
(22:34):
Loyalty should be a two-waystreet, and we should be able to
vote our conscience andrepresent our district's
interests because our job titleis literally representative.
America first should meanAmerica first and only Americans
first, with no other foreigncountry ever being attached to
(22:54):
America first in our halls ofgovernment.
Standing up for American womenwho were raped at 14 years old,
trafficked and used by rich,powerful men, should not result
in me being called a traitor andthreatened by the president of
the United States whom I foughtfor.
SPEAKER_05 (23:23):
It should have happened a long time ago.
The Ukraine war with Russiashould have never happened.
If I were president, it neverwould have happened.
We're trying to get it ended.
One way or the other, we have toget it ended.
Are you willing to forgiveCongresswoman Tilegrine?
Forgive her what?
No, we just I just disagreedwith her philosophy.
(23:46):
Uh she started backing perhapsthe worst Republican congressman
in our history.
This you know, stupid personnamed Massie.
And uh I said, go your own way.
And once I left her, sheresigned because she would have
she would never have survivedthe primary.
But I think she's a nice person.
SPEAKER_04 (24:09):
Do you still plan to deploy the National Guard to New
York City?
SPEAKER_05 (24:14):
If they need it.
Right now, other places need itmore, but if they need it, we
had a very good meetingyesterday.
We talked about that.
Uh, but if they need it, I woulddo it.
SPEAKER_01 (24:23):
All right, guys.
So look.
So let me get into um some ofsome of this analysis here.
And there are moments inpolitics when the truth doesn't
walk through the front door, itbreaks through like a bugler.
And when the Epstein fileshappen to have resurfaced,
(24:45):
that's exactly what happened.
The political establishment inthe United States didn't just
flinch it, it seized up.
Old alliances stiffened,carefully crafted narratives
cracked, and suddenly people whoonce screamed in unison found
themselves whispering in thecorners of the room.
But no split has been morerevealing or more spectacular
(25:08):
than the fracture betweenPresident Donald Trump and
Marjorie Taylor Green.
For years, Marjorie TaylorGreene was Trump's most
relentless defender.
She was a battering ram he couldaim at any institution.
If there was any any sign of acontroversy, she was there.
If there was a scandal, sheexplained it and then explained
(25:30):
it away.
If Trump sneezed wrong, she'dblame it on the deep state or c
contaminating the air and thedemocratic uh hoax.
And Trump loved it.
He loved her fire, herwillingness to alienate
colleagues, voters, journalists,anyone, as long as she was
protecting him.
She was loud, loyal, andunbothered by collateral damage.
(25:54):
Trump's perfect foot soldier.
But that loyalty actually had alimit, and now we're reaching
it.
It collided with the scandal sotoxic it defies spin.
And it's a it's a scandal thatthe people um who were normally
coded as on the right somewhatstoked themselves, and that was
(26:16):
the Epstein files.
The files that broke thealliance.
These documents didn't justrevive a case that that that um
everybody had interested in.
They revived a nightmare, adecades-long web of power,
wealth, manipulation, abuse, andsilence, and a world where
(26:37):
celebrities, politicians,financiers, and world leaders
mingled with a traffical whoseevil was so grotesque it stains
everyone who stood close to him.
So when the files came back intothe public conversation, Trump
expected what he alwaysexpected.
Total defense, no hesitation, nodistance, absolute allegiance.
(27:02):
But Marjorie Taylor Greenehesitated, not because she
suddenly had grown someconscience, but because she
realized this was the type ofscandal that could end careers
and not just bruise them.
Trump wanted her to say, it'sall lies, it's all political,
they're coming after me becausehe's the leader of the movement.
(27:23):
But instead, she called fortransparency.
And to Donald Trump, that wordtransparency is an accusation.
The man who lives off secrecy,branding, and image control,
transparency sounds like athreat.
So when Marjorie Taylor Greenepublicly stated no one should be
(27:44):
protected in Epstein Filesrelease, the message to Trump
was unmistakable.
Your name is not immune anymore.
And from that moment forward,the trust shattered and the
freeze-out began.
Trump withdrew publicly, uhstrategically, and silently.
(28:06):
He stopped acknowledgingMarjorie Teller Green as a key
ally.
He stopped amplifying herstatements, he distanced himself
in that quiet, pushing waypoliticians reserve for the
people they believe to havebecome liabilities.
Marjorie Teller Greene foughtback the only way she knows how,
with volume.
But this time it didn't land inthe audience that she normally
(28:27):
thought of.
It landed with the liberals, itlanded with the libertarians, it
landed with the independents,who are often critical of Donald
Trump, and it landed with peoplewho are on the right, who want
this Epstein stuff out.
And the president did not likeit.
(28:47):
Because when Marjorie TaylorGreene fought back this time
with volume, and it landed, itlanded, and her usual theatrice
couldn't mask the reality thatshe had miscalculated and she
had forgotten the number onerule in the Trump role.
Loyalty cannot be conditional.
(29:08):
It must be absolute.
Even when it drags you into thefire, especially when it does
that.
And the scandal is unlike anyother.
(29:47):
Trump built his brand onpretending to fight that elite
class.
Marjorie Telegreen built herband her brand on shouting about
it as well.
But the irony now is painful.
The moment the light turnedtoward their side of the room,
the alliance disintegrated.
Because the truth, when it'sreal, it actually can't be that
(30:09):
partisan.
It demands integrity, it demandsmore courage.
And neither Trump nor MarjorieTaylor Green built their
political identities on eitherof those things.
And the real reason the falloutmatters is because we have to be
honest.
Political fallouts happen everysingle week because
personalities clash, egoscollide, leaders change
(30:32):
favorites, uh like uh childrenpicking teams for kickball.
But this one, this one revealssomething deeper.
The entire MAGA movement, therallies, the slogans, the us
versus them worldview was builton the illusion of unity.
But the unity built on fear andperformance collapses the moment
(30:53):
accountability actually has toenter the room.
Trump didn't actually abandonMarjorie Taylor Green because of
policy disagreement.
He abandoned her because sheacknowledged the existence of a
truth that he wanted buried.
Marjorie Taylor Greene didn'tdistance herself because she
wanted justice.
She distanced herself becauseshe feared the blowback.
(31:14):
And in that mutual retreat, thewhole movement revealed its
weakest point.
When the truth knocks, theirloyalties fracture.
When the light shines, alliancesfade.
When accountability rises,courage vanishes.
And this is what this means forus going forward.
This fallout is actually just apreview of what is going to
(31:37):
come.
If the Epstein's file stuffcontinues to generate this much
heat, and the headlines you'regoing to see more split, not
just between Trump and MarjorieChiller Green, but across the
entire political ecosystem.
Every politician who stoodshoulder to shoulder with Trump
will be forced to choose, defendhim at all costs or defend
(31:58):
themselves.
Most will choose the latter, andTrump will see every one of them
as traitors.
This isn't a movement anymore.
It's a collapsing star, bright,burning, consuming everything
around it as it falls inward.
The Epstein files didn't ignitethis collapse.
It only revealed the fault linesthat were already there.
They exposed the truth beyondthe spectacle, a movement held
(32:21):
together by um held by notconviction, but mutual fear, not
by shared ideas, but sharedenemies, not by moral clarity,
but a desire to be a part ofsomething powerful, even if that
power came from the darkestcorners of American politics.
Margit Chiller Green and DonaldTrump were never bounded by
principle.
They were bounded by theatrics,attention, ambition, and
(32:44):
attacking common enemies.
So when the darkest scandal oftheir age resurfaced, when
Epstein's vows forced everyoneto stop yelling long enough to
confront actual evidence, thepartnership cracked like glass
and exposed which it took itexposed the rift.
And that crack the crack can'theal because the truth has a way
(33:07):
of splitting apart anything thatwasn't built to withstand it.
This is Darrell McClain, and I'mgonna keep calling this stuff
exactly like it is, because whenthe light is on and the volume
is turned all the way up, itbecomes very easy, very easy to
see who is trying to hide in thedark.
(33:29):
Be right back with more of theDarrell McClain show.
Alright, guys, welcome back tothe Daryl McLean show.
I'm about to wrap this up bydoing the thing that I'd like to
do the most.
Let's talk about the historyhere and the loyalty trap that
always comes with the rise andthe ruin of a long, long list of
people who have stood besideDonald Trump because there's a
(33:50):
pattern in this type of politicsthat is so sharp, it's so
consistent, so brutallypredictable, that historians are
gonna study this era fordecades.
And the pattern is this anyonewho gets close to Donald Trump
eventually becomes an enemy ofDonald Trump.
Not because they changed, butbecause they stood up for what
(34:13):
they had stood up always,because they stopped
surrendering every inch of theiridentity.
And to understand the falloutbetween Marjorie Taylor Green
and uh Donald Trump, you can'tjust look at this moment.
You have to look at the lineage,the hundreds of discarded,
disillusioned, demolishedloyalists who came before her.
(34:35):
And her fall isn't surprising,it's mathematical, it's
inedible, it's a conclusion of asystem built around one rule and
one rule alone.
Loyalty is owed to Donald Trumpand Donald Trump alone.
But loyalty is never returned.
So let's take a tour throughCongress, the Cabinet, the
(34:56):
generals, the intelligenceagencies to see what I'm saying
here.
Marjorie Taylor Greene is notthe first casualty.
She's just the newest.
So let's go to a a a female thatwe all know here by the name of
Liz Cheney.
And the warning that I thinkMarjorie Taylor Green ignored
because before Trump, Liz Cheneywasn't a Fringe figure.
(35:20):
She wasn't controversial.
She wasn't a lightning rod.
She was the daughter of a vicepresident, the heir of a
towering conservative dynasty,architect of neoconservative
foreign policy, defender of theIraq war, backbone of the old
Republican establishment, arising star with deep national
security credentials, uhcredentials in any other
(35:41):
Republican era, she would havebeen leadership speaker
material.
And then came Donald Trump.
And even though, if you go lookat the record, she voted for
Donald Trump 93% of the time.
It didn't matter.
The moment she refused todisagree with him and not say
(36:03):
what he believed, and shebelieved that the 2020 election
was legitimate and that he waslying, she was excommunicated,
cast out, destroyed politically,and the message is clear.
Trump doesn't want allies, hewants disciples.
So Mar Marjorie Teller Green uhshe should she should have known
(36:26):
that it doesn't matter you aregonna go from being one day a
pit bull to a pariah.
So she steps in to this legacy.
The the polar opposite of uh LizCheney.
Before Trump, Marjorie TellaGreene wasn't even a known
political figure.
She was a fringe influencer, aconspiracy evangelist, a
political outsider, armed with acamera phone, and a thirst for
(36:50):
provocation.
I remember her sitting outsideof Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's uh
office saying she needs to comeout and debate her, take off her
diaper, yada yada yada.
She didn't inherit power.
She clawed her way into it byembracing Trumpism louder,
harder, and wilder than anyoneelse in the room.
She wasn't just loyal, she wasfantastically loyal.
(37:12):
She defended him through everyscandal.
She burned bridges on hisbehalf, she made herself a
national villain if it meantprotecting him.
But the Epstein files changedsomething.
It changed everything.
And the moment she said, Letevery name be released, no
expectations, Trump saw that asa threat.
Because in Trump's world, uhlook, it doesn't run on
(37:37):
transparency.
It runs on deflection.
It runs on whataboutisms, itruns on oh but the Democrats.
And Marjorie Taylor Greenehesitated.
She and demanded what she hadalready demanded.
And that hesitation alone gother tossed into the same
wilderness as Liz Cheney,different style.
Same in.
(37:58):
Let's go back even further toJeff Sessions and the true
father of Trumpism, with alongwith Newt Gingrich and Chris
Grisby.
Because before Trump, Sessionswas not a nobody.
He was a four-term U.S.
senator, one of the mostconservative voices in the
chamber, the architect of themodern immigration restriction
(38:20):
movement, and a respected legalfigure in Republican circles.
He was literally the one wholegitimized Trump, but no one
else would pay any attention tohim is in Washington, and nobody
in Washington would touch him.
Trump, I would argue, owes hispresidency, the first term
especially to Jeff Sessions morethan almost anyone else.
(38:41):
And yet, when Sessions followedthe law, the actual written law,
and recused himself from theRussia investigation, Trump
destroyed him publicly, mockedhim, humiliated him, crushed his
Senate comeback.
Because in Trump world, obeyingthe law becomes disloyalty.
(39:02):
And it does not matter how longyou spent, uh how many decades
of your life you gave to theparty, it's a that that that
means nothing to this iteratedthis uh version of Trump
forwards.
And now let's enter RexTillerson, the one of the most
brilliant CEOs who walked intowhat he saw as a circus.
(39:27):
Now, before Trump, Tillerson wasa titan.
He was a CEO of XI Mobil, anegotiator with governments
around the world, known for hisdiscipline, his order, his
long-term down-the-roadplanning.
He had no political ambitionswhatsoever.
He was the type of man who wouldnormally run an administration,
not serving one.
(39:48):
But Trump hired him anyway.
And then tore him apart, but herefused to indulge impulsive
decisions.
Tillerson famously called Trumpa moron.
And for that, uh, when Trumpfound out, Trump fired him via a
tweet.
Now that wasn't a policydisagreement, it was resentment
(40:09):
because competence and actualsuccess threatens chaos.
Now enter John Bolton, the Hawkwe all remember, who expected a
president.
Now, before Donald Trump, JohnBolton was a foreign policy
legend on the right, formerUnited States ambassador, United
Nations ambassador, thearchitect of the Bush-era
(40:32):
national security strategy,Harlein Hawk with decades of
experience, feared and respectedin Washington.
He entered the Trump White Housethinking he was serving a
conservative administration.
What he found out wasimprovisation, inconsistency,
and impulses guided by personalaffinities instead of
strategies.
(40:52):
And so Trump fired him, and thenin classic Trump fashion,
publicly mocked him ever sincethen on things like his
appearance.
Now entered Bill Barr, loyal tothe point of humiliation.
Before Trump, Barr was theRepublican legal establishment,
attorney general under GeorgeH.W.
Bush, legal scholar, deep intouh institutional respect, long
(41:16):
conservative track record.
He defended Trump at every turn.
He bent the law for him.
He spun reports publicly tosoften political fallout.
But when Trump demanded thatBarr declare the 2020 election
fraudulent without evidence,Barr refused.
An insanity that he should heshould he should have uh not
(41:37):
done because he became instantlyknown as disloyal.
Barr is now one of Trump's mostfrequent targets of resentment,
precisely because he refused tolie.
Now we have to go to Mike Pence,the most loyal man in America,
because before Trump, Pence wasa model conservative, former
(42:00):
congressman, former governor ofIndiana, evangelical favorite,
uh former conservative talk showhost, disciplined, predictable,
dutiful, Trump's base adoredMike Pence.
And Pitts served Trump withabsolute loyalty to scandals
through impeachment, throughcrisis, through humiliation.
(42:22):
But Trump demanded Pence breakthe Constitution on January 6th,
and Pitts refused, simply doingwhat the founders wrote in the
law, he believed Trump unleasheda mob.
He had no mercy for Mike Pence,he had no gratitude for Mike
Pence, he had no loyalty forMike Pence.
(42:42):
No loyalty in return.
Now let's go to the military,and we have to talk about some
of these military men, thegenerals, who stared right into
this chaos.
And you and this I'm onlywrapping this up so you can see
how deep this pattern goes.
Let's enter Mad Dog Mattis,James Mattis.
Now, before Trump, he was afour-star general.
(43:03):
He led Marines in Iraq.
He was the what we called awarrior scholar.
He was one of the most respectedmilitary minds of his
generations.
Trump adored him at first, andthen he turned on him when
Mattis defended allies, whenMattis defended stability, and
when Mattis defended democraticnorms around the world.
(43:24):
Mattis resigned and later wrotethat Trump was a danger to the
Constitution.
Trump's response, personalinsults, schoolyard mockery.
Then comes H.R.
McMaster.
Now, before Trump, McMaster is athree-star general,
counter-insurgency genius, polarprize-winning military
strategist, decorated combatveteran.
(43:44):
He tried to bring structure tochaos.
Trump resented it.
McMaster was pushed out andlater labeled soft, disloyal,
and weak.
Then we have John Kelly.
Now, before Trump, John Kelly isa four-star military general,
head of the U.S.
Southern Command, formerSecretary of the Homeland
Security, and man with deepinstitutional respect.
He served as the chief of staff,trying desperately to impose
(44:07):
discipline.
Trump retaliated by insultinghim, his intelligence, and even
his deceased son.
That moment alone will stainAmerican political history
forever.
Now enter Mark Milley.
Before Trump, he is a decoratedgeneral, chair of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, trusted bypresidents of both parties.
(44:27):
When Milley opposed illegalorders or reckless military
impostus, Trump turned againsthim, even suggesting that Milley
deserved execution.
Think about that.
A former U.S.
president, who is now thecurrent U.S.
president, was at the time andmaybe still now implying a
general is a traitor for tellingthe truth.
(44:49):
Then we have Alexander Venmanbefore Trump, Lieutenant
Colonel, Purple Heart recipient,National Security Council expert
on Ukraine, his crime, hetestified and told the truth.
Trump's response was a smear tosmear him, attempt to ruin his
career, and pressure themilitary to discipline him for
what?
Honesty.
(45:10):
And what does all of this tellus?
From Liz Cheney to MarjorieKelly Green, to Jeff Sessions,
to John Kerry, to Bill Barr, toJames Mattis, the story is the
same.
Trump demands loyalty but neverwill give it.
Trump consumes allies but neverprotects them.
(45:30):
Trump pushes his agenda and hepunishes anybody who says
anything against it.
And he only rewards obedienceuntil your obedience becomes
useless.
That is not ideology.
That is not conservatism.
That is not leadership.
This is a political gravitywhere everyone orbits around and
(45:57):
it decays the moment you stopcircling the center.
And now Marjorie Taylor Green isdiscovering the same reality
that Liz Cheney discovered, thatJeff Sessions discovered, that
Mike Pence discovered, and thefour star generals discovered.
No matter who you are, no matterwhat you sacrifice, no matter
how hard you defend him, Trumpwill eventually demand something
(46:19):
that you cannot give.
And when you fail that test, hewill turn on you as if you have
never even existed.
Now my final word for this showis this.
(47:03):
Thank you.
See you on the next episode.
More content to come.
We got a lot to get to.
It's a very, very pressing week.
Shout out of a canon here.
Right back from the cruise.
And we got a lot of stuffcoming.
See you on the next episode.
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