Heart & Soul Conversation #1

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) issued a fierce demand Monday to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche regarding President Donald Trump’s “long-term friendship” with Jeffrey Epstein, arguing it may have not only influenced the Trump administration’s policies, but created a “major national security liability.”

Raskin's demand came in the form of a letter to Blanche's office requesting records on Epstein's foreign ties, details of which have emerged through the Justice Department's release of millions of Epstein-related files that started last year. Specifically, Raskin’s request centered around suspicions that Epstein acted as a “foreign agent” for multiple countries, and on some occasions, did so “in order to influence policies of the first Trump administration.”

“Given the information Mr. Epstein possessed about President Trump and his easy access to high-level officials in the President’s inner circle, Mr. Epstein’s relationships with foreign leaders, including adversaries, posed a major national security liability,” Raskin’s letter reads.

Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, released the letter publicly on Tuesday, in which he cited evidence suggesting that Epstein worked on behalf of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Russia and Israel, a potential violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

Raskin went on to detail several examples as to how Epstein’s friendship with Trump may have created a legitimate “security risk” to the United States, including one involving a “Russian oligarch.”

“Mr. Epstein privately alleged the President was involved in an international money laundering scheme with a Russian oligarch that centered around real estate in Florida. In another missive, Mr. Epstein connects the dots between this scheme and the sale of expensive artwork to [Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman],” Raskin’s letter reads.

“While Mr. Epstein was prone to exaggeration and self-aggrandizement, these emails suggest President Trump’s foreign business interests may have had a tangible effect on foreign policy and that Mr. Epstein knew about and was willing to weaponize such lurking and explosive conflicts of interest.”

Raskin demanded that Blanche's office turn over “all records” related to Epstein and 19 different countries, as well as all records relating to entities associated with Epstein that “may have been set up to avoid their foreign contacts triggering personal FARA registration requirements.”

In the letter, Raskin noted that Epstein, alongside former Trump official Steve Bannon, appeared to employ “strategies for skirting FARA’s requirements,” including the use of non-profit entities and other non-governmental organizations to structure “international arrangements,” and to “use go-betweens so he could remain ‘surgically pure.’”

A former GOP operative revealed the viral past of the independent journalist who's been camped outside Sen. Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) hospital.

During an episode of Bulwark Takes, host Tim Miller went into detail about the history of Desiree Townsend, who also goes by the name Desiree Jennings.

According to Miller, Jennings has been doing "standups outside of the hospital of Mitch McConnell," whose recent hospitalization has raised concerns and stirred speculation.

"Her standups are kind of like a mix of Inside Edition and like Russia Today," Miller explained. "And like an insane person, she's going around like, 'We see Elaine Chao's eyebrows, and in the picture, they're different from in the last picture, and Mitch McConnell, how can you serve right now?'"

According to Miller, Jennings describes herself on her LinkedIn page as an "independent journalist," and her presentation makes her seem like a news correspondent from an established network.

"She's gaining momentum lately because a lot of people are interested in what's happening with Mitch McConnell," Miller explained. "It kind of has an air of authority, though in kind of an uncanny valley way."

Miller then explained that someone had flagged information about Jennings that shocked him. "I don't even think I can put words to it," he said.

Jennings used to be "an early viral sensation" and an ambassador for the Washington Redskins cheerleading squad who claimed she developed a rare neurological disorder called dystonia, according to a clip from Inside Edition that Miller played. The clip also featured Jennings bouncing and jerking up and down.

She claimed that she got the disease "after receiving a seasonal flu shot, causing dramatic spasms and slurred speech," continued the Inside Edition clip, which also revealed Jennings acting normally when she thought the cameras were gone. Miller laughed while noting that she also seemed to have a sudden British accent in the clip.

"My favorite part of the clip is she was able to both walk backwards and run, which is interesting," Miller said while cracking up. "It was like she couldn't walk sideways or forward, but she could walk backwards or sprint."