A Year After Buffalo: Turning Grief Into Action

An attorney for several survivors of Jeffrey Epstein said he was "appalled" on Thursday after a high-powered corporate attorney who advised the late child sex offender told lawmakers that she did not view Virginia Giuffre as a "credible witness."

Attorney Arick Fudali, who represents 11 Epstein survivors, told CNN anchor Boris Sanchez he was stunned to learn about the comments from attorney Kathy Ruemmler, the former Goldman Sachs general counsel, who was questioned behind closed doors by the House Oversight Committee earlier this month about her relationship with the financier.

Ruemmler told congressional leaders that she thought Giuffre, one of the most prominent accusers of Epstein and his co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, "lacked inherent credibility."

Ruemmler's comment has left Giuffre's family furious, and Fudali shared his reaction with CNN.

"It's appalling. It's gross. You know, any adjective you can possibly think of and [it's] really offensive for her to say that about Ms. Giuffre, who, in my opinion, is an American hero, someone who suffered greatly and someone who inspired so many other survivors, not just of Jeffrey Epstein, but of sexual abuse around the world," Fudali said.

"Ms. Giuffre is the reason, I know personally, that a lot of women were able to feel comfortable, feel strong, and feel empowered enough to step forward," Fudali added. "So shame on her for saying anything of the sort. Anything, especially casting doubt on Ms. Giuffre's allegations."

A political expert issued a dark warning on Monday as the country prepares for the November midterms.

President Donald Trump has made it clear that he intends to meddle in the 2026 midterms. He has called on the Postal Service to create a national voter database and send mail-in ballots only to people on that list, a move that the courts have upheld thus far. He has also repeatedly called on Republicans to pass the SAVE American Act, a bill that would rewrite the way U.S. elections are conducted.

David Rothkopf, a political analyst and columnist for The Daily Beast, argued during a new episode of "The Daily Beast Podcast" that Trump has weakened America's election security infrastructure and plans to use that to his advantage in the midterms.

“Buckle up, everybody,” Rothkopf warned. “The next 90 days are going to be a weird and wild ride.”

One looming issue for the midterms is that the Supreme Court has yet to rule on an appeal the Trump administration filed regarding new rules it set for mail-in ballots. Experts have speculated that the Court could rule on it using the so-called shadow docket, an emergency procedure that allows the court to issue a ruling without explaining its rationale.

Rothkopf noted that the efforts are all part of Trump's continued efforts to stay in power, which appear to be failing.

“Donald Trump is drowning in failure,” Rothkopf said. “Nothing he says or does is working anymore. And so he’s got to try these wild schemes to distract from it, to get attention, to hope it disrupts something.”