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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Race to Replace Platner; Top GOP Lawmaker Probes Kash Patel's Spending; Multiple Survivors Say Longtime Epstein Assistant Lied to Congress. Republicans Demand Accountability Over "Attacks" On Caitlin Clark; Cases Of Diarrhea-Causing Parasite Climb In Midwest. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired July 09, 2026 - 18:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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[18:00:00]

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to The Lead. I'm Jake Tapper.

This hour, Democrats in Maine are scrambling. They're officially on the clock to find a new Senate candidate after Graham Platner said he was going to suspend his campaign. At least four people have already jumped into the Democratic race, but there are still so many questions about how this process is going to proceed, how a winner will be chosen. We're going to go live to Maine for the latest in this crucial contest.

Plus, a CNN exclusive, multiple Epstein survivors say the dead pedophile's longtime assistant lied to Congress. One of those survivors is going to join me ahead to explain. I'm also going to get reaction from a lawmaker who was inside the room during that testimony.

Also, a top Republican is demanding answers from FBI Director Kash Patel about his spending. Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, Republican of Iowa, wants to know how many personal flights Patel has taken on FBI planes and whether he's paid the government back for any of those trips. Is Patel willing to give Congress those answers, though?

And the former Olympic athlete accused of vandalizing the Reflecting Pool appeared in court earlier today greeted by a crowd of supporters before pleading not guilty. David Hearn still faces up to ten years in prison if convicted. What his lawyer said today about why they believe he was charged. That's ahead.

The Lead tonight, the race is on again. Maine Democrats now have less than three weeks to find a new candidate to replace their embattled former Senate nominee, Graham Platner, who announced that he will be suspending his campaign in a more than 11-minute-long video last night in which he took no ownership for any of the scandals, blamed the Democratic establishment for his collapse, and denied the allegation we brought to you on Monday that he had raped a woman that he had dated five years ago, Jenny Racicot, or that he'd been violent or abusive with a different ex-girlfriend, whose interview we brought you on Tuesday, Lyndsey Fifield.

Already, there are four Democrats vying to take Platner's spot on the ticket, but this messy process to figure out which one could face Republican Senator Susan Collins in just a few months in November, well, that's just getting started.

CNN's Arlette Saenz gets us started tonight from the great state of Maine.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Democrats in Maine facing a summer scramble in the race for Senate after Graham Platner's rapid downfall.

GRAHAM PLATNER (D), FORMER MAINE SENATE CANDIDATE: We are suspending campaign operations.

SAENZ: More than 48 hours after Jenny Racicot told CNN he raped her in 2021, an allegation Platner denies, he stepped aside from the race in an 11-minute video, taking aim at the Democratic Party establishment.

PLATNER: We live in a political system that is not built for normal people. It is a system that is built structurally to make sure that movements like ours cannot flourish, that if they begin to succeed, they can be crushed.

SAENZ: The Democratic Party now in an 18-day sprint to find a new nominee.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I wish he had done it sooner. Now, what's important is finding the -- his replacement, the right person to beat Susan Collins.

SAENZ: Later this month, the Maine Democratic Party plans to host a nominating convention as the field of potential replacements is growing crowded.

Nirav Shah led Maine's COVID-19 response and initially secured the most votes in the Democratic primary for governor in June, but came in second after ranked choice voting.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For too long this race has been about the challenger rather than about the incumbent. And starting today, this race will be focused on one thing, which is a referendum on Susan Collins and her enabling of Donald Trump's worst instincts.

SAENZ: Two other Democrats who ran for governor are also in the mix, Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who lost to Republican Senator Susan Collins in 2014, and former State Senator Troy Jackson, a progressive who is now creating some distance from Platner after campaigning with him this year. KRISTEN WELKER, NBC NEWS HOST: Would you welcome Graham Platner's support and endorsement, or do you worry that could drag your candidacy down?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I mean, I don't want it. And it's -- you know, it's unfortunate, but I just don't want it.

SAENZ: Jordan Wood, a former Congressional candidate, also now in the race, along with Maine brewery owner Dan Kleban.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are rightfully pissed off. And we need a change in Washington. We need someone from the outside.

SAENZ: Whoever emerges from this process will have less than four months to wage a campaign against Susan Collins, the only Senate Republican running for re-election in a state former Vice President Kamala Harris won in 2024.

Does having to find a candidate so last-minute complicate Democrats' chances in November?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, because this is a wave against Trump.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's really unfortunate and disappointing, the situation that Maine is finding ourselves in. Democrats in particular need to come together and really focus on the issues and what is important for people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[18:05:00]

SAENZ (on camera): Now, Platner has suspended his campaign, but he still technically needs to file a notice that he is withdrawing his name from the ballot. Platner, in fact, told a staff on a private call on Wednesday that he intends to do that on Monday, which is actually the deadline for him to drop out.

There's still really no explanation why he is waiting so long at a time when Democrats are really eager to close the chapter of this saga and start focusing on electing their new nominee.

TAPPER: Arlette Saenz in beautiful Portland, Maine, quite a change from those Wilmington, Delaware, live shots you used to do for us. Thank you so much for joining us.

SAENZ: It is, yes.

TAPPER: I'm from Philly, I'm allowed to say that.

SAENZ: I know.

TAPPER: The panel joins me now. So, Karen, sources tell CNN Platner intends to file the paperwork to formally end his Senate bid on Monday, so he hasn't actually officially dropped out yet. The deadline is Monday. He gave no explanation for waiting until Monday, but a person close to the campaign warned against reading into the delay, telling CNN, it's over. He's done. I don't really know why he's waiting until Monday, but the campaign is basically disbanded. What do you think? Are you worried at all that he might not pull out, actually?

KAREN FINNEY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I'm not worried that he won't pull out. But I think it's pretty typical, like this pattern that has now emerged about him, and, you know, the video, the tone of the video last night was so disgusting. It was so inappropriate. You know, he won't ever do this, but he actually -- the people of Maine, people who volunteered on his campaign, people who donated to his campaign, they deserve an apology from him, and frankly from his consultants who didn't do their job in helping to vet him upfront. They won't do that either because they're also a little smug, and that's okay.

But, look, I have total confidence in the Maine Democratic Party. The party chair, I think, has handled this quite well. He was able to put together a process fairly quickly. I believe today, the goal is to put out the requirements so the candidates know what they have to do to be able to qualify for the nominating convention, and that by the weekend they will be putting out the rules for the nominating convention.

So, they're moving the process along as best they can, and I think they're working quite quickly and smoothly.

TAPPER: And Carine, so on Monday, I spoke with Jenny Racicot, who accuses him of rape, he denies it. Tuesday, I talked to Lyndsey Fifield, who accuses him of violence. Again, he denies it. But one of the things they both talked about was his self-pitying nature, his narcissism, how he never does anything wrong. And, well, here's a little bit of his Platner farewell video. See if this lines up with what they described.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PLATNER: I just want you to think about like what you would do as a regular person in a position where a much larger world, large forces were working against you personally to accuse you of the worst thing that a person could do, and it was not remotely true.

Those in power who have the ability to do so are using these allegations as an excuse to take away all of the things that we need to run a campaign.

This is incredibly difficult because I know that some will think it's an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not. We're not doing it because of the allegations. We're doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: As far as I can tell, the large forces working against him are two incredibly traumatized ex-girlfriends who only very reluctantly came forward. CARINE HAJJAR, MEMBER, THE WASHINGTON POST EDITORIAL BOARD: Very reluctantly. And let's step back here. This guy was anointed by Bernie Sanders. He had Elizabeth Warren's stamp of approval, both until obviously this very disturbing allegation came out, but these are -- this is not as if you were on your, fully on your own here, fully building this movement all by yourself.

Now, I will say, the campaign reports to have -- I believe it was 15,000 volunteers. There are a lot of people now who have been left out, and their voice -- they want their voices heard. And in that video, instead of representing them, instead of representing Maine voters and Maine democracy, it was just about himself. And it feels, and it has felt all along, that it has always been about Graham Platner, because, again, we've known since October that this guy was a liability.

And now, you know, his campaign is over, hopefully over. The paperwork hasn't been filed, but his campaign is over, and now you have Democrats jumping in and jockeying for a spot as this nomination convention looms. And the conversation is still about Grand Platner.

In that video, you've made this point before, he doesn't even mention Susan Collins. And so it's going to be an uphill battle for those Democrats to get to focus back on the general election race while Susan Collins is sending out press releases about opening new IRS tax centers to help constituents and doing her constituent services.

TAPPER: Yes. And Jeff, how did people on the Platner campaign take this video, this incredibly narcissistic, self-pitying video?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Look, I'm told there was a divide on this, that he had an all-campaign staff meeting last night at the very same time this video was released.

[18:10:02]

He taped it late afternoon. And I'm told that there was a divide among his advisers, that he was urged to be more gracious. He was urged to sort of be healing. He did not take that advice, obviously.

But, talking to one of his staffers who's just sort of fed up with all this, he said, it's all about him and ego, not an ounce of humility, which is obvious. But even more than that, I think the more troubling thing was there's a huge divide in the Democratic Party overall obviously, but also in Maine, and he did nothing to try and heal that. In fact, he poured fuel into those divisions there. And so going forward, many Maine Democrats hope that he goes away, but they still want to capture the enthusiasm behind his candidacy.

So, the interesting thing about him not filing his paperwork until Monday, I'm told by his advisers I asked, like what's going on here? And they said, don't read anything into it. It's just simply a paperwork thing. But the reality is his campaign is over. He has no money and his support has just evaporated. So, it gives some -- the candidates a little bit of time here as well. But Susan Collins in all of this, he did mention her very briefly in it, but he didn't dwell on her at all. But I talked to a Susan Collins aide today as well, and they wanted to run against Graham Platner.

TAPPER: Of course.

ZELENY: They were very eager to run against Graham Platner.

So, this is a crapshoot here for the next 15 weeks. She'll be running against an unknown person as well. So, once the dust settles, if it settles, this will be an interesting race.

TAPPER: Yes. So, Jeff, as Democrats embark on this two-week sprint to pick a new nominee through this nominee convention, many details about the process have not even been announced, what have you learned about this convention?

ZELENY: I mean, as Karen was saying, it's going to become clear by the weekend likely, these like candidates are going to have to qualify in some respect. There's about a half dozen in there now. Again, most of them have run for governor, the primary that just ended last month. So, there's going to be a county convention, and then a state convention. There are 16 counties in Maine. Probably 600 or so people will come together, and it'll be like a mini version of the Republican or Democratic National Conventions that we see.

It may be messy, but, I mean, otherwise, like, how would you do this? I mean, there simply is no other mechanism to do this. So, there will be a lot of campaigning going on for the next couple weeks there. There might be debates. There might be town halls. But, again, the people who are running, most of them are pretty well known to the Maine voters because they were just on the ballot.

TAPPER: Can I tell you what I would've done if I had been if this had been Maine?

FINNEY: Sure.

TAPPER: Like -- or what I would've recommended for him? You know, I reject these allegations, but obviously I need to own some stuff in my past. I've become too much of a distraction. The most important thing is defeating Susan Collins. And whoever the party picks, we need to have a good process, so whoever the party picks, Democrats need to rally behind that person. I will do everything I can, as Joe Biden said, whether it's endorsing or against them, whatever. And like, honestly, he could have preserved his political future a bit if he had done that, if he'd shown an ounce of grace.

FINNEY: 1,000 percent. And guess what? If his team had done their job up front, having been in those conversations with candidates, when you're talking about the kind of stuff that's out there, they could have had a conversation about this much earlier on and we could have -- it could have gone down much differently.

Look, I think, again, the Maine Democratic Party is doing the best that they can in a short period of time to make it fair and open. And I hope what they do after Monday, let's not talk about Graham Platner. If I were them, I would stay focused on our job is to defeat Susan Collins.

TAPPER: Final word, thought word, last word?

HAJJAR: Look, I think it's going to be really important and I'm really glad that the Maine Democratic Party has put this structure together. It's not as if they could have done a whole other vote. But as long as Maine voters' voices are being represented in this, that's what really counts because they've been stuck with a really bad pick for a very long time and voters deserve better. The red flags were there.

TAPPER: Yes, there could've been a process two years ago, but that's a whole other story.

Thanks to all of you.

Mediators are scrambling tonight to get the U.S. and Iran back to the negotiating table after both sides exchanged strikes. Iran firing upon U.S. bases in the region. We're going to get the latest from CNN's Kaitlan Collins at the White House next.

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[18:15:00]

TAPPER: Breaking news in our World Lead, sources tell CNN that mediators are working to get the U.S. and Iran back to the negotiating table as this renewed fighting further degrades the ceasefire agreement. The last two days has seen waves of U.S. strikes and Iranian attacks on other U.S. military bases in the region, the latest attacks fresh overnight.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins is at the White House. And, Kaitlan, the president seemed very frustrated by Iran yesterday. What can you tell us about his mindset? Where does this go next?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jake. He was posting pictures about those strikes that happened overnight from the United States. Over 170 targets in Iran struck by U.S. forces in the last 48 hours or so, Jake, and obviously that's a big uptick ever since the ceasefire went into place.

But even before that memorandum of understanding was signed, and the president was making clear why the United States was doing that. It was after Iran had fired at those ships that were going through the Strait of Hormuz, and he says that ceasefire is all but over basically.

And while we have not heard from the president today since he returned from that trip to meet with NATO allies at the summit in Turkey, obviously, we've seen that he has been having conversations about exactly what is happening in the Middle East behind closed doors, including a phone call that he had with the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today. That's not surprising, Jake. They talk a lot, and they've spoken virtually every day since this war started several months ago. But this comes amid some tensions between the two of those leaders in terms of the direction of this war and where it should go next, given obviously Israel did not sign on to that memorandum of understanding with Iran.

[18:20:01]

And the White House doesn't often issue readouts of the calls between the president and other world leaders anymore. That typically used to be standard practice for the White House, not just this administration, but others, but we did get a readout from the Israeli side, who said that the president told Benjamin Netanyahu, was keeping him apprised of what the U.S. moves were in the Gulf right now.

And so it's unlikely, as the president said yesterday, that the United States is going to return to full-scale war like we saw in the early days of this. He simply doesn't have the appetite for it, and neither do Republicans on Capitol Hill, who have been talking to the White House about this war.

But, obviously, as oil prices are being disrupted by this and all of these changes are happening, that is something that the White House is keeping front and center, Jake, as there are real questions about whether or not this is going to become the status quo here and the state of normalcy with these strikes happening, you know, intermittently after the United States doesn't like something Iran does in the Strait of Hormuz, or if the president can fully bring this to an end as he had promised.

TAPPER: Kaitlan Collins at the White House for us, thank you so much.

Don't miss Kaitlan on our show, The Source with Kaitlan Collins. Her guests tonight include one of the Democratic candidates now running to replace Graham Platner on the ticket, Dr. Nirav Shah. That's tonight at 9:00 Eastern on CNN.

A top Republican is demanding answers from FBI Director Kash Patel over his use of government planes and taxpayer dollars. Those details next.

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[18:25:00]

TAPPER: We're following two big stories in our Law and Justice Lead today. Former Olympic canoeist David Hearn pleaded not guilty after being charged with damaging the Reflecting Pool.

Meanwhile, just up the road on Capitol Hill, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, Republican of Iowa, is demanding answers from FBI Director Kash Patel about Patel's use of government aircraft and the purchase of BMW vehicles for FBI agents.

Joining us now, CNN's Katelyn Polantz and Annie Grayer. And, Katelyn, let's start with the Reflecting Pool case. Walk us through what happened today and what comes next.

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Super short court hearing today, and the case, the basics of it, is that Davey Hearn, the former Olympic canoeist, three-time Olympian, he went to the Reflecting Pool, he put his hand in, and the U.S. attorney's office says that he allegedly pulled out a pricey bit of that blue liner on the bottom worth about $1,000 or more, about two square feet of it, and that was enough damage to cause him to be charged with a felony.

Now, this, though, has become the political allegory of the entire summer for the Trump administration because his supporters say he's the scapegoat for a botched renovation of the Reflecting Pool that Donald Trump really wanted, and they're trying to pin him with something far more than they should as the Justice Department.

The representative, Jamie Raskin, in Maryland, Democrat, he serves in Congress in the district that Hearn lives in and knows Hearn, and so he released a lengthy statement here. Listen to the words he's choosing. Davey Hearn would never desecrate a federal building or landmark, whether we are talking about the White House, the Reflecting Pool, or the Kennedy Center. Davey would never try to alter, bulldoze, or redesign federal property or buildings without explicit Congressional authority and direction.

Davey is an honorable and law-abiding citizen who has won real giant prizes, including eight world championships. It is only a matter of time before an impartial judge and jury recognize this case has been built on Kafkaesque arrests, a Kafkaesque arrest or Orwellian charges.

Clearly, there's some reading between the lines there where they're trying to say, this guy touched the Reflecting Pool. You're charging him with an indictment. But there's Donald Trump putting his name on the Kennedy Center taking all of the water out of the Reflecting Pool, putting this stuff down, drawing the line between the two.

TAPPER: And, Annie, when it comes to FBI Director Kash Patel, what is Senator Chuck Grassley, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, what is he asking for?

ANNIE GRAYER, CNN SENIOR REPORTER: He has very specific questions for Patel. He wants Patel to list every flight that he has taken on an FBI aircraft and say how much those flights cost, make clear which flights were for personal use, which were for government official use, and if they were for personal use, to say whether he has paid, reimbursed those flights back.

And Grassley is also asking about the purchase of these BMW cars and wants Patel to make a cost-benefit analysis, explain why those cars were more cost-effective than, let's say, a Chevy Suburban, and wants to compare the pricing of those two cars.

Now, Grassley didn't publicize that he sent this letter to FBI Director Patel. Senate and House Judiciary Democrats, who are conducting their own investigation into Patel's spending habits, were the ones who uncovered this letter, and it shows that a Republican chairman who has oversight of the FBI, of Patel's agency, has similar questions about these spending habits of the FBI director, which has come under scrutiny.

Now, in his letter to Patel, Grassley mentions, though, this is something that he has asked of many FBI directors in the past, regardless of party.

TAPPER: What will happen next if Patel doesn't comply, if he doesn't give the answers as requested by Grassley?

GRAYER: So, that's really up to Grassley, how far he wants to push this. This letter was dated May 5th, and Grassley gave Patel up until May 19th to respond to his series of questions.

Now, we don't know if Patel has responded directly to this letter, but the FBI has publicized since this reporting that they are defending Patel's spending habits, arguing that he has cut more waste, fraud, and abuse than any other FBI director in the past.

But Grassley has to make a decision here.

[18:30:00]

Does he want to renew this voluntary request for information? He could go as far as subpoenaing this information if he really wanted to. It's just a question of calculation. How much of a political risk and trouble does Grassley really want to go through here?

TAPPER: All right. Annie Grayer, Katelyn Polantz, thanks to both of you. I appreciate it.

Coming up next, a CNN exclusive, multiple Epstein survivors say the dead pedophile's longtime assistant lied to Congress, and one of those survivors is going to join us next to explain.

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TAPPER: A CNN exclusive in our Law and Justice Lead today. Some survivors of the dead pedophile, Jeffrey Epstein, say that his former longtime assistant lied to Congress when she testified behind closed doors last month. Lesley Groff told lawmakers she never met any of the girls and young women who provided massages to Epstein, and that she didn't know anything about their backgrounds, including how old they were.

But in interviews with CNN's M.J. Lee, multiple survivors say that Groff had access to their passport information, documents that clearly listed their dates of birth.

[18:35:07]

They described meeting Groff in person and being paid directly by her.

Lawyers for Lesley Groff did not respond to CNN's request for comment. We should note that Groff has never been criminally charged in connection with Epstein's crimes. Joining us now, one of the survivors taking issue with Groff's testimony, Marina Lacerda.

Marina, before we begin, I know this topic must be horrible to talk about. How are you doing?

MARINA LACERDA, EPSTEIN SURVIVOR: I'm doing good. I'm doing good, and we will continue to fight.

TAPPER: You told CNN that you first met Epstein in 2002, just shy of turning 14, and that you did interact with Lesley Groff directly over the years. Tell us more.

LACERDA: That is correct. And, in fact, it's weird that she has said that she has never spoken with any of the survivors or has met with us. In order to get to Jeffrey Epstein, in order for you to even speak with Jeffrey Epstein, you had to go through Lesley Groff. So, I find that very, very hard to believe that she never spoke to us. And she has met myself quite a few times and has handed me over envelopes with money with Broadway shows. We have definitely met and we have definitely spoken.

TAPPER: What was your reaction when you heard what she had told the committee?

LACERDA: You know, I was in shock because this is the only person that we were expecting to go up there and to bring true accountability to this whole cover-up. And it's just -- it's really sad that she wasn't able to just be completely honest about it.

TAPPER: Are there any other interviews by the Oversight Committee that you've heard about that concern you?

LACERDA: You know, I mean, there are some interviews, I think, that they're lining up that will be coming up. I haven't heard much or I've heard some. I don't really -- you know, I don't want to jump to conclusions here, but I think there are some interviews coming up.

TAPPER: As a survivor, what do you and other survivors need to see from the Oversight Committee as they continue their investigation?

LACERDA: We really, really need to see investigations. You know, we need to see investigations actually to, you know, to start here. We have no investigations that haven't started yet. We have all these names that have been released on the Epstein files, co-conspirators along with perpetrators, and yet not one investigation.

We also need to see -- you know, we have Todd Blanche coming up, you know, attorney to be, or, you know, acting as the attorney of general, but also going to be the attorney general, and we are hoping that everybody will vote no on this. Blanche has failed the survivors all along. He's responsible for the failure of the redact of our information to protect us, but also responsible for failing to investigate the co-conspirators and the perpetrators. So, we need everyone to stand with us on this. And as for, you know, Lesley Groff, we really hope if there's any -- you know, anything coming up that's involving her to have -- to, you know, at least be honest.

TAPPER: Yes.

LACERDA: Just have some accountability, you know?

TAPPER: We still -- they still haven't released -- the Justice Department still hasn't released all the Epstein files. There are more than 2 million documents that have not seen the light of day. Do you think we're ever going to see them?

LACERDA: We have to see them. We have to see them. Todd Blanche cannot go around saying that there's nothing more to see, and that we have to stop talking about this, and that they're duplicates, or, you know, I can't even think of any more of excuses that has come out of his mouth. And to even turn around and say, we have met with the survivors, he has not met with the survivors. He has not met with any of us. And there are other files out there that need to be released.

It's just insane that there's all these excuses why the rest of the files haven't been released. If they're duplicates, just release them. We will figure that out for ourselves.

TAPPER: Marina Lacerda, thank you so much.

In light of this reporting from M.J. Lee, the House Oversight Committee told CNN that the committee is currently reviewing Ms. Groff's transcript against the available evidence.

Joining us now is a member of the Oversight Committee, Democratic Congressman James Walkinshaw of Virginia.

Thanks so much for being here, Congressman. So, Lesley Groff, just to get people up to speed, she helped manage nearly every aspect of Jeffrey Epstein's life, from appointments with women to meetings with powerful individuals, and all the evidence laid out in the millions of Epstein files released by the document talks about a lot of this.

It's a federal crime, of course, to knowingly and willfully make false statements to Congress. If you've -- I mean, it sound -- I mean, like what we just heard is evidence that she lied to Congress, I guess.

[18:40:00]

If the committee looks into it, what -- then what? What do you do? Do you charge her with lying to Congress?

REP. JAMES WALKINSHAW (D-VA): Well, we could absolutely refer those charges to the Department of Justice, no question about it. I think what we need to do now is bring Ms. Groff back in for a deposition under oath. In my view, that should be public so the world can see, the country can see, the survivors can see Ms. Groff's testimony and decide for themselves who they believe, the courageous survivors, like Marina there, or Lesley Groff, who was Jeffrey Epstein's right hand assistant for many years.

TAPPER: Do you trust Todd Blanche and the Trump Justice Department to -- if you were to bring charges or refer the case, refer whatever allegation you make to the Justice Department, do you think they'd actually bring charges?

WALKINSHAW: I do not. And, look, the Justice Department should today reopen the Epstein investigation based on what our committee's investigation has revealed. We know the FBI never interviewed key figures, the lawyer, the accountant, some of the assistants, those closest to Epstein never interviewed by the FBI. We know that new allegations have come to light as a result of our investigation, Sarah Kellen, who came in and made new allegations that need to be fully investigated. The DOJ should reopen that, interview those who need to be interviewed, prosecute those who need to be prosecuted.

TAPPER: Bob Garcia, who's the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee said that, quote, Lesley Groff knew what was happening in Epstein's inner circle, which is why Chairman Comer should have required her to testify under oath. Why are these witnesses not testifying under oath? I don't understand.

WALKINSHAW: You know, the precedent was kind of set when Chairman Comer allowed Pam Bondi to come in for a closed-door transcribed interview rather than a public under oath deposition. And I think now Chairman Comer's in a box because he didn't require Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of the United States, to be under oath in a deposition, harder for him to require private citizens, like Lesley Groff, Leon Black, and others, to come before a deposition under oath. He set a bad precedent there with Pam Bondi. But these folks need to be under oath in a formal deposition.

TAPPER: Can you explain to our viewers why the Justice Department has not followed the law that President Trump signed that all of the Epstein files, with redactions of the names of the survivors and victims, why they -- like, first of all, why that hasn't been done? More than 2 million documents still not released months after the law went into effect, redactions of, you know, people whose names should not have been redacted, possibly perpetrators, not redactions, lack of redactions of survivors and victims. I mean, am I wrong that the Justice Department is breaking the law that President Trump signed?

WALKINSHAW: I believe you're absolutely right. I went to the DOJ and saw some of those illegally redacted documents that were clearly redacted not to comply with the law but to protect Donald Trump from further embarrassment.

I don't have a good explanation. Todd Blanche says that the unreleased files are duplicative. He doesn't -- he's not required to release files that are duplicative. My view is release them. Let the American people decide whether they're duplicative. The law doesn't allow --

TAPPER: Is there something in the law saying that you don't have to release files that are duplicative?

WALKINSHAW: No, it doesn't. He's made a subjective decision that, A, those files are duplicative, and, B, he doesn't have to release them. I hope he's asked that question at his confirmation hearing.

TAPPER: New Mexico's Attorney General Raul Torres says the Justice Department is withholding critical information related to Epstein's Zorro Ranch in New Mexico. Some Epstein survivors, including Chauntae Davies, the late Virginia Giuffre, have said that the ranch is one of the places where they were sexually assaulted.

Torres is arguing that the lack of cooperation from DOJ is eroding the state case.

WALKINSHAW: Well, New Mexico deserves tremendous credit for doing what the Department of Justice is not willing to do, which is reopen this investigation based on the knowledge that we now have.

Look, this has been a cover-up. You know, I have to say it. The Trump administration, the Department of Justice under Pam Bondi and Todd Blanche, have executed a massive cover-up here. I continue to have questions as to why. We know more and more about Donald Trump's relationship with Epstein. He's clearly embarrassed by that, doesn't want information to come out about that, but we have to do right by these survivors. The Department of Justice has to end the cover-up and stop stonewalling.

TAPPER: What repercussion is there if the Justice Department of the United States is breaking the law?

WALKINSHAW: Well, a future Congress, perhaps one that's controlled by Democrats, could pursue contempt charges against Justice Department officials who are failing to comply with the law. We can use the funding process, the appropriations process in Congress to compel the Department of Justice to comply with the law.

[18:45:01]

But right now, we have a Republican Congress that is blocking those efforts from moving forward.

TAPPER: All right, Congressman James Walkinshaw of the great Commonwealth of Virginia, thank you so much.

Our politics and sports leagues collide next. Why some lawmakers sent a letter to the WNBA today about Caitlin Clark.

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TAPPER: In our sports lead, hard fouls against the Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark are catching the attention now of some House Republicans. They're demanding accountability from the WNBA over what they say are attacks on Clark.

House Republicans issuing this letter to the WNBA commissioner on Tuesday, quote, "If discrimination or retaliation is occurring in creating a hostile work environment, we support any appropriate investigation by the Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission," unquote. Here to discuss, CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan. She's the

author of "On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women's Sports".

So, Christine, these Republicans are suggesting that these fouls of Caitlin Clark are racially motivated.

[18:50:01]

And obviously, we've seen similar chatter on social media. Is there any credibility to that?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: We -- no, there's no -- I have no evidence of that per se. Now, our eyes can show us that the last one, which, of course, was the fist to the throat. A picture that I think will be a part of WNBA conversation for a long time is Caitlin Clark is lying on the foot on the court.

Alyssa Thomas has -- she kneed her in the groin and then she -- her fist is --

TAPPER: You were showing the picture right there.

BRENNAN: Yeah, that's clearly -- Alyssa Thomas is a Black woman. Caitlin Clark is a white woman.

Last year, there was a player, Marina Mabrey, a white woman, Jake, who basically came into Caitlin Clark like a freight train and knocked her over. That looked like kind of like a pinball is -- is that that happened in a game last year.

Another white woman, Jacy Sheldon, who has a history with Caitlin Clark because they played against each other in the Big 10. Sheldon at Ohio State. Of course, Caitlin Clark at Iowa had poked Caitlin Clark in the eye.

Going back to the rookie year, you had Kennedy Carter, who's a black woman, hip checking Caitlin Clark cheap shot. And of course, the DiJonai Carrington story with DiJonai Carrington, as she said, accidentally hitting Caitlin Clark in the eye and DiJonai is black.

TAPPER: Uh-huh.

BRENNAN: It's 74 percent Black league, you're going to have Black players. You have white players, clearly. So, no, I don't think you can make this racial. Two of those four, five stories I just told you about were white women.

TAPPER: Yeah. Caitlin Clark, after the Alyssa Thomas incident last month, said it's the refs that need to do better. Do you agree?

BRENNAN: Yes, absolutely. They are part-time, and I think this is something that a lot of people don't realize. The WNBA referees are part-time, and Caitlin Clark said last week that she said, let's pay them. Let's have them be full-time. And I think that's something that, whatever, in terms of what's going

on with Congress, I think we can all agree that the WNBA referees are not doing a good job.

TAPPER: So, one of the, you know, cheap seats criticisms of this all is Caitlin Clark comes in, and I think it's fair to say, there's been a groundswell of interest in WNBA because of her. And this is a league where a straight woman and a white woman coming in and being the superstar might understandably provoke resentment from players who are neither white nor straight.

Is that fair at all?

BRENNAN: Dr. Harry Edwards, you may well be aware of him, a civil rights advocate, a Black man, the man behind the 1968 Mexico City Black Power protest salute by the two U.S. printers back in '68. Harry Edwards, I interviewed him for my book, and he loves Caitlin Clark.

And what he told me then, and it sadly applies now, is that the WNBA did not -- basically failed its players, did not prepare them, not because they're damsels in distress. Of course not, they're strong, tough Title IX athletes. They've graduated from college, but because this was so unusual, the workplace situation, Jake, 74 percent Black league.

In the book, I say about a third gay. We don't know for sure.

TAPPER: Sure.

BRENNAN: Caitlin Clark, white woman, obviously straight, as you said, comes into that league, and the WNBA was completely unprepared for this moment. These are the words again of Harry Edwards. And I think they're instructive because what should have happened, which should be the next question, what he said was have seminars, have Zoom calls. He would have been happy to talk to players.

These are the women -- I've covered the WNBA and women's basketball since the nineties. These are the women again, majority Black league that never got the attention they deserve --

TAPPER: Right.

BRENNAN: -- from the white male-dominated mainstream sports media. And now the spotlight is on them because, of course, Caitlin Clark, who's terrific player, logo threes, chucking it from the parking lot, the passes, the pace. Everything about her is the leading scorer, male or female in NCAA Division one basketball.

Now, here she comes and this is a workplace situation that, as Harry Edwards says, is something that could have been anticipated. Unfortunately, never was. And now, here we are, three years, three seasons into it, Jake, and some of these exact same issues are still there.

TAPPER: Yeah, and just to be clear, I'm not justifying anything. I'm just trying to understand why this might happen. Christine Brennan, as always, fascinating having you here. Thank you

so much.

Your favorite summer berries and salads might be to blame for a parasite outbreak that causes -- let's say some uncomfortable moments at the BBQ. Some advice on what to avoid. That's next.

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[18:59:01]

TAPPER: Our last lead start in our health lead. Cases of the gut- churning parasite that causes debilitating bouts of diarrhea are climbing; 1,200 of the 1,400 cases of cyclosporiasis have been reported in Michigan. At least 40 people have been hospitalized. The good news is it does not pass from person to person, but you can get it from eating contaminated food or swimming in a pool with the parasite. Experts say stay vigilant about cooking vegetables and washing produce, and even consider avoiding high-risk foods such as raspberries and basil and salad mixes.

And our pop culture lead, Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler has died at the age of 75. She was best known for her '80s power ballad, "Total Eclipse of the Heart".

(MUSIC)

TAPPER: A statement on Tyler's website says her family and her team are heartbroken and that she passed away last night unexpectedly.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts now. See you tomorrow.