What Epstein’s Assistant of 18 Years Lesley Groff Didn’t Tell Congress

Tara Palmeri joins Ari Melber on MSNBC to break down the House Oversight Committee's interview with Lesley Groff — Jeffrey Epstein's longtime assistant of 18 years, who booked girls, arranged their hotels, paid them over $1,000 for so-called "massages," and told them the "protocol" of being around Epstein. Now Groff claims she had no idea what was going on. Tara isn't buying it. Named as one of four unindicted co-conspirators in Epstein's 2008 non-prosecution agreement, Groff kept working for him even after his conviction for soliciting a minor, and was named again as a potential co-conspirator in 2019. Yet she was allowed to testify before Congress behind closed doors and not under oath — free to deny everything without repercussion. Alongside civil rights attorney Nancy Erika Smith, Tara argues that the wrong people are being dragged to the Hill: it's the women who facilitated the abuse being called, while the powerful men accused of it — Leon Black, Jes Staley, Prince Andrew, Harvey Weinstein, all named in U.S. Attorney Jeff Berman's barely-covered 86-page 2019 prosecution memo — walk free. The conversation digs into why none of Epstein's enablers were ever held accountable, the role pardon politics may be playing, and why the biggest scandal of our time is still unfolding behind closed doors. 0:00 – Tara on Ari Melber: who is Lesley Groff, Epstein's assistant of 18 years 1:41 – The 86-page 2019 indictment memo from U.S. Attorney Jeff Berman that's gone uncovered 3:02 – A non-prosecution agreement built on the claim she "didn't know anything" 5:09 – Tara on Jeff Berman's 2019 prosecution memo and the named co-conspirators 7:04 – Prosecutors focused on the women, not the men the victims accused 9:45 – Pizzagate, the believers, and the victims of the lie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices