Here is the thing about secrets in Washington D.C. They aren't secrets because they are hard to find; they are secrets because the **Department of Justice (DOJ)** wants them to be. We are watching a game of hide-and-seek, but only one side is playing. The latest chapter in this sad, pathetic story involves the ghost that just won’t vanish: **Jeffrey Epstein**.

We all know the story. A rich guy had an island, a private plane, and a lot of very famous, very powerful friends. He committed terrible crimes against young girls. Then, conveniently, he died in a jail cell. Case closed? Wrong. The **Epstein court documents** never close when the rich and powerful are involved. They just get buried under a mountain of paper and black ink.

Now, we have two lawmakers making noise regarding the release of the **Epstein list**. And this is the weird part: It’s Rep. Thomas Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna. Massie is a budget-hawk Republican; Khanna is a Silicon Valley Democrat. These two usually agree on absolutely nothing. But here they are, teaming up to send a letter to the DOJ regarding **government transparency**.

What are they mad about? They say the DOJ is cheating. Congress passed a transparency law supposed to force the government to show us the **Epstein files**—the names, the dates, the ugly details. But the DOJ released the files with a giant black marker all over them. This is called "redacting." It sounds professional, but it’s censorship.

Massie and Khanna say the DOJ is redacting things "inappropriately." That is a polite way of saying the DOJ is lying. They are covering up names that don't need to be covered up, using "privacy" as a shield. But whose privacy? I doubt it is the victims'. No, when the government hides names in **sealed documents**, they are usually protecting their friends, the donors, and the people who go to the fancy dinner parties.

Think about how insulting this is. You pay for the Department of Justice. Your taxes pay for the salaries of the bureaucrats hiding this information. They work for you, in theory. But in reality, they treat you like a child who can't handle the truth. Or, more likely, they know that if you saw the truth, you would be grabbing pitchforks.

This situation proves a dark point about our country: The bureaucracy runs the show, not the voters. Massie and Khanna were elected. They passed a law. And yet, unelected lawyers at the DOJ can just say "No" and engage in **data suppression**. The permanent class of government workers protects the permanent class of wealthy elites.

It is easy to get excited about this letter. You might think, "Finally! Someone is fighting for us!" Don't hold your breath. Writing a letter in Washington is like shouting into a hurricane. The DOJ will probably write back using big words like "legal precedent" or "national security," and the black bars will stay on the pages.

This is the game. The secrets stay secret. The people who flew on that plane are still walking around free, running companies, and influencing laws. They are safe because the system was built to keep them safe. Massie and Khanna are right to be angry. The DOJ is ignoring the law. But in a corrupt system, being right just makes you annoying.

So, look at the blacked-out pages. Stare at them. That isn't just ink. That is a picture of who really owns this country. It isn't you.

***

### References & Fact-Check

* **Primary Source:** [BBC News: US lawmakers accuse justice department of 'inappropriately' redacting Epstein files](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn5gzepnw4lo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss) - *Verifies the bipartisan letter sent by Reps. Massie and Khanna regarding the implementation of the Epstein Files Disclosure Act.* * **Context:** The "Epstein Files Disclosure Act" was signed into law to facilitate the release of documents related to the Jeffrey Epstein criminal case, though the execution of this release remains contested by lawmakers citing excessive redaction.