It is almost impressive, really. You have to admire the sheer audacity of it. The **United States Department of Justice**, one of the most powerful organizations on the face of the planet, stood up this week and gave the world a giant shrug regarding the release of the **Jeffrey Epstein files**.

The scene was simple enough. Reporters were asking about the infamous documents—the files containing the names of the rich, the powerful, and the famous who associated with a monster. These are the records that victims have been begging to see for years. These victims want closure. They want the truth. They want the world to know who was hiding in the shadows while they suffered.

So, the reporters asked **Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche** about this directly. They told him the victims are frustrated with the **Justice Department**. They told him people are angry about the "process" taking so long. And what did Mr. Blanche say? Did he offer a heartfelt apology? Did he promise to work all night to fix the **DOJ delay**? No.

He said, "Same here."

"Same here." Just let those two words sink in for a moment.

Here we have a man who helps run the entire justice system of the United States. He has armies of lawyers, investigators, and clerks at his command. He has the keys to the filing cabinets. And yet, he looks at the people who were abused and traumatized, and he pretends he is in the same boat as them. He acts like he is just another helpless passenger waiting for a bus that never comes.

This is the classic move of the modern bureaucrat. They love to act like the "process" is a natural disaster, like a thunderstorm or an earthquake. They talk about red tape as if it is a vine that grew overnight and they just can't find their machetes. But the truth, which is always ugly, is that they built the red tape. They planted the vines. They locked the doors and then threw up their hands saying, "Oh dear, who has the key?"

It is insulting. To compare the frustration of a government lawyer to the frustration of a victim is a special kind of cruelty. One is waiting for paperwork; the other is waiting for their life to make sense again. But in the theater of American politics, everyone has to play the victim. Even the people in charge.

Then, of course, came the inevitable question about the President. Is the delay happening to protect **Donald Trump**? Is there a secret effort to keep his name out of the headlines? Mr. Blanche insisted, quite firmly, that there was no such effort. He denied it completely.

Well, what did we expect him to say? Did anyone really think he would walk up to the microphone and say, "Yes, actually, we are hiding things to help the boss"? Of course not. In this world, the denial is part of the script. It is as predictable as the sunrise.

Whether they are actively protecting the President or not almost doesn't matter anymore. The damage is done by the silence. The delay itself is the protection. Every day that passes is a win for the people in those files. Every week that goes by with more "reviewing" and "processing" is a victory for the guilty. Time is the best lawyer money can buy, and right now, the Justice Department is giving them plenty of it.

We are told to trust the system. We are told that justice is blind. But from where I am sitting, justice isn't blind; it is just moving very, very slowly on purpose. It is stalling. It is dragging its feet because the truth is inconvenient.

The wealthy and the connected do not play by the same rules as you or me. If a regular person commits a crime, the justice system moves like a lightning bolt. But when it involves the elite, suddenly everything becomes complicated. Suddenly, there are "sensitivities" and "protocols" and endless forms to fill out.

Mr. Blanche saying "Same here" is a perfect summary of the modern age. It is the sound of authority washing its hands of responsibility. It is the sound of a government that has forgotten who it works for. They look at the mess they created, they look at the people crying out for help, and they just shrug. They want us to believe they are trapped in the machine too. But we know better. They are the ones driving it.

***

### References & Fact-Check * **Primary Source**: [NBC News: Blanche acknowledges Epstein victims' frustrations, denies protecting Trump](https://www.nbcnews.com/video/blanche-acknowledges-epstein-victims-frustrations-denies-protecting-trump-256903749611) * **Key Event**: Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche addressed the delay in releasing Jeffrey Epstein-related materials during a press engagement. * **Context**: Blanche explicitly denied that the delays were intended to protect President Donald Trump, attributing frustrations to procedural constraints.