Investigative reporter Tara Palmeri was tossed out of the RNC midterm convention in Texas and threatened with arrest just minutes after asking a GOP congressional candidate about Jeffrey Epstein, Palmeri reported Thursday in a first-hand account of the incident.
Palmeri, who was credentialed to cover the event, was accompanied by Epstein survivors when she interviewed congressional GOP nominee Robert Burke of Massachusetts about the Trump administration’s handling — and failings — regarding its publication of Epstein-related files.
“I asked Burke why so few of the Epstein files had been released and why there had been no additional prosecutions beyond Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. I asked why President Trump had opposed releasing the files,” Palmeri wrote.
“I also asked Burke whether, if elected, he would push for the files to be released. He said he would… The interview turned to the Republican Party’s handling of the Epstein files and Trump’s relationship with Epstein. At one point, Burke suggested that Trump had already gone to court over matters involving Epstein. We told him that was not the case.”
Palmeri said that she and Burke “shook hands at the end” and characterized the interview as cordial. Eight minutes later, however, Palmeri was approached by “at least three security personnel.”
“When security approached, they asked whether we were carrying signs,” Palmeri wrote. “I told them we were not. I explained that I was a credentialed member of the media and that the people accompanying me had been admitted as guests. We were carrying clear bags, and I pointed them out to security.”
Despite Palmeri’s explanation, she was instructed to leave the event and escorted out. She was told, she said, that her media credential was “revocable,” and later, once escorted outside, was told she was “barred from the facility” and that she “could be arrested for trespassing” if she returned.
“I asked an RNC official to explain what rule I had violated, why I had been removed and why my credential had been revoked. I also asked about the assertion that members of the group had been carrying signs,” Palmeri wrote. “As of publication, I have not received a response.”