Columnist slams the system that let Jeffrey Epstein off easy: 'You can buy your way out of the most disgusting of crimes'
On Wednesday's edition of MSNBC's "All In," columnist Michelle Goldberg, who recently wrote an article for The New York Times on the issue, slammed the criminal justice system for allowing billionaire wealth manager and accused child sex predator Jeffrey Epstein to take a sweetheart deal.
"One thing I noticed about Jeffrey Epstein's arrest that it created, at least initially, a rare moment of relative trans-ideological unity," said host Chris Hayes. "Epstein seems to be the perfect example of a certain kind of elite impunity, those in power getting away with things, and that has been one of the defining features of our era and an engine of discontent and anti-establishment behavior that continues to royal all politics to this day."
"Right," said Goldberg. "And it keeps getting more and more so, right, when you read about this private island that he had, never mind the bizarre temple it seems he built on this island. But the fact that it was known locally as pedophile island, and yet as far as we know, it was never searched. And, you know, the thing about Jeffrey Epstein is this was out in the open before his arrest, right? Donald Trump was famously quoted saying, 'you know, he likes beautiful women as much as I do, many of them on the younger side.' It was kind of a wink, wink, nudge, nudge thing."
"And then he goes to jail and he comes out," said Goldberg. "And he is not shunned, right? He is shunned by some people, but he is still having dinner he is still walking around Manhattan as if this was just a little kind of a traffic skirmish or something. I think one of the grim and horrific lessons of our politics in recent years is that you can buy your way out of the most disgusting of crimes."
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