‘Do You Know About This?’: Trump Whispers to Hegseth In Meeting On Ukraine
President Donald Trump held his sixth Cabinet meeting of this year and addressed several major topics, particularly his administration’s response to the devastating flooding in Texas.
After delivering brief remarks, Trump took a few questions from reporters in the room. Several of the initial questions were about the “Big Beautiful Bill,” the war between Russia and Ukraine, the recent U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear facility, and the deadly flooding in Texas.
A reporter asked the president about accusations that Russia had deployed chemical weapons in Ukraine. According to Dutch and German intelligence, Russian soldiers have used drone-launched choking chemicals to push Ukrainians out of trenches and shoot them. The United States accused Russia of deploying chemical weapons last year.
The reporter noted the Dutch and German intelligence findings and asked Trump, “What does U.S. intelligence believe and what do you believe about the use of chemical weapons?”
As she spoke, Trump leaned back in his chair and slowly turned to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who was to the president’s left.
“Do you know about this, Pete?” Trump whispered as the reporter kept speaking.
“John might know,” Hegseth replied, referring to CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
“I’d ask John, maybe, to discuss it, if you’d like,” Trump told the reporter. “John?”
“Mr. President, obviously, chemical weapons – if it’s documented and it’s used – it’s illegal,” Ratcliffe replied to the president. “It’s against all international laws of armed conflict and treaties. And obviously, I can’t share in this room with this audience, the intelligence that I can share with you, privately. But obviously, you’re not gonna stand or allow for any violations of international law by anyone.”
“That’s right,” Trump responded. “Thank you.”
WATCH:
Another big moment from the meeting came when a reporter asked Attorney General Pam Bondi about the Department of Justice issuing a statement claiming there was no proof that the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein retained a “client list” or was killed.
The memo said investigators found “no incriminating ‘client list’” and “no credible evidence … that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals.”
A reporter asked, “Could you say why there was a minute missing from the jailhouse tape on the night of his death?”
Bondi responded, “In February, I did an interview on FOX. It been getting a lot of attention because I said — I was asked a question about the client list. My response was, it’s sitting on my desk to be reviewed. Meaning the file along with the J.F.K. And M.L.K. Files. That’s what I meant.”
“The minute missing from the video, we released the video showing … the video was not conclusive, but the evidence prior to it was showing he committed suicide,” she added.
WATCH:
BREAKING: AG Pam Bondi responds to why a minute was missing in the Jeffrey Epstein prison video, Trump says talking about Epstein is a waste of time.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 8, 2025
Reporter: Could you say why there was a minute missing from the jailhouse tape on the night of his death?
Trump: Are you still… pic.twitter.com/uUGH16TW0m
The Department of Justice has released previously unseen surveillance footage from the night Jeffrey Epstein died in federal custody—but skeptical viewers are already questioning the official narrative.
The video, published Monday by the DOJ and FBI, shows the hallway outside Epstein’s cell at the now-closed Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan on the night of August 9, 2019.
The footage, according to federal officials, confirms that no one entered or exited the area between 10:40 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. when Epstein’s death occurred.
However, online sleuths identified a glaring omission in the footage just hours after its release: a full minute appears to be missing.
In the video’s timestamp, the footage jumps from 11:58:59 p.m. straight to 11:59:59 p.m., entirely skipping the 59 seconds in between.
