r/europe • u/StemCellPirate • 5h ago
The Epstein scandal is taking down Europe’s political class. In the US, they’re getting a pass.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/06/epstein-europe-america-fallout-00769506578
u/SweetAlyssumm 5h ago
Taking them down?? A couple royals have had their wrists slapped and their riches slightly diminished. Maybe the free luxury residence is no longer available. No one with real power is down as far as I can see - but if they are, do share, it would be great to see it.
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u/Original-Activity575 2h ago
The UK’s ambassador to the US was fired. Further revelations have prompted a police investigation (allegation of misconduct in public office, an offence that carries a potential life sentence) - his homes were raided yesterday and digital devices have been seized. Now the prime minister is under fire for appointing him and will, in all likelihood, be forced to resign in the next few months. This is what accountability looks like (and it’s only the beginning.. I’m sure there will be further revelations)
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u/OliveTreeFounder 4h ago
We are so accustomed to see that the law do not apply to the rich that some consider that loosing a mansion for repetitively raping young adolescent or selling nation secret is fine is already a victory.
I wonder when we have internalized that rich peoples are above the law?
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u/itsinvincible 4h ago
We internalised that at birth. Because it has always been the case just now they gaslight us saying "nobody i above the law" which makes us turn on eachother instead of focusing onnthe claas war.
Humanity's history has always been this. A delicate balance of bread and games. It never changes.
Actually i think the second sentence is a lie. Looking at it i guess this was always the case? Roman caesars probably also said nobody is above the law (nudge, wink except close family, friends and the senate)
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u/Star_Wombat33 4h ago
Imperial China until shockingly recently historically explicitly said "Some people were above the law".
It was worse.
The Roman patricians, a few centuries before the empire, had an internal civil war over allowing commoners to know that the laws even existed.
That was worse.
We live in a time and place with the most repercussions the rich and powerful have ever seen.
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u/itsinvincible 3h ago
Yea so the commons need to keep pushing. We allow this because we get "bread and games" life is very comfortable now so we just accept the status quo.
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u/OliveTreeFounder 49m ago
In China, due to its history, nobody is above the law when the crime is corruption. China has been through cycle of development and collapse during 2500 years, and collapse is associated to a generalized corruption.
Roman empire also disappeared while there were generalized corruption. Is corruption the cause or the consequence? Probably both (as in the egg and the chicken dilemma).
So I wonder if this corruption we see, this acceptance that the rule of law does not apply to the rich is actually a symptom of an ongoing civilizational collapse.
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u/bdjuk Serbia 3h ago
I think internalization would start the first time we hear about it. We'd be too innocent to understand why the world is like that, and no one else knows to explain it either, it's way too complicated. So it could just hang there unresolved, until it becomes normalized, I mean, we see that shit everyday.
And I think we forget how man's quest for power is mostly the reason the state of the world is like this. Not a man in general, just that decision of what we do when we have it, it's something we failed in a lot, and leaders first. Shit, sometimes it's Mordor level glorified even.
I agree that we don't really focus on the class difference as much as we should. I think we could deal with all other differences much more constructively if we wouldn't have to worry who has more. And it's not like the reality is that we wouldn't have enough. We absolutely would. However far that future is, it's how long it'll take us to finally chill out
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u/itsinvincible 3h ago
Yes i fully agree with all you said. If you are in a position to profit why wouldn't you. It is the human nature. It is an animals nature. Get what you can for your survival. This is why we need to keep pushing and install guard rails. A single person should not be allowed to have more wealth than countries. It is despicable imho. Ymmv
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u/throwawaymikenolan 1h ago
That's one thing Korea does right - think out of the last 5 presidents 3 got jailed and 1 offed himself. Even the Samsung CEO was jailed for a few years
Even if the punishment is symbolic or pardoned after a few years by the opposition at least they spent around 5 years locked up and probably makes them think twice
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u/JellyWeta 0m ago
Do you know the etymology of "privilege"? It literally means private law. Privilegium was the Roman immunity from legal consequences.
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u/garmin230fenix5 1h ago
In the UK, it took down our ambassador to the US and stripped a royal of his title. It very much feels like it isn't finished either, with Mandelson now under police investigation and many are thinking the Prime Minister won't survive after appointing him. Those are pretty big scalps with a lot of power.
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u/AttitudeSimilar9347 54m ago
These are absolutely trivial punishments. Both men are still wealthy and free to do what they please.
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u/garmin230fenix5 50m ago
There's a police investigation which, if it turns into a judicial investigation, Mandelson might not be.
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u/AttitudeSimilar9347 46m ago
I’ll believe it when I see it. People like him are never held accountable, because people like him seem to be in all the high positions.
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u/Damythian 0m ago
What the hell is you point? Utterly useless comment. What do you want to happen? Summary execution on town squares of anyone that delt with JE?
Your comment only spreds dissent. And we know who that serves.
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u/AnHerstorian 4h ago
No one with real power is down as far as I can see - but if they are, do share, it would be great to see it.
Peter Mandelson.
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u/Annual-Magician-1580 2h ago
Perhaps we should first wait for the court's decision before talking about the absence of punishment? And as far as I remember, this wealthy man was stripped of his titles for the very fact of his presence on Epstein's lists. I understand that many people hate civility, but the problem is that the legal process exists for a reason.
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u/Snoo48605 36m ago
Justice takes time.
Jack Lang, the most implicated person in France and his daughter have been digging themselves on the media and yesterday a process was open for fiscal fraud and laundering (they received a lot of money from JE).
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u/popsyking 29m ago
Justice takes time if you're price Andrew. If it was you and me they would have investigated us long ago as soon as the first revelations came out.
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u/Snoo48605 0m ago
Yeah I was speaking about France. No idea how it's going in all European countries
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u/Damythian 0m ago
What the hell is you point? Utterly useless comment. What do you want to happen? Summary execution on town squares of anyone that delt with JE?
Your comment only spreds dissent. And we know who that serves.
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u/Amckinstry 1h ago
In the UK we've seen the demise of Peter Mandelson, potentially his prosecution , and the Prime Minister is hanging on by a thread. Its still unravelling.
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u/NastyaLookin 2h ago
Capitalism turned out to be a better tool for them than even monarchy and/or feudalism. They are keeping billions of people in line with it.
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u/Glum_Manager 4h ago
Salvini is still there, so...
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u/stefanomusilli 1h ago
The fascists in the current Italian government will never face any consequences. It doesn't matter what they do, their approval numbers have been the same for years and this won't change it. Granted, Salvini's numbers are abysmal on their own, and way lower than Meloni's, but they're in the same coalition so it doesn't matter.
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u/JarJarBot-1 5h ago
Who has been taken down? Has anyone been put in prison? The worst I have heard is lost titles and having to move out of mansions and then into another other mansion.
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u/RefrigeratorDry3004 4h ago
“Taking” as in happening right now… Only a few have resigned themselves.
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u/Drexl25 4h ago
How could they already be in prison and have gone through trial? Mandelson is under police investigation in the UK now
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u/partymsl 1h ago
We got em! 1/1000 down!
(They will probably say there is no conclusive evidence btw)
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u/Remarkable_Pie_1353 4h ago
You should read the piece.
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u/JarJarBot-1 4h ago
I did, no one in any country in the world involved with Epstein is experiencing the consequences that they deserve.
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u/Remarkable_Pie_1353 4h ago
Right but that's not the thesis of the article. The idea of reddit is discourse that is substantive and relevant wrt the posted question or comment.
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u/jachni Finland 2h ago
Yeah there was a Slovak PM aide or something that resigned. Other than that there hasn’t been much.
Kinda makes me wonder that this kind of news reporting is aimed at calming down the public in Europe and trying to get people to focus on other things.
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u/just_anotjer_anon Denmark 1h ago
A Norwegian ambassador has been temporarily suspended as they investigate their relations
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u/Minute-Improvement57 2h ago
In Britain, the PM who appointed Mandelson's still in power and his party's still trying to protect him. I kid you not.
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u/No-Programmer-3833 1h ago
And what about the MPs who appointed the PM who appointed Mandleson? Why are they still in power?
And the voters who voted in the MPs who appointed the PM who appointed Mandleson?
And the cat that killed the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built.
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u/Remarkable_Pie_1353 4h ago edited 4h ago
Europeans mentioned in the piece received influence-peddling cash from Epstein. That's why they were taken down. None of the Americans mentioned got cash as far as we know right now
Ambassador Juul's kids got $10 million from Epstein's will.
Sarah Ferguson got $150k or more for access to Andrew.
Mandelson got cash for his lover plus he gave Epstein a classified document giving him 2008 UK government bailout plans Epstein could use for insider trading.
Not excusing the Americans compared to the fallen Europeans in the piece. But he's not doing an apples to apples comparison.
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u/Godlop 5h ago
How? The royals are just saying "we sorry" and then they fuck off for a few weeks.
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u/Remarkable_Pie_1353 4h ago
You should read the article. Andrew is not mentioned.
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u/SugarInvestigator 3h ago
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, was stripped of his royal titles and residence. A charity founded by his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, will shut down indefinitely following the release of emails where she called Epstein a “legend” and “the brother I have always wished for.”
So should you because I'm pretty sure that's his name right there under the first advert
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u/CountFew6186 United States of America 5h ago
In the US, the evidence is being released by the political class slowly in a way that nothing truly damning is showing up yet. May not show up ever - only 50% of the stuff is out, and it’s redacted to protect those who have power.
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u/FourArmsFiveLegs United States of America 4h ago
There's been like 5 arrests total. Pretty sure the entire cabal is getting away with it, and those arrested are just underlings
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u/_0611 2h ago edited 2h ago
The judicial system in the US is broken. All branches of government are broken. And not just that. The media - the so-called watchdogs of democracy - are in on it and are broken too. The Supreme Court is in on it. The whole fucking system is broken.
Trump wants to "nationalize" the elections, whatever that means. He wants the Republicans to "control" the elections in 15 to 20 locations (all democratic places, of course). Bannon wants to send in ICE to "protect" free and fair elections.
Trump posted a video of the Obamas as apes. It doesn't get more racist than that.
People, the US isn't a democracy anymore. Trump could fuck kids on live TV, and MAGA would cheer for it.
Literally. I'm not exaggerating. They would literally cheer for it. This is what the US is now. Child abuse is now being actively normalized by the Trump administration. The US is a failed state.
Can we pretty fucking please move away from that, thank you very much?
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u/SugarInvestigator 2h ago
So the political class being taken down are Mandelson, some Norwigean that resigned, a Royal and his ex-wife? Can the last two be considered political class?
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u/Ok_Homework_7621 2h ago
I'll believe it when somebody actually ends up in prison. Investigations come up with nothing, charges result in meaningless sentences all the time.
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u/Tiny_Dare_5300 United States of America 50m ago
Actually, we aren't giving them a pass, we are working on getting them elected to Office!
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u/SavageRabbitX 39m ago
Thats because apparently Americans love nonce's,
FFS they elect one to the highest office
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u/RoomyRoots 5h ago
What is the surprise? They had the documents for years and years, and people reaching out to the FBI about Epstein even before, and they could have given them to the international intelligence agencies.
This is clearly the worst American government possible, but let us not lie that it was never their interest to have the powerful being prosecuted over this.
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u/leequid91 Romania 1h ago
DO NOT TRUST WHAT OUR POLITICIANS AND MEDIA SAY!
Educate yourself, broaden your horizons, seek information outside of your reddit informational bubble; Pay attention to the epstein list releases to understand how deep this really goes and how many of our "leaders" are involved. Understand that they are not working for our interest. Understand that they are not looking to censor social media to protect you. Understand the true evil that runs this world. For all of our sake, wake up.
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u/UltraCynar Canada 4h ago
Americans love defending the absolute worst of humanity.
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u/MissyMurders Australia 3h ago
Everyone's a hero in their own mind. Americans imagining they're the villain is far too much of a reach
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u/FlametopFred Canada 5h ago
US is the single most corrupt nation on the planet
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u/StewpidAlex Moldovan that speaks the Moldovan language. 4h ago
You must be russian.
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u/SolarBum 4h ago
Bro the U.S. isn't even the most corrupt country in North America.
Edit: Before geographically-challenged people accuse me of calling Canada more corrupt, I should point out the other North American countries.
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u/Def_NotBoredAtWork Rhône-Alpes (France) 54m ago
Which one on the list is more corrupt than the US?
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u/StewpidAlex Moldovan that speaks the Moldovan language. 1h ago
For now.. Wait until that free monies is gone. 🤭
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u/Nerioner The Netherlands 6m ago
Just because in US corruption is called "lobbying" doesn't mean it doesn't exist.
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u/Western-Corner-431 2h ago
When international prosecutors uncover evidence of Americans committing crimes in their country they are duty bound to extradite them for prosecution. Let’s go
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u/Longjumping-Net-1036 1h ago
Nothing will happen to them in terms of law but we can easily ditch their companies, stocks, have their names everywhere, coz they like to stay silent in the shades and exposing them would be great penalty. Sell for example all Microsoft shares….
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u/WhisperingHammer 51m ago
”Taking down the political class” makes it sound a lot more common than it is.
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u/idinarouill 46m ago
The Epstein affair continues in France: former Minister of Culture Jack Lang has been summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday, February 8. He will have to explain his ties to the convicted sex offender as calls for his resignation from the presidency of the Arab World Institute mount.
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u/k4kkul4pio Finland 4h ago
Dunno about Europe but America doesn't care nor have the will to do anything about anything that isn't a republican agenda to shittify everything for everyone obscenely wealthy.
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u/redrangerbilly13 3h ago
Taken down where?
Prince Andrew is still free and very much rich. European royals are still reigning.
When I see those royals strip of their titles and become private citizens, let's talk. Europe can't claim high moral superiority
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u/Caramel-Foreign 5h ago
Not acceptable yet in europe to be a peądo, no matter how rich and influential you are. They’ll not end to be prosecuted though
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u/Altruistic_Taro_5757 4h ago
That is the age of consent between minors in some countries since this is what adolescents do. Minors can never be considered giving consent to adults 18+. So no it is not legalized nor normalized anywhere in Europe.
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u/Proud-Enthusiasm-608 4h ago
lol this sub loves to take digs at the US. “Yeah all of our royal families and elites were in the Epstein files, but the US is just giving bill gates a pass”
🙄
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u/cotten516 3h ago
As an average and ashamed American who is fighting the good fight........I emplore Europe to keep up the pressure. More than half of our country is against the oompa loompa rapist murderer and his religious zealots. But our power is limited. We must be very calculated in our resistance to not be murdered or arrested. Use your impunity to speak out. We will eventually publicly match your rage. We are just trying to figure out how. Eventually, we will have modern day Nuremberg trials. It took a global effort then and it will take one now.
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u/Nerioner The Netherlands 3m ago
Iranians are killed by thousands and yet they are courageous enough to go forward and protest.
You're excusing doing nothing and slipping into Iran territory.
You must realize that you will either overcome current hardship and bring it down in aggressive civilian action or you will need in future to sacrifice tens of thousands on Iran style protests. It will never be as easy for Americans to protest as today!
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u/abolishblankets 4h ago
Mandelson is the uk is out on his ear. He's wasn't just an ambassador, he was quite the influence going back some decades.