Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) came out swinging during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, blasting President Donald Trump for what she described as an authoritarian-style attempt to block the release of Jeffrey Epstein-related files — and threatening members of Congress who support transparency.
Her comments followed reports that Trump’s White House signaled it would view congressional efforts to unseal Epstein documents as a “hostile act.” For Crockett, the message wasn’t just political—it was a threat.
“And right now, as we’re having these discussions, you know who’s trying to shut down members from voting in the way that they want to vote?” Crockett said during the hearing. “It’s the president who literally said he would look at anyone who decided that they were going to vote to release the Epstein files as hostile.”
For Crockett, that wasn’t just overreach — it was an outright attack on constitutional duty.
“That sounds like a threat of — as it relates to all First Amendment protections, in addition to the fact that it’s literally contravening our constitutional duty that we swore an oath to,” she continued, “because we don’t swear to an orange king. Instead, we have sworn an oath to the Constitution, and we were elected to represent the people that elected us.”
The Texas congresswoman drew a direct line between Trump’s stance on the Epstein files and his broader efforts to control speech and public institutions. She called out the former president for what she said was a years-long effort to politicize and punish anyone — or any institution — that didn’t serve his personal agenda.
“Trump is weaponizing his idea of free speech to force folks and companies to become his political puppets to promote his propaganda,” she said.
Crockett pointed to Republicans aligning with Trump to defund public media outlets like PBS and NPR, and highlighted his attempts to pull funding from schools over diversity initiatives.
“Trump has removed books discussing racial discrimination at U.S. military academies,” she said. “He’s tried to strip funding to schools across the country if they don’t remove materials that include discussions of racial discrimination or that promote diversity.”
“It’s Trump weaponizing the idea of free speech to force people, institutions, and companies to be his mouthpieces,” she added. “This ain’t free speech, it’s propaganda.”
Crockett’s sharp critique landed with a quote that has already begun to circulate widely online: “We don’t swear to an orange king.” It was more than a jab — it was a line in the sand, a warning against authoritarianism dressed up as populism.
Watch the video below.
Jasmine Crockett: "Trump is weaponizing the idea of free speech to force companies to promote his propaganda! This ain't free speech. We don't swear to an Orange King! We have sworn an oath to the Constitution!" pic.twitter.com/tJJl0Yd4vn
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) September 3, 2025
