Sunday, September 21, 2025

 

Cardboard and earth reshape sustainable construction


Engineers in Australia have developed a new building material with about one quarter of concrete’s carbon footprint, while reducing waste going to landfill.




RMIT University

Facebook
XLinkedInWhatsAppEmail
Dr Jiaming Ma 

image: 

Image of study lead author Dr Jiaming Ma holding the cardboard-confined rammed earth material.

view more 

Credit: RMIT University






Engineers in Australia have developed a new building material with about one quarter of concrete’s carbon footprint, while reducing waste going to landfill.

This innovative material, called cardboard-confined rammed earth, is composed entirely of cardboard, water and soil – making it reusable and recyclable.

In Australia alone, more than 2.2 million tons of cardboard and paper are sent to landfill each year. Meanwhile, cement and concrete production account for about 8% of annual global emissions.

Cardboard has previously been used in temporary structures and disaster shelters, such as Shigeru Ban’s iconic Cardboard Cathedral in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Inspired by such designs, the RMIT University team has, for the first time, combined the durability of rammed earth with the versatility of cardboard.

Why it matters

Lead author Dr Jiaming Ma from RMIT said the development of cardboard-confined rammed earth marked a significant advancement toward a more sustainable construction industry.

“Modern rammed earth construction compacts soil with added cement for strength. Cement use is excessive given the natural thickness of rammed earth walls,” he said.

But cardboard-confined rammed earth, developed at RMIT University, eliminates the need for cement and boasts one quarter of the carbon footprint at under one third of the cost, compared to concrete.

“By simply using cardboard, soil and water, we can make walls robust enough to support low-rise buildings,” Ma said.

“This innovation could revolutionise building design and construction, using locally sourced materials that are easier to recycle.

“It also reflects the global revival of earth-based construction fuelled by net zero goals and interest in local sustainable materials.”

Practical benefits

The cardboard-confined rammed earth can be made on the construction site by compacting the soil and water mixture inside the cardboard formwork, either manually or with machines.

Study corresponding author and leading expert in the field of structural optimisation, Emeritus Professor Yi Min ‘Mike’ Xie, said this advancement can spearhead a leaner, greener approach to construction.

“Instead of hauling in tonnes of bricks, steel and concrete, builders would only need to bring lightweight cardboard, as nearly all material can be obtained on site,” Xie said.

“This would significantly cut transport costs, simplify logistics and reduce upfront material demands.”

Ma said cardboard-confined rammed earth could be an effective solution for construction in remote areas, such as regional Australia, where red soils – ideal for rammed earth construction – are plentiful.

“Rammed earth buildings are ideal in hot climates because their high thermal mass naturally regulates indoor temperatures and humidity, reducing the need for mechanical cooling and cutting carbon emissions,” he said.

The mechanical strength of the novel material varies based on the thickness of the cardboard tubes.

Ma said the team has developed the formula for this strength design.

"We've created a way to figure out how the thickness of the cardboard affects the strength of the rammed earth, allowing us to measure strength based on cardboard thickness,” Ma said.

In a separate study lead by Ma, carbon fibre was combined with rammed earth, proving it had a comparable strength to high-performance concrete.

Ma and the team are ready to partner with various industries to further develop this new material so it can be used widely. Companies looking to partner with RMIT researchers can contact research.partnerships@rmit.edu.au.

‘Cardboard-confined rammed earth towards sustainable construction’, with RMIT co-authors Jiaming Ma, Hongru Zhang, Vahid Shobeiri, Ngoc San Ha, Srikanth Venkatesan, Dilan Robert and Yi Min ‘Mike’ Xie, is published in Structures. (DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.110117)

‘CFRP-confined rammed earth towards high-performance earth construction’ is published in Composite Structures. (DOI: 10.1016/j.compstruct.2025.119512)

Journal

Structures

DOI

10.1016/j.istruc.2025.110117 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Cardboard-confined rammed earth towards sustainable construction

Article Publication Date

16-Sep-2025






Image of the RMIT-based research team. L–R: Hongru Zhang, Jiaming Ma, Dilan Robert and Ngoc San Ha.





Image of a cardboard-confined rammed earth column and CFRP-confined rammed earth column.




An RMIT-created cardboard-confined rammed earth column.





An RMIT-created cardboard-confined rammed earth column..


Credit
RMIT University



Posted by at No comments:
Airport cyberattack disrupts more flights across Europe


Associated Press
Sun, September 21, 2025 


Check-in counters at a terminal at Berlin's Brandenburg airport, in Schönefeld, Germany, Saturday Sept. 20, 2025, after a cyberattack targeting check-in and boarding systems disrupted air traffic at several major European airports. (Carsten Koall/dpa via AP)More


BRUSSELS (AP) — Fallout from a cyberattack that disrupted check-in systems at several European airports extended into a second full day on Sunday, as passengers faced dozens of canceled and delayed flights — and the impact poised to worsen for at least one major airport.

Brussels Airport, seemingly the hardest hit, said it asked airlines to cancel nearly 140 departing flights scheduled for Monday because a U.S.-based software system provider “is not yet able to deliver a new secure version of the check-in system.” The airport said 25 outbound flights were canceled on Saturday and 50 on Sunday.

Starting late Friday, airports in Berlin, Brussels and London were hit by disruptions to electronic systems that snarled up check-in and sent airline staffers trying options like handwriting boarding passes or using backup laptops. Many other European airports were unaffected.

The cyberattack affected software of Collins Aerospace, whose systems help passengers check in, print boarding passes and bag tags, and dispatch their luggage. The U.S.-based company on Saturday cited a “cyber-related disruption” to its software at "select” airports in Europe.

It was not immediately clear who might be behind the cyberattack, but experts said it could turn out to be hackers, criminal organizations or state actors.

The European Commission, the executive branch of the 27-nation European Union, said that aviation safety and air traffic control were unaffected. There was currently no indication of a widespread or severe attack, while the origin of the incident remained under investigation, it added.

Half of Monday's flights from Brussels Airport canceled

While departure boards for London's Heathrow and Berlin's Brandenburg airports were showing signs of smoother arrivals and departures on Sunday, Brussels Airport was still facing considerable issues.

Brussels Airport said in an email Sunday that it had asked airlines to cancel half of the 276 scheduled departing flights on Monday, “because Collins Aerospace is not yet able to deliver a new secure version of the check-in system.” Cancellations and delays will continue as long as manual check-in is necessary, it said.

RTX Corp., the parent company of Collins Aerospace, did not immediately respond to two emails Sunday seeking comment.

On Saturday, the aviation and defense technology company said in a statement that it was working to resolve the issue: “The impact is limited to electronic customer check-in and baggage drop and can be mitigated with manual check-in operations.”

Brussels Airport said it nonetheless was able to maintain 85% of scheduled departures over the weekend thanks to the deployment of extra staff by airport partners “and the fact that self bag drop and online check-in are still operational.”

The cyberattack affected only computer systems at check-in desks, not self-service kiosks, airport spokesperson Ihsane Chioua Lekhli said, and teams were turning to alternative backup systems and pulling out laptop computers to help cope with the impact.

The airports advised passengers to check the status of their flights before traveling to the airports, and using alternative check-in methods.

“Work continues to resolve and recover from Friday’s outage of a Collins Aerospace airline system that impacted check-in,” a Heathrow statement said. “We apologize to those who have faced delays, but by working together with airlines, the vast majority of flights have continued to operate.”
Posted by at No comments:
Trump’s Canadian Ambassador Blames Canada for Not Being MAGA

Adam Downer
Sat, September 20, 2025
DAILY BEAST


           


America’s Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra is “disappointed” that Canadians don’t like America all that much.

“I’m disappointed that I came to Canada, a Canada (where) it is very, very difficult to find Canadians who are passionate about the American-Canadian relationship,” said Hoekstra during a luncheon with the Halifax Chamber of Commerce.

Hoekstra, 71, was the Michigan GOP chair before his appointment to the ambassadorship in April. His comments came the day after he said he was saddened Canada wasn’t excited about working with America on topics in their mutual national interests.

“Whether it’s energy, whether it’s automotive, whether it’s nuclear, defense and all of those types of things, we were hoping that we would not just renegotiate CUSMA, but that we could take it into being something much bigger,” he said, referring to the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement that deals with free trade between the three nations.

“It’s obvious, at least at this point in time, that that’s not going to happen,” he said.

Hoekstra took particular issue with Canada’s “Elbows Up” campaign, a grassroots campaign of national solidarity that sprung up as a result of the Trump administration’s tariffs on Canada and President Trump’s suggestions that Canada become the 51st state. The phrase “Elbows Up” comes from hockey, and it means to skate with one’s elbows up to repel checks from opposing players. It was used frequently by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on the campaign trail.

“‘Elbows up’... was an anti-American campaign. That has continued. That’s disappointing,” said Hoekstra.

Canadian government officials haven’t exactly voiced remorse for the country’s anti-American unity in recent months. On Wednesday, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the Trump administration’s 35% tariffs on Canadian goods have forced the country to “reinvent” its economy.

“It is sad, I would say, that our largest trading partner turned its back on Canada, which has led to us having to reassess how we’re going to build the economy of the future,” he said.

Canada dropped some its retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods in August, but it maintains a 25% tariff rate on U.S. cars, steel and aluminum.

Carney has voiced that he’s open to reopening the door for the United States to improve its trade policies with Canada.

“We have the ambition, but a deal is a deal, and a deal has to go for both sides, and Canada will agree to a deal that’s in the best interest of Canadians,” said Carney.

“It should not surprise anyone, including the U.S. ambassador.”


Canadian politicians, experts push back against U.S. ambassador's anti-Americanism concerns

CBC
Sat, September 20, 2025 


U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra said Thursday in Halifax he is disappointed that he's found so few Canadians are willing to speak positively about the United States. 
(Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press - image credit)


Canadian politicians and experts are pushing back against U.S. ambassador Pete Hoekstra's frustration over the anti-American sentiment he's seen in Canada after U.S. President Donald Trump hit the world with tariffs.

"When you kick the dog, you can't blame it for snarling back," said Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association and member of the prime minister's Canada-U.S. relations council.

"It's gaslighting 101," Volpe added. "You probably should get someone to tell him a little bit more about how to properly do Canada-U.S. diplomacy, but I'm not sure he'd listen."

On Thursday, Hoekstra said at an event hosted by the Halifax Chamber of Commerce he's "disappointed that I came to Canada — a Canada that it is very, very difficult to find Canadians who are passionate about the American-Canadian relationship."

"You ran a campaign where it was anti-American, elbows up, me too. You know, that was an anti-American campaign. That has continued. That's disappointing," Hoekstra said.

Volpe said Hoekstra "knows exactly what he's doing when he makes those statements.… This is his style. I don't know what his objective is, but maybe his audience is actually in Washington rather than across this country."

"I try to ignore his rhetoric," Volpe said.

Stephen Marche, a Canadian novelist and host of the Gloves Off podcast, told CBC's The House that Hoekstra "is the person you send to a country to alienate it. He is a person who obviously has no interest in maintaining really decent U.S.-Canadian relations."

"I think we need to steadily ignore him," Marche added, echoing Volpe's sentiments.

Canadians will react to attacks, says Andrew Scheer

In an interview on Rosemary Barton Live that airs Sunday morning, Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer said any time a foreign country slaps tariffs or raises the idea of annexation, "of course Canadians are going to react negatively to that."

"We are different, we are distinct. I don't like to define Canada in the negative. I like to define Canada in the positive," Scheer told host Rosemary Barton. "We're more than just not being American. We have a proud history."

On Thursday, Hoekstra also pointed to a Canadian cabinet minister's "war" references as not helping relations between the two countries.


Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer says Canada has 'a proud history' and Canadians will react negatively to foreign countries slapping tariffs of raising the idea of annexation. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne used the word "war" multiple times this week while talking about how Canada is trying to re-invent the Canadian economy like it did back in 1945 after the Second World War.

"We've been there during the war when it came to aluminum, we've been there during the war when it came to steel," Champagne told reporters. "We've been there during the war when it came to work together with American friends and allies."

Hoekstra fired back saying using such language is "a dangerous place to go."

When asked for his thoughts on Hoekstra's comments, Champagne struck a diplomatic tone and told Barton "the tariffs have been impacting a number of works and sectors in Canada like we have not seen in a very long time or ever."

"So obviously this is deeply felt in Canada…. I think [Hoekstra] understands that Canadians have felt sad with what has happened. But at the same time, I'm sure he understands how much we have done together and will continue to do together."

Hoekstra defended Trump's tariffs by saying countries competing with Canada to sell products to the U.S. are facing higher rates.

"Your relative position has improved," he said. "And you, your cabinet describes this as a relationship that America has turned its back on."

In response, Volpe said, "I unfortunately only speak English and I don't understand what he's saying there. Everybody was better off nine months ago, including Canada."

"Maybe because he wasn't the ambassador nine ago he didn't know that, but he'd be hard-pressed to find anybody who has any relationship with data to agree with him."


U.S. ambassador to Canada says softwood solution will be 'very, very difficult'

BECAUSE IT IS A DECADES OLD BATTLE

CBC
Sat, September 20, 2025


Pete Hoekstra, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, answers questions at a chamber of commerce event in Fredericton on Friday.
 (Stephen MacGillivray/The Canadian Press - image credit)

Pete Hoekstra says he hopes the United States and Canada can strike a deal on softwood lumber, an issue that predates both of Donald Trump's terms in Washington.

"This is going to be a very, very difficult one to solve," Hoekstra, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, said Friday on a visit to New Brunswick that included an event at the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce.

"I think the focus will be resolving some other issues, finding out exactly how we do those to see if maybe after 40 years we can finally resolve softwood lumber."

New Brunswick is a big lumber exporter to the U.S. coming from producers like J.D. Irving.

When asked if the U.S. needs Canada's wood products, Hoekstra wasn't sure if the U.S. produced all the lumber it needs. He said the country "may need lumber or building materials from someone other than just the United States."

J.D. Irving said in a February press release that "more than 80 per cent of New Brunswick's forest products exports cross the U.S. border."

Those products include softwood and hardwood lumber, pulp and paper products, shingles, fibre and oriented strand board, and even Christmas trees.

Hoekstra stopped in Fredericton on Friday to meet with Premier Susan Holt and speak before the chamber of commerce.

Hoekstra said that Holt made her province's point about recently increased softwood lumber tariffs.

"She brought up her concern and her hope that we could reach an agreement on softwood lumber," he said. "Other than that, it's not for me to talk about her position. Ask her. But I mean … she's passionately wanting to open up markets."


Ron Marcolin is the divisional vice-president of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters. (Oliver Pearson/CBC)

In early August, the U.S. increased countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber to around 35 per cent.


Ron Marcolin, the divisional vice-president of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, attended the chamber of commerce event. He said he was glad to hear about the ambassador's interaction with Holt.

Marcolin also said that Hoekstra was forthright while on stage during the chamber of commerce event.

"He certainly told us what he thought. I mean, there is no beating around the bush. We now certainly know what, in fairness, we're up against."

He said his organization is Canada's largest and oldest trade and industry association. It represents many builders, including J.D. Irving.

Marcolin thinks the lumber tariffs are a way for the U.S. government to defend its own producers, who are losing market share, he said.

"Ultimately they're saying, 'OK, we need help from the U.S. government.' … Part of that help is [to] 'keep out those big, bad Canadians and let's tax them because they're a competitor,'" said Marcolin.


"Obviously, though, what they don't realize, and they don't want to admit is that Canadian wood is far superior to U.S. wood."

Marcolin did like Hoekstra's point to the crowd that the U.S. is always open for business.

"We are especially open for business with Canadians … I'm a marketing guy. I want your business," Hoekstra said.

























Posted by at No comments:
Epstein Victims Tear Into Kash Patel Over His Trafficking Claim

Janna Brancolini
Fri, September 19, 2025 
DAILY BEAST




A group of survivors who were victimized by Jeffrey Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell slammed FBI Director Kash Patel’s “shocking” testimony that the late sex offender only trafficked young girls to himself.

Patel faced two days of grilling this week before the Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Oversight Committee, becoming combative in response to bipartisan questions about President Donald Trump’s connections to Epstein.

He repeatedly deflected and tried to blame previous administrations—including officials who served during Trump’s first term—for the current administration’s failure to provide new revelations in the case.


President Trump and Jeffrey Epstein were close friends for more than a decade. / Davidoff Studios Photography / Getty Images

During an exchange Tuesday with Republican Sen. John Kennedy he also insisted there was “no credible information, none… that [Epstein] trafficked to other individuals,” a claim he repeated Wednesday in response to questioning from Rep. Thomas Massie.

In a joint statement provided to CNN’s Jake Tapper, 12 of Epstein and Maxwell’s victims said they were “shocked” by Patel’s testimony and were “struggling” to understand its meaning.

“Even the limited information that has been made public includes accounts such as Virginia Giuffre’s report that Epstein trafficked her to other individuals besides himself,” the statement said.

Giuffre, who died by suicide at age 41 in April, was one of Epstein’s most prominent victims. She said that Epstein introduced her to Prince Andrew, who sexually abused her. The prince has denied the claims, and reached an out-of-court settlement with her in 2022 that contained no admission of liability or an apology.

In their statement, the survivors noted that during witness interviews with the FBI, Epstein and Maxwell’s victims named at least 20 other men they were trafficked to, as Massie pointed out during Wednesday’s hearing.

During Patel’s testimony, the FBI director seemed to suggest that the reports naming other men were real, but that officials in previous administrations had deemed them not credible, the survivors continued.

“He has not read the reports himself; he has not spoken to the victims himself; and yet he plans to defer to unnamed officials from prior administrations who treated the reports as not credible?” the statement said.

“Those previous administrations are the ones that Kash Patel spent years accusing of a cover-up. Now he will pass the buck to them to decide that information about other men in the Epstein-Maxwell trafficking ring is not even worth following up on?”


Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who was one of Epstein's most high-profile accusers, met the late sex offender while working at President Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. / Miami Herald / TNS/Getty ImagesMore

There are victims and witnesses in the case who still have not even been interviewed, the survivors added.

The FBI declined to comment on the statement. The Daily Beast has also reached out to the Department of Justice for comment.

Trump was good friends for more than a decade with Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Officials ruled the death a suicide, but MAGA loyalists have claimed for years that Epstein was murdered to protect his powerful friends and clients.

During his re-election campaign, Trump vowed to release the FBI’s files in the case, only for the administration to announce in July that the evidence showed there was no “client list” and that Epstein had in fact died by suicide.


During Kash Patel's Senate testimony this week, Sen. Jaime Raskin (D-MD) displayed a birthday letter that President Trump allegedly wrote to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. / Annabelle Gordon / REUTERSMore

The findings sent Trump’s supporters into a tailspin and launched a new, bipartisan effort to release the files.

It also led to new scrutiny about Epstein’s relationship with Trump, who allegedly contributed a graphic drawing and poem to a book of letters that Maxwell assembled for Epstein’s 50th birthday.

Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence for luring, grooming and sexually abusing young girls for Epstein. In late July, Maxwell was moved to a minimum-security prison facility after she told the Department of Justice that Trump had never done anything “inappropriate”.


Kash Patel’s weird week

Kelli Wessinger, Sean Rameswaram
Sat, September 20, 2025 
VOX


FBI Director Kash Patel arrives to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on September 16, 2025, in Washington, DC. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Kash Patel has had a long week.

The FBI director and frequent social media poster faced scrutiny for how he handled the Charlie Kirk assassination investigation, including from members of his own party. Conservative activist Chris Rufo posted on X: “We would be wise to take a moment and ask whether Kash Patel has what it takes to get this done.”

Before he was President Donald Trump’s pick for FBI director, Patel was a lawyer and national security aide in Trump’s first term. Not only that, but he was a MAGA golden child, reported conspiracy theorist, and big-time critic of the FBI, wanting the headquarters shut down on day one, and reopened “the next day as a museum of the deep state.”

Patel had several stumbles early on in the Kirk investigation, posting on X that the FBI had someone in custody, only for officials in Utah to announce, around the same time, that they were still looking for the suspect. He was then called to Capitol Hill to testify in front of the Senate and the House, where he spent two days being grilled by lawmakers about the Epstein files, among other things.

To make sense of Patel’s recent blunders — and why Trump is backing him anyway — Today, Explained’s Sean Rameswaram talked to Axios White House reporter Marc Caputo.

Below is an excerpt of their conversation, edited for length and clarity. Listen to Today, Explained wherever you get podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and Spotify.
View Link

We’ve come to you today to ask you how happy the Republicans are with the job Kash Patel is doing. Clearly, Democrats on Capitol Hill, not very happy. How about Republicans?

The most prominent voice online criticizing Kash Patel’s performance was Chris Rufo. Rufo had, like a lot of people, just really disliked the performative nature of Patel online. And there are a few other conservatives in the administration who shared the belief. They just think that Patel is a little too much on Twitter or on X or on social media and sort of not more of your traditional hang-back, don’t-say-too-much FBI director.

What do they want to see Kash Patel doing as director of the FBI?

Just catching more bad guys. The big thing that is animating the right broadly is the idea that there are a number of leftist groups and organizations who are funneling money to violent, disruptive protests and illegal activity. And those need to be investigated, busted up, and the perpetrators of these alleged crimes brought to justice.

There are those who believe that the FBI has too many deep staters and more firings need to happen. What just happened prior to the murder of Charlie Kirk, there was a lawsuit filed by three former FBI agents who alleged that their firing was illegal and unlawful [that] portrayed Kash Patel as sort of bumbling in his job and not knowing what he’s doing.

That’s the sort of downside of the mass firings. The upside of the mass firings is that is what the conservative MAGA base wants. Pam Bondi, the attorney general, had sort of leapt to the fore with that. She got in office and dismissed a lot of people. Kash Patel hasn’t done as many firings, and in the MAGA mind, that has been a mistake.

A lot of people were worried that Trump was going to remake the FBI in his image, and that of course would be an image of not only a president, but a convicted felon. Has Kash Patel yet accomplished that or is that still to come or is it unclear?

Oh no, I think a lot of these agencies, bureaus, whatever you want to call them, they have career service employees who are harder to fire, harder to dismiss. They have their own culture, history, and institutions, and perhaps none as storied and as solid as the FBI. The ability to really change that is going to be difficult.

I’m not saying it’s not happening, but I know that people in Patel’s orbit have bemoaned how difficult it is to change things. One of them told me it’s like an asylum over here. So the “deep state” — I’m putting that in air quotes — is still resisting the Trump attempt to take over.

So it sounds like Kash Patel has lots of static with various people in this administration, with various people in the base. Does he have allies?

Among the people who wanted Kash Patel to become FBI director was Charlie Kirk. He advocated for him. Kirk had a very close relationship with Donald Trump, was very involved in the transition. Really, the closest person to Patel is Rick Grinnell, who was an ambassador and then the acting director of national intelligence during Trump’s first term, who is now a special envoy, including to Venezuela.

He and Kash Patel have a very close and good relationship. That was probably the closest thing to his upper-level sponsor. I understand from one source that Trump [last week] went golfing with Kash Patel and a Newsmax personality. So there was sort of a bonding moment there on the links with the president, and from what I’m told, all went well.

And of course, it’s only that person at the top who matters in this administration. How’s Trump feeling about Kash Patel, in light of recent events in Utah, the hearings on Capitol Hill this week?

Donald Trump likes a winner, and in Trump’s mind, they got the guy [who killed Charlie Kirk]. Kash Patel has made a good argument as to him owning a share of the responsibility or being able to claim credit for catching the suspect by releasing his photo early. And one of the things that you’ll look at and notice in conservative or right-wing press is a very clear and very smart campaign by Kash Patel and the various people at the FBI and his orbit to make sure that he’s getting credit for that. And who reads conservative media, conservative publications, and pays attention to conservative influencers? Donald Trump!

What is Kash Patel doing that Donald Trump likes? It certainly can’t just be that he raised his voice a bunch of times at Adam Schiff and Cory Booker this week on Capitol Hill.

Donald Trump likes his people engaged and active in the fight. When [New Jersey Democratic Sen.] Cory Booker comes out there and says, “Oh, you’re not going to be here much longer. You’re gonna get fired.” When Donald Trump hears something like that, “Oh, Cory Booker thinks he should go. Well, I guess I’m going to keep him.”

And then secondly, when Patel and Booker went at it, and there was a sort of shouting match and going back and forth, and he held his own. … Donald Trump likes that stuff. He wants people engaged in the fighting; he wants them to mix it up. He wants them to go after Democrats, counterpunch, and hit hard. And Kash Patel does that.

FBI's Kash Patel doesn't help Trump's Epstein problem | Opinion


Rex Huppke, USA TODAY
Sun, September 21, 2025 

It’s possible President Donald Trump should’ve picked a better podcaster to head up the FBI.

The current one, Kash Patel, has spent two days this week embarrassing himself in congressional testimony, childishly hollering at Democratic lawmakers like Sen. Adam Schiff and helping make Trump’s Jeffrey Epstein problem considerably worse.

During a Sept. 17 congressional hearing, Patel was pressed on the administration’s unwillingness to release the Epstein files, something Patel himself demanded when he wasn’t director of the FBI. Rather than give a direct answer, the former podcaster and longtime right-wing conspiracy theorist deflected, dissembled and hurled insults at Democrats on the committee.

Patel can't answer a simple yes-or-no question on Epstein files


FBI Director Kash Patel testifies in front of the House Judiciary Committee in Washington, DC, on Sept.17, 2025.

Asked by Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-California, whether he had ever told “the attorney general that Donald Trump’s name is in the Epstein files,” Patel refused to give a yes-or-no answer and eventually started reciting the alphabet, mocking Swalwell and saying he calls “bulls--t on your entire career in Congress.”

Classy, and just the kind of sober, respectful behavior Americans should expect from the director of the FBI.

Patel dissembled and distracted, but gave no clarity on the Epstein files


With the backdrop of social media posts by FBI Director Kash Patel, House Judiciary Committee Democratic leader Jamie Raskin questions the director at a hearing in Washington, DC, on Sept.17, 2025.

Throughout the hearing, Patel kept falling back on a claim that the Justice Department was limited in what it could release because of recent court orders.

“I’m not going to break the law to satisfy your curiosity,” Patel smugly told Rep. Jamie Raskin, the Democratic leader on the House Judiciary Committee.

Of course, Patel’s claim is not true. There have been court orders relating to grand jury testimony from the Epstein case, but those orders have nothing to do with the evidence in the hands of the FBI.


Judge says it's up to Washington to 'better inform the public' on Epstein


Protesters project an image of President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein onto Windsor Castle on Sept. 16, 2025, after his arrival to the United Kingdom for a state visit.

In August, U.S. District Judge Richard Berman wrote: “The Government is the logical party to make comprehensive disclosure to the public of the Epstein Files.”


He wrote that the administration’s attempt to unseal grand jury materials “appears to be a ‘diversion’ from the breadth and scope of the Epstein files in the Government’s possession,” adding: “The Government’s complete information trove would better inform the public about the Epstein case.”

Oops. That’s not going to help Trump extinguish the Epstein scandal. And neither is Patel’s performative rudeness.

Patel calls Schiff a buffoon in a classless display of arrogance


Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California, questions FBI Director Kash Patel at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, DC, on Sept. 16, 2025.

During his equally contentious Sept. 16 hearing before a Senate committee, Patel went off the rails, labeling Schiff “a political buffoon at best” and saying, “You are the biggest fraud to ever sit in the United States Senate.”

(Close your eyes and imagine a Democratic president’s FBI director speaking that way to a Republican lawmaker. You can hear the volcanic outrage from Fox News and the GOP calls for his immediate firing.)

Republicans know the Epstein issue is not going away

The bottom line is this: Americans want the files released on Epstein, a convicted sex offender who died in prison while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Even Republicans subjected to Patel’s insolent testimony admit that.

“Gotta release the files,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, told CNN. “Just release everything that ‒ release everything you can.”

Sen. John Kennedy, R-Louisiana, said of Patel’s testimony, “I have no way of evaluating his answers because we haven’t seen the files.” Kennedy also said he'd like “to remind him that at least in one senator’s opinion, this issue isn’t going away.”

Prices, unemployment up: 

That is correct. And the more Trump has Patel out there running interference on Epstein, the worse things will be for the president.
Epstein birthday card, allegedly from Trump, makes perfect trap

Consider this genius strategy by Patel during the Sept. 17 hearing. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Florida, led the FBI director directly into a trap regarding the lewd Epstein birthday note that bears Trump’s signature, recently released by Epstein’s estate. Trump has claimed the note is fake.


A birthday note to Jeffrey Epstein purportedly written by President Donald Trump is displayed during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Sep. 17, 2025, as FBI Director Kash Patel testifies.

Moskowitz asked the FBI’s top podcaster if he would open "an investigation into the Epstein estate for putting out a fake document with the president’s signature linking him to the world’s largest pedophile ring?”

Patel responded: “On what basis?”

Moskowitz said, “They literally put out a fake document, according to the president, with a fake signature. It’s a forgery of the president of the United States’ signature. That’s the basis.”

“Sure, I’ll do it,” Patel said.

Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store.
Maybe 'podcaster' isn't the best qualification to run the FBI

Smooth move. I’m sure the No. 1 thing Trump wants right now is an FBI investigation that draws more attention to the creepy note he allegedly sent his good friend Epstein.

You’d think the head of the FBI would know a thing or two about subterfuge.

Trump really needs to find higher-quality podcasters to run the government.


Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on Bluesky at @rexhuppke.bsky.social and on Facebook at facebook.com/RexIsAJerk

You can read diverse opinions from our USA TODAY columnists and other writers on the Opinion front page, on X, formerly Twitter, @usatodayopinion and in our Opinion newsletter.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Patel can't insult his way out of Trump's Epstein mess | Opinion
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Comments (Atom)