Good afternoon, everyone. I have an important news update before the Super Bowl.
Epstein survivors have released a Super Bowl ad that every American needs to see. Please share it everywhere. At the same time, Congressman Thomas Massie says he is prepared to invoke the “nuclear option” and expose the names of the men who worked with Jeffrey Epstein on the House floor. Tomorrow, Ghislaine Maxwell is expected to plead the Fifth in her deposition, and it has now been confirmed that the Trump DOJ failed to search a critical Epstein property where significant abuse occurred.
I have received many messages over the past few days about two things. First, my safety. Second, my exhaustion. On safety, I am okay. I am carefully reviewing and reporting on these files and have taken concrete steps to protect myself, even as this work leads into very dark territory. On exhaustion, yes, I am tired. But I am also energized and deeply committed to this reporting. I believe in this work, and I will continue.
I will take a short break during tonight’s Super Bowl, then I will be back with more updates. If you want to support this work and help keep it going, please subscribe. If you are already subscribed, consider gifting a subscription so we can keep building and pushing this forward together.
Here’s the news:
- Epstein survivors released this powerful PSA in advance of the Super Bowl demanding answers from the Justice Department. This is the Super Bowl ad every American should see. Spread it everywhere.
- Republican Rep. Thomas Massie called for Howard Lutnick’s resignation, claiming the Epstein files show Lutnick visited Epstein’s island and did business with him, and arguing he lied in a way worse than a British ambassador who was fired.
- Massie warned he may use the “nuclear option” if Bondi refuses to unredact the names of Epstein’s clients.
- Valeria Chomsky apologized for her and Noam Chomsky’s “grave mistake” in maintaining ties with Jeffrey Epstein, saying they were deceived, careless in researching his background, and later regretted engaging with someone who hid extensive criminal abuse while exploiting Chomsky’s trust and reputation.
- Newly released Epstein files reveal extensive abuse of underage girls at his vast Zorro ranch in New Mexico, alongside evidence that the property was never federally searched, investigations were stalled, powerful visitors were present, and key questions about what happened there remain unanswered.
- Jeffrey Epstein privately promoted a plan to impregnate women at his New Mexico ranch to spread his DNA, reflecting his fascination with transhumanism and eugenics, while leveraging lies, wealth claims, and elite connections to embed himself in scientific and political circles despite being charged with sex trafficking.
- The ranch was later split into parcels with one eyed for a wildlife refuge or memorial and another leasable, while the rest of Epstein’s New Mexico property was sold in 2023 to San Rafael Ranch LLC after being listed to fund estate obligations, and was followed by a $4.95 million Deutsche Bank pledge to support anti-human-trafficking efforts in the state.
- UK Prime Minister Kier Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney has resigned after facing pressure over his role in appointing Epstein friend Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the U.S.
- Mona Juul resigned as Norway’s ambassador to Jordan and Iraq after an investigation into her ties to Jeffrey Epstein, with Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide citing a serious lapse in judgment amid revelations including Epstein’s reported $10 million bequest to Juul’s children.
- There are new, significant questions over the night Epstein died in jail. Newly released documents show a press release that, either contains a significant typo, or was drafted one day before Epstein died on August 9, 2019. The draft release did not contain the word “suicide,” while the final release issued by the Justice Department did contain that word. There are a lot of questions that remain, and I broke them all down here:
- In 2017, Jeffrey Epstein claimed that people at a dinner with Donald Trump were worried about signs of dementia, citing heavy makeup and saying Trump did not recognize old friends.
- Newly released Justice Department files include videos allegedly seized from Jeffrey Epstein’s computer showing young women and girls performing semi-clothed “catwalk” auditions around the world, reinforcing allegations that he posed as a modeling or Victoria’s Secret talent scout to lure victims into a global sex-trafficking operation.
- Dalai Lama said he never met or interacted with Jeffrey Epstein, rejecting attempts to link him to the Epstein files released by the Justice Department, which reference his work but include no accusations of wrongdoing.
- Congress will begin reviewing more than 3 million unredacted Justice Department documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, with lawmakers barred from bringing devices but allowed to take notes, as scrutiny grows over redactions, unverified claims involving Donald Trump, and forthcoming closed-door testimony from Ghislaine Maxwell.
- Ghislaine Maxwell is set to invoke her Fifth Amendment rights and refuse to answer all questions related to Epstein, Trump, and more during tomorrow’s deposition. Rep. Ro Khanna has sent the following letter to Oversight Committee Chair James Comer in response:
- Donald Trump spent the morning targeting Hunter Hess, a Team USA Olympian, after Hess called out what ICE is doing in America:
- Democrats secured big wins in elections overnight. The first in Texas:
- The second in Louisiana:
See you soon.
— Aaron