Files and Tribulations

Trumpenstein's Monster

The story about releasing the Epstein files is like Trump’s version of Frankenstein’s monster. He created it, but he can’t figure out how to kill it. NYT (Gift Article): After Trump Split, Epstein Said He Could ‘Take Him Down.’ “By turns gossipy, scathing and scheming, the messages show influential people pressing Mr. Epstein for insight into Mr. Trump, and Mr. Epstein casting himself as the ultimate Trump translator, someone who knew him intimately and was ‘the one able to take him down.’” Will Epstein achieve after his death what he didn’t achieve during his life? At this point, it’s hard for close observers to believe any scandal could take Trump down. You may be wondering, Wait, Are the Epstein Files Real Now? “Trump was meant to courageously release all of the available evidence for public scrutiny. Instead, this scandal has turned out to implicate him personally. (This is a risk inherent in building a personality cult around one of the worst human beings in the United States—almost any moral violation you pick will, statistically, have a high likelihood of appearing somewhere on his résumé.)” But this never-ending, particularly bleak Epstein scandal is different than the never-ending (and ongoing) other scandals. As Karen Tumulty explains in WaPo (Gift Article): “The MAGA base has had little trouble looking the other way when it comes to Donald Trump’s trampling of norms and ethical standards: the coarseness; the indictments; the retribution against his enemies; the self-enrichment while in office; the unprecedented claims of executive power. His administration’s handling of information regarding the horrific crimes of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is different. Bringing to light what lies within the Justice Department’s so-called Epstein files is the most persistent issue to have driven a deep wedge into the president’s base — to the point where some who embrace the MAGA label have even been willing to make common cause with Democrats.”

+ Consider that a relatively tiny scandal within this scandal might have been enough to ruin former top officeholders. This week, in an effort to halt the release of more Epstein files, Trump Ramped Up Pressure on G.O.P. One of those efforts included the summoning of “Representative Lauren Boebert, a Colorado Republican who has signed the petition, to a meeting in the White House Situation Room with Attorney General Pam Bondi and the F.B.I. director, Kash Patel, to discuss her demand to release the files.” The once independent FBI and the once independent Justice Department are now acting as Trump’s personal fixers, pressuring an elected official to do his bidding in a room often reserved for high-level military planning (and one where, interestingly, no phones or other recording devices are permitted). That fact that this aspect of the story is just one more detail that will get lost in the scandalous ether is another reminder of how quickly our institutional framework has devolved.

+ Epstein Bantered Regularly With Larry Summers. Often scandals that Trump survives ends up costing mere mortals, bigly. Meanwhile, the spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure in these emails is brutal. Instead of buying an island, Epstein should have purchased a subscription to Grammarly.

2

Dignity Indignity

“The bishops, who were often divided by American politics in the Pope Francis era, showed a united front in standing behind Pope Leo XIV, the first pope from the United States, who has spoken out for immigrants and urged U.S. bishops to do the same.” Catholic Bishops Rebuke U.S. ‘Mass Deportation’ of Immigrants. “In a rare statement, the bishops framed the immigration crisis in starkly moral terms. ‘We feel compelled now in this environment to raise our voices in defense of God-given human dignity.’”

+ Not every immigrant is being targeted. Trump Organization sought to bring in nearly 200 workers on visas in 2025.

+ Meanwhile, U.S. visas can be denied for obesity, cancer and diabetes, Rubio says.

3

Trading Places

“The better policy would have been no policy at all. Imagine what the economy would look like right now if Trump had never started the trade war.” The Atlantic (Gift Article): What Tariffs Did. (Ironically, the Supreme Court could end up helping Trump even if they rule against him in the tariff case.)

4

Where The Action Is

“One day last year, Adebowale Akinyemi Wilson lost an opening round match at the World Table Tennis Contender tournament in Lagos, Nigeria. It was an obscure contest on the far-flung outskirts of professional sports. But 5,000 miles away in New Jersey, four gamblers were keeping a close eye on it.” WaPo (Gift Article): From table tennis to darts, small sports draw big bets — and corruption. “As the betting industry booms and scandals engulf major leagues, sportsbooks in the United States and around the world have expanded their menus, enabling big-money bettors to converge on small-money sports newly available on gambling apps, from international table tennis and lower division soccer to darts and surfing.”

5

Extra, Extra

House Hunting: “In a major shift, HUD’s plan would direct most of the $3.5 billion in homelessness funds away from Housing First to programs that prioritize work and drug treatment.” Trump Administration Expected to Drastically Cut Housing Grants. (First food, now shelter. They’re trying to get rid of Maslow’s entire hierarchy.)

+ Now Back to Our Regular Scandal Programming: “A Justice Department lawyer on Thursday defended the legality of Lindsey Halligan’s appointment as acting U.S. attorney to a skeptical federal judge who’s weighing whether to dismiss casesshe brought against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.”

+ Sensing a Trend? “She was 17 and a high school junior in Florida. She was working at McDonald’s. And she was living in and out of a homeless shelter. Hoping to save up to buy braces to fix her teeth, she falsely advertised herself in 2017 as 18 years old on a website that matches men looking for ‘companionship’ with young women looking to make money.” NYT (Gift Article): In Matt Gaetz Scandal, Circumstances Left Teen Vulnerable to Exploitation.

+ Par-Don: “Acting just like a corrupt king, Trump is transforming the American system of justice into his personal plaything. Friends of the crown break the law with impunity. Enemies of the crown experience the sharp end of the law, whether they deserve it or not.” David French: One of the Founders’ Worst Fears Has Been Realized. (One?)

+ Shape Shifter: “The company says it plans to use the money from investors, including an arm of Wall Street banking giant Goldman Sachs, to open more shops and expand around the world.” Kim Kardashian’s shapewear brand Skims hits $5bn valuation.

+ Freeze Your Tail Off: “Qualifications include being ‘physically fit and in good health,’ being capable of sprinting around the outfield, having the ability to entertain crowds, having cursory knowledge of baseball and ‘previous mascot or athletic experience is strongly preferred, but not required.’” Braves Holding Auditions for ‘The Freeze’ Mascot Ahead of 2026 MLB Season.

+ Pop Culture: “His name is Oscar Delaite, and he is a 19-year-old engineering student at the Université de Technologié de Troyes in Troyes, France, and it is the belief of this column that he will go on to live a long, happy life of many great accomplishments. At the moment, however, Oscar is best known for one great accomplishment.” WSJ (Gift Article): The College Student Who Did a Wheelie—for 93 Miles.

6

Bottom of the News

Naked man making phone call after steam and shower at local health club. Any guy who’s hit the locker room after a workout at the gym knows the guy I’m talking about. He dabs with a towel a bit, but he prefers to air dry. While waiting for evaporation to work its interminable magic, he takes a few calls in front of his locker, often with one leg up on a bench, pausing long enough to make small talk as he stands a little too close to you (with a towel wrapped around your waist and your undershirt wet from being pulled on before you completely dried off). Naked man making phone call after steam and shower at local health club is the reason you have a home gym. But is he suddenly an endangered species? In The Atlantic (Gift Article), Jacob Beckert reflects on the The End of Naked Locker Rooms. “Though public nakedness isn’t completely gone, many of the everyday spots where Americans once encountered unclothed bodies—locker rooms, school showers, public pools, bathhouses—have either vanished or shifted away from collective nudity.” This article suggests the downside of this trend. As a person who sleeps in jeans and a t-shirt and doesn’t feel comfortable disrobing in front of myself, it makes me think I might want to join a gym again. I’m not even worried about the PTSD I could experience by re-encountering Naked man making phone call after steam and shower at local health club. I probably won’t even recognize him with his clothes on.