The Daily - Inside Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th Birthday Book

For months, President Trump has tried to dismiss questions about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, notably denying that he had been the author of a lewd birthday message to the financier and sex offender.

On Monday, Congress released the message — and many more like it.

David Enrich, a deputy investigations editor at The Times, explains how the book, and an investigation into Mr. Epstein’s finances, reveal how Mr. Epstein leveraged his rich and powerful friends to fund a yearslong criminal conspiracy.

Guest: David Enrich, a deputy investigations editor for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

Photo: Uma Sanghvi/Palm Beach Post, via Associated Press

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

What Could Go Right? - Democracy’s Next Chapter: Hope or Decline? with Brink Lindsey

What really went wrong with global politics? Emma welcomes Brink Lindsey, Senior VP at the Niskanen Center and author of The Captured Economy: How the Powerful Enrich Themselves, Slow Down Growth, and Increase Inequality. Lindsey traces how politics, culture, and economics became unstable, from the development of liberal capitalism since the 1990s to the resulting rise of right-wing populism. He explores the contradictory ways this crisis manifests in society and culture, and how individuals and societies might chart a way out.
What Could Go Right? is produced by The Progress Network and The Podglomerate.
For transcripts, to join the newsletter, and for more information, visit: theprogressnetwork.org
Watch the podcast on YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/theprogressnetwork⁠⁠⁠
And follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok: @progressntwrk

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Risky Business with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova - Is There Really A Crisis of Masculinity?

Tesla has offered CEO Elon Musk a package worth $1 trillion to stay at the helm of the company — if he can hit a series of very ambitious goals. All of this comes in the midst of a serious dip in performance at the company, with stock falling 16% this year (partly as a result of Musk’s controversial moves on the world stage). So this week, Nate and Maria play armchair quarterback in a game of Good Call / Bad Call.

Then, they cut through the chatter over a modern masculinity crisis and get into the data. Is there really a crisis among men? Is it better to be a woman in 2025?

Further Reading:

Boy Crisis of 2025, Meet the ‘Boy Problem’ of the 1900s from NYT

The ‘Boy Crisis’ Is Overblown from NYT


For more from Nate and Maria, subscribe to their newsletters:

The Leap from Maria Konnikova

Silver Bulletin from Nate Silver

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

array(3) { [0]=> string(184) "https://www.omnycontent.com/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/951120d9-cf6e-4224-93d7-b15c014dcea5/d7a1d226-e96b-40f3-8370-b3530187ee5a/image.jpg?t=1757462153&size=Large" [1]=> string(10) "image/jpeg" [2]=> int(0) }

The Source - Hannah Arendt’s words of warning about totalitarianism

Hannah Arendt came of age in Germany as Hitler rose to power, before escaping to the United States as a Jewish refugee. Arendt’s time as a political prisoner, refugee and survivor in Europe informed her groundbreaking insights into the human condition, the refugee crisis and totalitarianism. A PBS documentary” Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny” takes a closer look at one of the most fearless political writers of modern times who still inspires us today.array(3) { [0]=> string(20) "https://www.tpr.org/" [1]=> string(0) "" [2]=> string(1) "0" }

The Gist - Nim Shapira: Torn Between Empathy and Erasure

Filmmaker Nim Shapira discusses Torn, his documentary on the hostage posters put up—and torn down—across New York after October 7th. He reflects on free speech, empathy, and why erasing someone else’s pain won’t shorten a war. Also: a protest in Nepal over a social media ban topples the prime minister. Plus: Israel’s strikes on Hamas leaders in Qatar, where trust craters—and Israel puts its trust in craters.

Come See Mike Pesca at Open Debate

Produced by Corey Wara

Production Coordinator Ashley Khan

Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠thegist@mikepesca.com⁠⁠⁠⁠

To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠ad-sales@libsyn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe to The Gist: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe to The Gist Youtube Page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠

Subscribe to The Gist Instagram Page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠GIST INSTAGRAM⁠⁠⁠⁠

Follow The Gist List at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Pesca⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Profundities | Mike Pesca | Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠

Federalist Radio Hour - Counting The Cost Of Climate Lawfare

On this episode of The Federalist Radio Hour, Jason Isaac, founder and CEO of the American Energy Institute, joins Federalist Senior Elections Correspondent Matt Kittle to discuss how the climate cult coordinates with Democrat states to attack America First energy policies and analyze the cost an influx of climate-focused lawsuits has on American pocketbooks.

If you care about combating the corrupt media that continue to inflict devastating damage, please give a gift to help The Federalist do the real journalism America needs.  

The Bulwark Podcast - James Bennet: Trump Is Still Hacking the Media

More than 10 years in, journalists still have not figured out how to cover Trump. He understands the media environment better than a lot of reporters, and knows his outrageous acts and statements command attention—and that people will not be able to finish processing one outrage before the next one comes down the pike. But now he's laying down the terms of how he expects to be covered, and media orgs are complying by hiring or giving airtime to MAGA avatars. In the process, journalists are failing to hold the powerful to account. Plus, Dems actually went on offense and got their hands on the Epstein birthday book, and Israel is aggressively embracing the age of impunity.

The Economist's James Bennet joins Tim Miller.

show notes

1A - The Lawsuits Against The Trump Administration

President Donald Trump has tested the limits of the law since the day he took office at the start his second term.

This includes signing an executive order to end birthright citizenship, terminating or freezing billions of dollars in federal funding, and enacting sweeping tariffs on foreign goods without congressional approval.

But these actions have not been met with silence.

Over the last eight months, hundreds of lawsuits have been filed by state attorneys, physicians, media organizations, international students, and others to challenge the Trump administration’s policies.

We check in on major lawsuits against the administration. Where do they stand now? What do they mean for our country’s system of checks and balances?

Find more of our programs online. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

The Commentary Magazine Podcast - Epstein and the Conspiracies

So now conspiracy thinking is OK, so long as it involves Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein—that seems to be the mainstream media takeaway from the continuing focus on this admittedly compelling and disgusting story. Trump is a conspiracist, and he's made it to the top—so does that make conspiracies true? Give a listen.


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Daily - Understanding Putin’s Power

Over the weekend, Russia bombarded Ukraine with the largest drone assault in the war thus far.

It’s the latest in a relentless Russian offensive that keeps escalating, despite President Trump’s efforts to negotiate peace.

Anatoly Kurmanaev, who covers Russia for The Times, discusses the economic war machine that’s driving Russia’s success on the battlefield, and making it so hard for anyone to get President Vladimir V. Putin to back down.

Guest: Anatoly Kurmanaev, a reporter for The New York Times, covering Russia and its transformation following the invasion of Ukraine.

Background reading: 

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

Photo: Pool photo by Alexander Kazakov

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.