Alexander Willis

A newly unearthed photograph shed new light on a 2015 dinner attended by Jeffrey Epstein, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, among others, one Epstein described in an email as “wild.”

Published last week by the Justice Department, the photograph in question is included in an email Epstein had sent to himself on August 3, 2015. The photograph appears to show Zuckerberg and Musk sitting around a table in a dramatically lit room.

The day before Epstein had emailed the photograph to himself, he emailed celebrity doctor and CBS News contributor Peter Attia – whose deep ties to Epstein were exposed this week, sparking calls for his firing – that later that evening, he had plans for “dinner with musk thiel [and] zuckerburg.”

Epstein again referenced the dinner with Zuckerberg and Musk in an Aug. 20 email to Tom Pritzker, the Hyatt executive chairman who has been accused by a prominent Epstein accuser of sex trafficking, an accusation he “continues to vehemently deny.”

“i had dinner with zuckerburg, mu=k, thiel hoffman, wild,” Epstein wrote to Pritzker.

Zuckerberg has previously acknowledged the dinner event with Epstein, with his spokesperson saying Zuckerberg had only met Epstein “in passing, one time at a dinner honoring scientists that was not organized by Epstein.”

Musk, however, has not publicly acknowledged the dinner. He’s also claimed that Epstein had “repeatedly” tried to get him to visit his island and that he “declined,” a remark that has since been contradicted after newly revealed emails show that Musk had “practically begged for an invitation” to Epstein’s island.

An 86-page Justice Department prosecution memo that included details on “potential co-conspirators” of Jeffrey Epstein “mysteriously disappeared” from the DOJ’s website after the agency was asked about the document by the Miami Herald, investigative reporter Julie Brown revealed Saturday.

“Contrary to what the FBI and DOJ have said over the past year, it turns out there really is an FBI list of other people suspected of possible wrongdoing in connection with Jeffrey Epstein,” Brown, who writes for the Herald, wrote on her Substack Saturday.

“One of the documents that outlines the DOJ investigation into ‘potential co-conspirators of Jeffrey Epstein’ – the DOJ’s 86-page prosecution memo – mysteriously disappeared from the Government’s website this week after we asked the DOJ about it.”

The Herald published a report earlier on Saturday about the prosecution memo, which it noted had since been removed from the DOJ’s website at the time of publication. A copy of the memo, however, was preserved by Brown before its removal and contains details about potential co-conspirators of Epstein, albeit with their names redacted.

Lengthy sections of the memo are fully redacted, such as one that reads: “Evidence that [redacted] conspired to sex traffic minors, followed by more than nine pages of fully redacted text.

“Why are whole entire pages pertaining to these men redacted in the prosecution memorandum – which has now disappeared?” Brown wrote. “Where are the 302 interviews from those victims and witnesses?”

Attorney General Pam Bondi is scheduled to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 11, but according to journalist Aaron Parnas, Republicans on the committee have been instructed not to mention the Justice Department’s botched release of files on Jeffrey Epstein.

“Epstein survivors tell me that they were told in meetings with Republican lawmakers that everyone was supportive of asking Pam Bondi hard questions about the Epstein files,” Parnas wrote in a statement shared on social media Saturday.

“But, afterwards, they were told by a source in the Republican establishment that those questions won’t be asked. Republicans members have been told to avoid any questions about the files and to only focus on the ‘positives’ that Bondi accomplished.”

Bondi is among the most scrutinized Trump administration officials regarding the DOJ’s botched handling of its investigation into Epstein. Last year, Bondi told Fox News that Epstein’s supposed “client list” of powerful figures was “sitting on my desk right now,” only to later sign off on a DOJ memo that stated Epstein never maintained a client list.

Under Bondi’s leadership, the DOJ appeared fully prepared to shut down all further inquiries into Epstein until it was forced last fall to produce files after the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, a bill that passed amid fierce pushback from President Donald Trump, at least initially.

Even with the recent release of around 3.5 million Epstein files, critics say that the DOJ and the Trump administration are still in direct violation of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which required the DOJ to release all of its files on Epstein, and with redactions limited to protecting the identity of minors and victims.

Instead, the DOJ has said it intends on withholding millions of more files. The agency appeared to have also redacted published files beyond what the law permits.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) turned heads Saturday after announcing that he planned on introducing Democratic lawmakers’ reform package for Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the Senate floor, a move that drew sharp backlash from MAGA-aligned conservatives.

“While I believe the Democrats’ proposal regarding ICE and immigration are fatally flawed and will take us backward on immigration enforcement, I think it deserves a vote in the U.S. senate,” Graham wrote Saturday in a social media post on X.

“Therefore, if no one else will, I will introduce the Democrat package to ensure it gets a vote on the floor – and I will enthusiastically vote no.”

Despite Graham’s pledge to vote against the package – which, if enacted, would prohibit ICE agents from wearing masks and enforce stricter guardrails around their operations – his proposal was met with fury from a number of MAGA faithful, many of whom demanded he instead focus on the SAVE Act, the voting requirements bill backed by President Donald Trump.

“As of right now everything takes a backseat until you PASS THE SAVE ACT!” wrote X user “Art S,” a pro-Republican, pro-Trump self-described MAGA follower with more than 10,000 followers, in a social media post on X.

“Really?” asked another, X user “AZ Patriot,” another self-described pro-Trump MAGA follower. “WHAT ABOUT THE SAVE ACT LINDSEY???? You’re willing to put this ahead of the save act that we’ve been waiting on for 7 Months.”

Graham has been a strong supporter of Trump’s immigration policy, and has pushed for legislation to punish so-called "sanctuary cities” that conservative critics argue don’t sufficiently cooperate with federal immigration enforcement officials.

And, while Graham made clear that he would vote against the Democratic Party-backed package on reining in ICE after introducing it, he was still hit by conservative critics by the dozens.

Students at American University staged a protest and walkout this week after unverified accusations involving a professor and former U.S. ambassador surfaced in the Justice Department’s release of millions of files related to Jeffrey Epstein.

The walkout occurred on Wednesday at American University’s School of International Service (SIS) in Washington, D.C., according to the university’s paper The Wash, with students demanding the suspension of Professor Earl Wayne, the former U.S. Ambassador to Argentina under the Bush administration and Ambassador to Mexico under the Obama administration.

“We don’t know what’s going on, and that makes us feel unsafe,” said Adah Nordin, an American University student who helped organize the walkout, speaking with The Wash. “As someone going to class and getting a diploma from SIS, we deserve to know.”

In July of 2019, less than a month before Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell, New York Police Department Detective Walter Harkins received a tip from an individual regarding Wayne. That individual alleged, without providing evidence, that Wayne had an “involvement with an underage girl” in Mexico in 2014 at an event organized by Epstein. The individual further alleged that the “underage girl” became pregnant, and that a U.S. Marine was made to serve Wayne’s life sentence in Mexico on his behalf.

Harkins, the NYPD detective, lashed out at The Wash after being contacted for comment.

“How dare you call me,” Harkins told The Wash, according to the outlet. “Don’t let me hear from you again.”

While Wayne has fiercely denied the allegations, an investigation by American University supported Wayne’s denial, concluding that the allegations against him were “baseless and malicious fabrications.”

Nevertheless, students have called for Wayne to be suspended, and without pay, until a full criminal investigation is launched and completed.

“We want the university to push for a criminal investigation, for him to be suspended without pay while it goes on, transparency on the process,” said Tanishka Khanna, another student who helps organize the protest, speaking with The Wash. “Survivors need to feel safe on campus.”

Given the sheer volume of Epstein-related materials released by the DOJ, many of the documents contain unverified, uncorroborated allegations that do not constitute evidence, and do not establish wrongdoing. Wayne is not facing any criminal charges or investigations related to the allegation.

President Donald Trump gave the greenlight Saturday to the proposed media merger between broadcasters Nexstar and Tegna, a merger that critics warn would have “devastating consequences” for the media landscape.

“We need more competition against THE ENEMY, the Fake News National TV Networks,” Trump wrote Saturday on his social media platform Truth Social.

“Letting Good Deals get done like Nexstar – Tegna will help knock out the Fake News because there will be more competition, and at a higher and more sophisticated level. Those that are opposed don’t fully understand how good the concept of this Deal is for them, but they will in the future. GET THAT DEAL DONE!”

The proposed merger has proved controversial, with Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) warning that the deal would “directly” violate federal law by giving the hypothetical merged company a collective reach of around 80% of U.S. households, far above the Federal Communications Commission’s cap of 39%.

Nexstar executives have directly appealed to Trump in their efforts to have the merger approved, even adopting “buzzword language that Trump often uses” in its plea for approval.

“To be clear, in an age of disinformation and political agendas, we are the anti-fake news,” reads Nexstar’s application to the FCC.

“Our news is delivered by trusted, familiar voices – journalists who live in the community – not a chat-bot or social media influencers. And yet, we are prohibited from broadcasting trusted local news and programming to hundreds of communities across the country because of antiquated regulatory constraints.”

The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee is demanding answers after a top Trump official was exposed for blatantly lying about their ties with Jeffrey Epstein, new documents have revealed.

“Trump Commerce Secretary [Howard] Lutnick said he had zero interactions with Epstein after 2005 – looks like they were actually in business together,” wrote Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), the leading Democrat investigating Epstein and his ties to powerful figures, in a statement. “We have some serious questions.”

Last October, Lutnick – a finance industry billionaire and longtime supporter of President Donald Trump – told the New York Post that he and his wife had visited Epstein’s New York home in 2005, but severed all ties soon afterward.

Last week, however, the Justice Department’s release of around 3.5 million Epstein files revealed that as late as 2012, Lutnick was making arrangements to visit Epstein’s private island with his wife and children. And on Friday, it was revealed that Lutnick and Epstein “were in business together” as recently as 2014, CBS News reported.

According to emails released by the DOJ, Epstein and Lutnick were involved in discussions and financial dealings tied to a “now-shuttered advertising technology company called Adfin,” CBS News reported, dealings that lasted through at least 2014.

Other emails released by the DOJ reveal that Epstein and Lutnick had maintained contact well past 2005, arranging calls with each other and making plans to have drinks in 2011. In 2017, Epstein wrote that he would donate $50,000 to a United Jewish Appeal Federation New York dinner event honoring Lutnick, and in 2018, Lutnick emailed Epstein directly about matters related to real estate.

A Commerce Department spokesperson lashed out at the media regarding the revelations, telling CBS News that Lutnick has “never been accused of wrongdoing.”

“This is nothing more than a failing attempt by the legacy media to distract from the administration's accomplishments including securing trillions of dollars in investment, delivering historic trade deals and fighting for the American worker,” the spokesperson told CBS News.

The Trump administration is actively working to "destabilize" the 2026 midterm elections in a plot to expand its executive power, election law expert David Becker warned in a New York Times report Saturday.

That plot, Becker argued, was made evident by the FBI’s unprecedented raid on a Georgia election center last week, where agents – controversially accompanied by National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard – seized hundreds of boxes of election materials in Fulton County, the heart of President Donald Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was “rigged.”

Becker, who leads the Center for Election Innovation and Research as its executive director, told the Times that it was “very unlikely” that the FBI raid was sparked by any new evidence. And, in the absence of any new evidence of election fraud, the motivation behind the raid was clear, Becker argued.

“So if that’s not the purpose, then the purpose must be to create a false narrative around election security that’s designed to destabilize the 2026 election, and what they might use that narrative to justify in terms of executive power in the states,” Becker said.

Trump’s recent comments also give credence to Becker’s warning. On Monday, Trump told his former FBI deputy director Dan Bongino that Republicans should take control of the election process in “at least 15 places,” citing his false theories about systemic voter fraud in the 2020 election.

Republican lawmakers have struggled to defend Trump’s comments about expanding the federal government’s control over the election process, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) openly objecting to Trump’s pitch to federalize elections.

President Donald Trump was named in an explosive tip to the FBI regarding the 2019 death of Jeffrey Epstein, the Justice Department’s recent release of around 3.5 million files has revealed.

“Pretty major allegation,” wrote journalist and former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan Friday in a social media post on X, responding to the discovery of the FBI tip. “Weird that mainstream media journalists haven’t asked Trump about it, right?”

The tip was submitted in February of 2023 by Epstein’s own brother, Mark Epstein, and directly names Trump as potentially being involved in the death of his brother, which was ultimately ruled a suicide.

“Jeffrey Epstein was murdered in his jail cell,” Mark Epstein wrote in the tip. “I have reason to believe he was killed because he was about to name names. I believe [President] Trump authorized [his] murder.”

Epstein, the disgraced financier and convicted child sex offender who was awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges, was found dead in a Manhattan city jail in August of 2019, his death immediately sparking questions alongside a federal investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

Jeffrey Epstein’s death was controversially ruled a suicide, but Mark Epstein started alleging that his brother was murdered in 2025. It wasn’t until the Justice Department’s release of around 3.5 million Epstein files last week, however, that Mark Epstein’s tip to the FBI was revealed.

In the tip, Mark Epstein encourages the FBI to contact him for further details. It was submitted to the FBI National Threat Operations Center, and passed along to a “special agent” whose name was redacted.

Alan Dershowitz, former attorney for both President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, erupted Friday on Newsmax over what he said was a Justice Department document listing him as a “prominent” figure accused by Epstein’s victims.

“I want you to look at this paper that has been reproduced and sent by the Justice Department – it's called prominent names, and it's a list of prominent people who have been accused. Every single name of every accuser has been blacked out!” Dershowitz said, holding up the document.

“So, for example, let's turn to me: it says ‘blank blank’ stated she gave him a massage on Epstein's plane – parenthesis, ‘not a minor.’ I was never on an Epstein plane with a young woman, I never got a massage! This is total defamation, a total lie, but I can't disprove it because they won't give me her name!”

Dershowitz is among several prominent figures linked to Epstein who have faced allegations, including a claim by Virginia Giuffre that he raped her when she was 17, an allegation he has fiercely denied. Giuffre sued Dershowitz over the allegations, prompting Dershowitz to counter-sue before both parties settled in 2022. Giuffre would later die by apparent suicide.

An animated Dershowitz continued pleading his innocence, despite Newsmax host Bianca de la Garza trying – and failing – to interject. He also championed the recent news that Bill and Hillary Clinton had agreed to testify before the House Oversight Committee, and asked that he be considered to be called before the committee as well.

“I'm delighted that we're gonna see public hearings; let them call me to the public hearings, I'll tell them the truth about what happened!” Dershowitz continued. “I won't claim any privileges, I won't claim any inability to remember – I remember everything! And I know a great deal about it!”

No evidence exists to contradict Dershowitz’s claim that he had never flown on Epstein’s plane; however, his claim that he “never got a massage” stands at direct odds with remarks he made in 2019.

“I kept my underwear on during the massage,” Dershowitz said, admitting to having received a massage by an adult woman at Epstein’s New York mansion. “I don’t like massages particularly.”

President Donald Trump issued a stern warning Friday to CNN and MS NOW not to book two prominent critics of his – Ex-Trump officials Ty Cobb and Miles Taylor – whom he described as “two dopes” who he “hardly knew.”

“When you watch these two guys on Television, which, fortunately, doesn’t happen often because there’s very little audience at either CNN or MSDNC, remember, they know nothing about me,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

“Just two DOPES trying to make a ‘buck’ by pretending to know something about someone who turned out to be very famous,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. These two Networks are forewarned not to put them on the air again, because they have no knowledge or credibility with respect to anything have to do with DONALD J. TRUMP.”

Taylor was previously a Homeland Security senior official, and Cobb, a part of Trump’s legal team, both under Trump’s first administration. Both have also gone on to become fierce critics of Trump, and frequently appear on cable news criticizing the Trump administration.

Trump railed against Cobb and Taylor as knowing “nothing” about him, and attacked both of their characters at length.

“Ty Cobb, one of the Worst Lawyers in Washington, D.C., a REAL LOSER, was fired years ago because he was having lunch with another lawyer talking about one of my many cases, while sitting next to two ‘reporters’ from The Failing New York Times,” Trump continued.

“Guys like him and another major Loser, Miles Taylor, who I have no idea who he is, make livings talking about me like they know me well. I fired Ty Cobb, because he was a WHACKJOB, who I hardly knew, and he knew nothing about me. Likewise, Miles Taylor is, in many ways, even worse, because I have no idea who he is, except that CNN and MSDNC put him on, for years, like he’s a ‘TRUMP’ expert.”

President Donald Trump is currently seeking $10 billion in damages from his own Internal Revenue Service, a lawsuit lodged last month over the 2020 leak of his tax returns, a move so brazen that even some Republicans were left scratching their heads, NBC News reported Friday.

“If they succeed at that, that’s $10 billion coming from the pockets of the U.S. taxpayers,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), speaking with NBC News.

“Maybe it’s a strategic move for damages, something short of that, which is OK, but you know, it just seems we’re talking about the president of the United States suing one of the agencies for which the president is responsible. So, it’s just weird.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has already admitted that should Trump’s lawsuit be successful, American taxpayers would be the one footing the bill. Trump told NBC News this week that should he be awarded the $10 billion, he would give “100% to charity,” and floated the American Cancer Society as a potential pick.

Tillis, who’s among the few Republican lawmakers to have been openly critical of the president, was not alone in his confusion over Trump’s ploy. Another Republican senator, though speaking with NBC News on the condition of anonymity, was also left confused as to how a sitting president could sue an agency run by his own administration, one that typically would be defended by the Justice Department.

“If I’m Pam Bondi, there’s no way I’m going to settle that lawsuit,” the anonymous Republican senator told NBC News. “There’s no way you can explain it.”

While Trump told NBC News in his sit-down interview that he would give the $10 billion to charity, back in December in front of a crowd of Trump supporters, he floated a different idea.

“Actually, maybe I shouldn’t give it to charity. Maybe I should keep the money,” Trump told a crowd during a rally in North Carolina, bringing up the lawsuit “unprompted,” NBC News reported.

“No. A lot of people say, ‘Do it.’ No, I don’t want to do it. But whatever happens, it’s all going to good charities. Is that OK? It’s all going to good charities.”

Portland Police officers fatally shot a suspect last weekend who was posing as a Secret Service agent, and who was later discovered to be in possession of a shotgun loaded with shells with “threatening messages” written on them against President Donald Trump, Portland Police reported Thursday.

According to police, the suspect, who has not been named, had threatened security officers at a grocery store with a firearm after falsely claiming to be a Secret Service agent. The suspect “pointed a handgun at one of the security officers and pulled the trigger,” but the firearm did not discharge, police said.

The suspect “scuffled” with the security officers before fleeing the scene, but left behind a key piece of evidence, police reported.

“The suspect left behind an instrument case that contained a loaded shotgun,” Portland Police wrote in a statement. “Officers seized the shotgun as evidence. They found threatening messages written on the shotgun shells that specifically named President Donald Trump.”

Police later identified the suspect and executed a search warrant on their apartment, deploying irritant gas munitions to coerce their cooperation. According to police, the suspect exited their apartment, firearm in hand and “pointed a gun” at one officer, police reported.

The suspect was fatally shot by police, and no other injuries were reported.

Terrance Williams, a Black comedian, MAGA influencer and loyal supporter of President Donald Trump, scrambled Friday to cover for the president’s racist social media post that included depictions of Barack and Michelle Obama as primates, and was promptly dogpiled by critics.

Early Friday morning, Trump shared a video on social media that included racist depictions of the Obamas as primates in a jungle, a post that stunned critics, media figures and onlookers alike. As a fierce defender of Trump, however, Williams falsely claimed that the outrage was manufactured, and that Trump never shared the racist clip.

“FAKE NEWS ALERT! Trump Didn’t post this monkey video of the Obamas,” Williams wrote Friday in a social media post on X. “Lying Democrats. It’s not on his page. Fake screenshot.”

Williams’ post was immediately hit with X’s crowd-sourced fact-checking service known as “Community Notes” flagging his statement as false. Williams also faced swift pushback from critics, many of whom pointed to the irony of a Black comedian defending a president for amplifying an anti-Black racist trope with roots stretching back centuries.

“Yes he did,” wrote journalist and former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan, refuting Williams’ claim that Trump did not share the video in question. “He is happy to depict Black people as apes and you’re still pathetically and shamelessly willing to shill for him.”

With the evidence clear that Trump did, in fact, share the video, some critics called on Williams to make his position clear.

“Now that you know he did, will you say why you were so adamant about trying to deny it?” wrote Ron Filipkowski, the editor-in-chief of MeidasTouch. “Obviously you recognize that this isn’t cool, which is why you posted the denial. Maybe you can do a NEWS ALERT on why you wanted to deny this.”

Trump’s social media post was so shocking that some figures who frequently lavish praise on the president, such as journalist Batya Ungar-Sargon, assumed that the post must have been a mistake.

“This is gross and racist. The President should delete it and apologize,” Ungar-Sargon wrote in a social media post on X.

“The clip with the Obamas is the last 2 seconds of a minute long clip on voting machines being hacked, so maybe Trump didn't watch it til the end. Maybe he didn't even post it himself. If that's the case, he should say so.”

Bill and Hillary Clinton are set to testify later this month before the House Oversight Committee in its ongoing Jeffrey Epstein probe, a GOP-led effort that “Morning Joe” hosts argued Friday could ultimately backfire “spectacularly” on President Donald Trump and Republicans.

Last month, the House Oversight Committee – led by Rep. James Comer (R-KY) – voted to hold the Clintons in contempt for defying subpoenas to testify on their knowledge of Epstein’s alleged crimes. Both have since agreed to testify before the committee, and are now scheduled to appear on Feb. 26 and 27.

And, while Republicans may have assumed that the Clintons’ testimony might be damaging to Democrats, “Morning Joe” host Willie Geist predicted that it may very well end up hurting Republicans far more.

“I think that's going to backfire on Comer spectacularly. Why on earth [would] Republicans want to go back and put their hand on that hot stove again and rip off the scab of the Epstein files?” Geist said.

“[Why would Republicans want to] let Hillary [and] Bill Clinton talk about the Epstein files, and let Democrats in the hearing talk about the Epstein files, and how many times the president's name appears in the Epstein files? It baffles not just us, but I think it sounds like it baffles and frightens President Trump himself.”

Bill Clinton has had a well-documented friendship with Epstein for years, having been visited by Epstein in the White House at least 17 times during his administration. Less of a connection exists between Epstein and Hillary Clinton, though Epstein’s associate Ghislaine Maxwell – who’s serving 20 years for sex trafficking – had attended Chelsea Clinton’s wedding in 2010.

Nevertheless, the Clintons’ testimony has the potential, argued “Morning Joe” host Jonathan Lemire, to deliver a damaging blow to Trump, who called Comer’s targeting of the Clintons a “miscalculation.”

“Epstein conspiracy theories were largely born on the right, sort of in MAGA world, and it was perceived as a Democratic problem. Certainly there are some [Democrats] who were in the files, but what's been the flaw in that plan all along is the close association that Donald Trump had with Jeffrey Epstein for a long time!” Lemire said.

“Even if there's nothing criminal there, it is an embarrassing friendship for Trump, which is why he was never at the forefront of the push to release the files. I think you are seeing Trump worried about the door that's opened here. We'll see; the Republicans think they're trying to help, they may be actually hurting him.”

Joe Scarborough came away with a far more certain conclusion: “They are definitely going to hurt the president,” he said.