The Headlines - Epstein Victims Outraged Over Unredacted Info, and the Supreme Court Made Itself More Secretive

Episode Date: February 2, 2026

Plus, big firsts at the Grammy Awards. Here’s what we’re covering:How Trump Appears in the Epstein Files, by Steve Eder, Michael C. Bender and David EnrichThe Government Published Dozens of Nude Photos in the Epstein Files, by Mike Baker and Julie TateRelease of Three Million Epstein Pages Falls Short, Survivors Say, by Devlin Barrett, Michael Gold and Mike BakerThey Said They Weren’t Close to Epstein. New Documents Show Otherwise., by Nicholas ConfessoreU.A.E. Firm Quietly Took Stake in the Trump Family’s Crypto Company, by David Yaffe-Bellany and Eric LiptonTrump Says Kennedy Center Will Close for 2-Year Reconstruction Project, by Adam Nagourney and Julia JacobsHow the Supreme Court Secretly Made Itself Even More Secretive, by Jodi KantorSnow Drought in the West Reaches Record Levels, by Jim RobbinsGrammy Takeaways: Bad Bunny and Kendrick Lamar Take Top Awards, by Ben SisarioTune in every weekday morning, and tell us what you think at: [e-mail]. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Will Jarvis in for Tracy Mumford. Today's Monday, February 2nd, here's what we're covering. This review is over. I mean, we reviewed over 6 million pieces of paper, thousands of videos, tens of thousands of images, which is what the statute required us to do.

The Trump administration is defending its handling of the Epstein files. After its release of more than 3 million new pages of documents on Friday, was met with outrage from survivors of Jeffrey Empstead. Epstein's abuse. The Justice Department had missed a December deadline to release all of its files related to the convicted sex trafficker, and 500 government lawyers and other workers spent the last month scrambling to review and redact the documents. But the redactions appeared to be haphazard, and a group of 18 survivors said in a statement that they exposed names and identifying information of Epstein's victims. Of course, the nature of this type of review was the volume of materials that

were reviewed, that there would be times when this happened. And so we're working hard to make sure that we've fixed that. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told ABC News that the DOJ is moving to retroactively scrub sensitive information as it's made aware of it. Over the weekend, Times reporters reviewing the documents flagged dozens of unredacted nude images of young women, possibly teenagers, that the department posted to its website during the release. The photos included both their bodies and their faces. One woman who's testified in court about Epstein's abuse told the Times, quote, it's hard to imagine a more egregious way of not protecting victims than having full nude

images of them available for the world to download. Meanwhile, as part of the Times review of Friday's document release, my colleagues found thousands of files that mentioned President Trump, who was a close friend of Epstein's for years. Among the Trump mentions, an FBI memo that said the agency had quote, salacious information about him. Some of that information appeared to be from tips the FBI had received, including accusations of sexual abuse by Trump and Epstein. The memo didn't contain any corroborating information, and the Times was not able to verify the tips. The deputy attorney general said yesterday that the DOJ looked into sexual misconduct allegations against

Trump, but did not find credible information. Trump, who's denied any wrongdoing in connection to Epstein, said the new files, quote, absolved him. And beyond Trump, the files underscore Epstein's deep ties to other leading business and political figures, many of whom tried to publicly distance themselves from Epstein after he became a convicted sex offender in 2008. For example, the documents appear to show that Elon Musk was eager to visit Epstein's private island in 2012, writing to him, quote, what day slash night will be the wildest party on your island. That same year, Howard Lutnik, now the Secretary of Commerce, emailed Epstein

to arrange a trip with his wife and kids to the island. And Richard Branson, the British billionaire, emailed Epstein in 2013 after a meeting, saying, quote, anytime you're in the area, would love to see you, as long as you bring your harem. In response to the documents release, a Branson representative said their meeting had been focused on business. Lutnik said he spent zero time with Epstein, and Musk said he'd declined repeated invitations to visit the island. Now, three more updates from Washington. In a surprise announcement yesterday, President Trump said that he plans to shut down the Kennedy Center for two years starting this summer for a major reconstruction project. Since taking office, Trump added his name to the building, installed loyalists

on the board, and worked to reshape its programming. In response, a slave. of high-profile artists have boycotted the venue, and attendance at the National Symphony Orchestra there has plummeted 50%. Trump says the new construction would mean a quote, complete rebuilding, though he did not say how much that would cost or where the money would come from. Now this man has destroyed the place. He has run it into the ground financially. He's made it a place where performers don't want to perform. In response, Democratic lawmakers, including one who oversees funding for the center, said they've been kept in the dark about the plan and accused Trump of trying to cover up the, quote, financial disaster he's created there.

Also, new reporting has shown that just days before President Trump was inaugurated last year, an investment firm tied to the United Arab Emirates purchased nearly half of the Trump family's cryptocurrency company. The UAE tied firm quietly poured around $500 million into World Liberty Financial, a move that was first reported by the Wall Street Journal and confirmed by the Times. The major investment was one of two large transactions last year involving Trump's crypto firm and the Emirati government. And a few months after Trump took office, the UAE secured a deal with the White House to get hundreds of thousands of advanced AI chips despite national security concerns. Both the White House and a spokesman for World Liberty Financial have denied that the chips were

explicitly offered in exchange for investments. Still, the new details of blurred lines between the Trump administration and the Trump family's private business. have set off alarm bells for ethics experts and sparked sharp criticism from Democratic lawmakers. In a statement yesterday, Senator Elizabeth Warren said, quote, This is corruption, plain and simple. And the Times has learned that the Supreme Court's chief justice has been tightening the court's hold on information by making staff sign non-disclosure agreements. The push for greater secrecy, which hasn't been previously reported, started back in November 2024,

amid news reports that raised ethics questions about the justices. There had also been a series of unusual leaks of internal court documents, including the decision overturning the right to abortion. Court staff have traditionally been expected to keep quiet about what's happening behind the scenes, but the NDAs appear to go further, potentially threatening legal action against staff who reveal confidential information. A spokeswoman for the court declined to comment about the NDAs and did not respond to a question about whether the justices themselves have been asked to sign the contracts. The justices and other high-ranking judges say confidentiality is crucial to the court's process, letting them wrestle with big questions without public scrutiny.

But critics say that secrecy can undermine trust in the institution. And a Harvard law professor and former Supreme Court clerk told the times that keeping the court as a kind of black box can also conceal weaknesses in its process. He pointed to the fact that clerks are often closely involved in drafting decisions, saying, quote, if the public were aware of how much of the deliberations affecting millions of people are made by 27-year-olds after happy hour, they'd be shocked. Across the western U.S., an unusually warm winter with record low snow cover, is threatening water resources for the rest of the year. In places famous for deep natural snow like Park City, Utah and Vale, Colorado, much of the ground has been brown and bare, and people across the region are still hiking and biking

in 50 to 60-degree weather. Colorado, for example, is having its warmest winter since 1895. A winter snowpack would normally provide natural storage for water that would melt and run off throughout the year. But this year's snow drought is a troubling data point in what is now a decades-long dry spell in the West. That's led to extremely low water levels in the two largest reservoirs on the Colorado River. Forty million Americans rely on that river for water, and it's crucial for agriculture. What exactly is causing the drought is hard to explain. Scientists say it's not just climate change, but weather models suggest the pattern will continue. Still, some water experts are trying to be optimistic, hoping for spring and summer rain. One researcher in Arizona

told the Times, quote, weird things can happen, so let's hope weird things happen. Otherwise, it's going to be pretty awful. And finally, Yeah, yeah, yeah, what's up, what's up? At the Grammy Awards last night, one artist after another made history. I'm not good at talking about myself, but I express it through the music.

Kendrick Lamar took home five trophies to become the most decorated rapper in Grammy history with 27 total awards. The song Golden from the Netflix mega hit K-pop Demon Hunters became the first ever Grammy for the K-pop genre. genre. And Bad Bunny became the first Spanish language artist to win the ceremony's top prize,

taking the award for album of the year for his mix of native Puerto Rican sounds and booming electronic beats. Before I say, thanks to God, I'm going to say, eyes out. He was one of a number of performers who made explicit political statements at the awards, joining Billy Eilish, Justin Bieber, and others who wore pins, criticizing the White House's immigration crack down. We're not savage, we're not animals, we're not aliens, we are humans, and we are Americans.

The award ceremony also marked the moment Steven Spielberg became a member of one of the rarest clubs in the entertainment industry. By winning the Grammy for Best Music Film, for the documentary of music by John Williams, Spielberg officially became an EGOT winner, locking in the G part of

Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. He's one of just 22 people. including Andrew Lloyd Weber, Jennifer Hudson, and Audrey Hepburn to have ever earned that bragging right. Those are the headlines. I'm Will Jarvis. We'll be back tomorrow.