The Headlines - The Clintons’ Epstein Testimony, and the Pentagon’s New Laser Strike

Episode Date: February 27, 2026

Plus, the company that just cut 4,000 jobs because of A.I.  Here’s what we’re covering: In Tense Deposition, Hillary Clinton Denies Knowing Epstein or His Crimes, by Annie Karni Columbia Student Is Released From ICE After Mamdani-Trump Meeting, by Sharon Otterman Pentagon Fires Another Laser at Drone, Prompting New Air Closure, by Karoun Demirjian, Kate Kelly, Eric Schmitt and Chris Cameron Block Cuts 40% of Its Work Force Because of Its Embrace of A.I., by Natallie Rocha Netflix Backs Out of Bid for Warner Bros., Paving Way for an Ellison Takeover, by Lauren Hirsch, Michael M. Grynbaum and Benjamin Mullin Tune 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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Friday, February 27th. Here's what we're covering. I have just finished testifying. I answered every one of their questions as fully as I could. In a closed-door meeting yesterday, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sat for a deposition that stretched more than six hours. As members of the Republican-led House Oversight Committee questioned her about Jeffrey.

Epstein. We returned to answer questions repetitively, literally over and over again. I don't know how many times I had to say. I did not know Jeffrey Epstein. I never went to his island. I never went to his homes. I never went to his offices. Clinton, along with her husband, the former president, had spent months trying to fight congressional subpoenas to testify, calling them invalid and politically motivated. They only agreed to appear. after they were threatened with contempt of Congress. At that point, they asked for their testimony to be public so anyone could watch. Republicans refused. But yesterday, a Republican member of the committee, Representative Lauren Bobert, leaked an image of Clinton from inside the room, which was immediately posted to social media by a right-wing podcaster. That almost derailed the whole session.

Clinton abruptly paused her testimony before eventually agreeing to continue. We are sitting through an incredibly unsurious clown show of a deposition where members of Congress and the Republican Party are more concerned about getting their photo op of Secretary Clinton than actually getting to the truth and holding anyone accountable. Some of the Democrats on the Oversight Committee condemned the deposition, saying that Republicans weren't focused on the people with the closest ties to Epstein. They noted that their GOP colleagues all skipped a deposition last week of Leslie Wexner, the billionaire Republican donor and former head of Victoria's Secret who helped Epstein build his wealth. Clinton also pointed out that she was asked some questions about things that had nothing to do with Epstein at all, including the Pizza Gate conspiracy and UFOs. I would just say one of the things I learned today is if you really have specific questions about the Clintons and Jeffrey Epstein and Galane Maxwell, You got to ask Bill Clinton. Republican members of the committee, meanwhile,

said they were looking ahead to Bill Clinton's testimony, which is scheduled for today. He flew on Epstein's plane several times after leaving office, and there are many photos of him in the Epstein files. It will be the first time a former U.S. president has been compelled against his will to testify in front of a congressional committee. In New York City yesterday,

the arrest of a college student by immigration, agents set off a frantic chain reaction that roped in the city's mayor and President Trump. Around six in the morning, ICE agents wearing plain clothes showed up at Columbia student housing. According to university officials, they demanded to be led inside, claiming they were police officers searching for a missing child. A superintendent let them in. Columbia says they then repeated the same story at the door of the student's apartment, even showing a picture of the alleged missing child. At that point, the agents arrested an undergrad student. When asked to show a warrant, they did not. Within hours, Columbia's acting president sent out an urgent statement about the arrest,

and some 200 people showed up for an emergency rally at the school. By total chance, New York City's mayors, or on Mamdani, happened to be on his way to the White House for an unrelated meeting with President Trump. In social media posts, Momdani said he raised the arrest with the president. Trump later told him she would be released and she was. The Department of Homeland Security, however, says her deportation case is still active because she does not have a valid student visa. DHS has also disputed Columbia's version of events, saying the agents were wearing badges

and had verbally identified themselves. It's simply shocking. It shocks the conscience, truly. Some New York officials, meanwhile, condemned the agents for entering school property under what they said were false pretenses. And in a statement, New York Governor Kathy Hokel said, quote, No one should disappear at the hands of the government. In Texas, for the second time this month, the FAA has closed a pocket of American airspace over concerns about a high-energy laser that the government's been using.

The Department of Defense used the laser yesterday. to shoot down a drone over a small border town near El Paso. It's very similar to what happened in early February when the same technology was used to take down what customs and border protection thought was a drone, but turned out to be a balloon. The lasers, an example of increasingly powerful anti-dron technology that's raised concerns over what could happen if it's used near commercial airplanes. In both cases, the laser was used without the FAA's approval,

and the agency then abruptly closed the nearby airspace out of caution. The first time, the entire El Paso airport had to be temporarily shut down. Critics say the incident show a communication breakdown inside the government, and yesterday's use of the laser may underscore that further, because the Times has learned that the drone the Pentagon shot down was a U.S. government drone. Four people who were not authorized to speak publicly said it was from the Department of Homeland Security.

It's not clear what the military thought it was aiming at, though federal officials have said that drug cartels have flown tens of thousands of drones near the border in recent years. The FAA, Defense Department, and Customs and Border Protection issued a joint statement saying they would, quote, continue to work on increased cooperation and communication to prevent such incidents in the future. In Silicon Valley yesterday, there was one of the,

the clearest signs yet of how artificial intelligence is set to radically upend the American workforce. The financial technology company Block, which owns cash app, the streaming service title, and Square, the card payment system you see at stores across the country, announced it's cutting roughly 4,000 jobs. That's 40% of the company. The top executive, Jack Dorsey, said it's because AI has allowed the company to do its work with fewer employees. He added, quote, within the next year, I believe the majority of companies will reach the same conclusion and make similar structural changes. Across the tech industry, AI coding tools are already starting to be able to automate a wide range of tasks. After announcing the cuts, Dorsey held a virtual town hall with the company's employees. Participants flooded the screen with thumbs down emojis, according to two people who were on the call. And one employee confronted Dorsey about why he'd chosen to show up that day wearing a black hat that said love on it. Despite the widespread anger inside the company, in After Hours trading yesterday, Block's share

price jumped more than 26%. And finally, the billion-dollar Hollywood drama that is the fight to buy Warner Brothers has a new twist. The whole thing has basically been a messy love triangle. Back in December, Netflix sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry when it said it would acquire Warner Brothers Discovery, the legacy movie studio and TV Juggernaut, which owns everything from HBO to Bugs Bunny. But Paramount wanted it too. Now, Paramount has put in an even better offer, and Netflix is backing down. This latest turn paves the way for a major new force in U.S. media to become even more powerful. Paramounts owned by D.S.

David Ellison, whose father is the billionaire founder of the tech giant Oracle and has close ties to President Trump. Ellison took control of Paramount last year and immediately shook up its storied news division at CBS, pledging it would become more centrist. His potential acquisition of Warner Brothers, which will need the approval of federal regulators, would also put him in charge of CNN, where millions more people get their news. Overall, it is quite the story arc for Ellison, who came to Hollywood two decades ago trying to be an actor and is now poised to own a massive chunk of the entire news and entertainment industry. Those are the headlines. If you'd like to play the Friday News Quiz, it is just after these

credits. This show is made by Will Jarvis, Jan Stewart, and me, Tracy Mumford, original theme by Dan Powell. Special thanks to Isabella Anderson, Larissa Anderson, Miles McKinley, Zoe Murphy, and Paula Schumann. Now, time for the quiz. Every week, we ask you a few questions about stories the Times has been covering. Can you get them all? Here we go. Members of Congress have the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United States.

This week, President Trump gave a marathon-length State of the Union speech, touting his leadership and slamming Democrats. The Democrats were ready with their pushback. We're going to do a speed round here on three ways Democrats mounted a response. First, a small group of lawmakers tried to send a message by all coming dressed in this color. The answer? White. It was a nod to the suffrage movement and a symbol of protest against Trump's current push for new voting restrictions. Next, which lawmaker interrupted Trump, yelling that he had, quote, killed Americans. in reference to shootings by immigration agents in Minneapolis.

That was Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who later walked out in the middle of the speech. And last one, the governor of Virginia, Abigail Spanberger, gave the Democratic Party's official rebuttal, hitting on a particular theme that is expected to dominate this year's midterm elections. Can you fill in the blank? Is the president working to make life more? for you and your family?

The answer? Is the president working to make life more affordable for you and your family? Affordable, affordability. I'm going to be hearing that a lot. Next question, which also touches on a group of people who are at the state of the Union. Thank you. What a special job you did. What special champions you are.

Thank you very much. The U.S. men's hockey team, whose Olympic victory Trump called out in his speech, the players have actually been at the center of an unexpected number of political stories this week, especially after the head of a government agency was filmed celebrating in the locker room with them, cheering and chugging a beer after they won gold. Your question, which U.S. official was that? The answer? The head of the FBI, who is a hockey player himself and a big-time fan, Cash Patel.

Patel has defended making the trip to the games in Italy, saying it was in part to help oversee Olympic security. But critics say it's just the latest in a string of questionable uses of taxpayer funds. Last year, Patel used a government jet to fly to a private hunting ranch in Texas, a Scottish golf resort, and to Pennsylvania, where his girlfriend, who's a country singer, was performing at a wrestling match. And last question. On Wednesday, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its list of nominees for 2026. It's intended to be a measure of who has stood the test of time. You're not even eligible until 25 years after the release of your first recording. Now, unlike in previous years, where the hall has been criticized for being very thin on nominations for women,

this year, there are a half dozen in the mix. We're going to have you guess a few of them. but because these are huge artists with famous songs, we are going to play you the songs backwards. No secret messages here. Just trying to give you a challenge. First one. Next one.

And last track. The answers. Pink with So What. Shakira with Waka, Waka. And Mariah Carey with her holiday mega hit, All I Want for Christmas is you. Bells! Bells were trying to tell you something.

That is it for this week's news quiz. If you want to tell us how you did, our email is The Headlines at NYTimes.com. I'm Tracy Mumford. The headlines will be back on Monday.