← Here's the Scoop
Here's the Scoop
Maxwell Pleads the Fifth in Epstein Files Deposition and Breezy Johnson on Her Olympic Gold
00:22:30
Loading summary
Transcript81 lines
- [00:03]
A
Hey, everybody. And welcome to here's the scoop from NBC News. It is a very Busy Monday. The 2026 Winter Olympics are in full swing. And we're going to be talking to alpine skier Breezy Johnson, the first athlete to win gold for Team USA in this year's Games. Plus Lindsey Vonn's status after her crash in the women's downhill. And opening statements begin in a landmark social media addiction trial. But first, the House Oversight Committee deposed Jeffrey Epstein co conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell this morning. But it was over just as soon as it began after Maxwell invoked her Fifth Amendment privilege against self incrimination. This is just the latest push by Congress for more Epstein information, even after the president told reporters last week that, quote, it's really time for the country to maybe get on to something else. So I want to bring in chief Capitol Hill correspondent Ryan Nobles. Hey, Ryan.
- [00:54]
B
Hey, how are you?
- [00:54]
C
Yes.
- [00:55]
A
Big day when it comes to these Epstein files. Ghislaine Maxwell deposed today. But as I mentioned, it was quick. It was behind closed doors. She came in and she pled the fifth. That was a meeting that was initiated by her. And she did not invoke her Fifth Amendment privilege today. She did. So what happened behind closed doors? Do they know she was going to do this? Take us inside.
- [01:23]
B
They were expecting it. In fact, just to kind of give you a peek behind the curtain of how things work here on Capitol Hill. They we knew that the deposition was scheduled for 10 o' clock Eastern Time and the expectation was it was going to go so short that they warned us as a group of reporters to be in position at 1030 to hear from members of Congress as they walked out. And I think what's frustrated the members of Congress that are conducting this investigation is why is it, what's the disconnect between you were willing to sit and answer questions from Todd Blanche for two days, if you remember, and you're not able to now. And basically it has a lot to do with the fact that she's looking to get out of jail. She has an active petition before the court to have her case looked at. We know that she's actively attempting to try and get some sort of pardon or commutation from President Trump. And clearly her legal team is worried about her saying anything that could risk that, which is part of the reason that she didn't answer any questions today.
- [02:22]
A
So. So I'm glad you mentioned this active petition. Right. Because that was part of the statement from Maxwell's attorneys, as you mentioned, as to why she. She pled the fifth here, and then asking for clemency from the President, saying, essentially, listen, she will spill the beans if, in fact, the President of the United States grants her clemency. Is there any chance in which the President grants her clemency? Is there any support from Congress of him doing that so that she is more forthcoming?
- [02:51]
B
So I'll start from the congressional angle, and I think the best way to answer that question is that Ghislaine Maxwell's attorneys asked for her to be able to conduct this interview today with the promise of immunity. So basically, anything that she says said could not be then used against her in a subsequent legal proceeding. And the members of Congress did not feel comfortable granting her that immunity. That I think shows you a willingness from Congress to try and let her off the hook with the promise that she's going to deliver the goods on everyone else. I don't think anybody trusts her in that regard. In terms of how President Trump has responded to all this, he's been asked repeatedly, he's been given multiple opportunities to say definitively that he will not pardon or commute Ghislaine Maxwell sentence. And he never answers the question with any sort of specificity. It's always like, I'm not thinking about that. I don't know about that. I'm not paying attention to that. It's never just a simple yes or no. It's a Hail Mary for her under any circumstances. But it appears that it's not completely off the table. So I think that's part of the reason that they're acting the way they are in this particular forum.
- [04:01]
A
So let's talk about the files. This is the first day in which the Department of Justice is allowing members of Congress to review the unredacted Epstein file. So. So all those black bars that we have been seeing as we've been reviewing these Epstein files are gone. For these members of Congress, there are 6 million in total, 3 million of which they will have the opportunity to view. Kentucky Republican Congressman Thomas Massie is going to be one of the first to see the unredacted files. He posted about it, Ryan, on social media, in which he asked his followers what he should be looking for, which tells me this is a needle in a haystack type of thing. Where do they even start? And walk us through where they are, how they're presented, how they're able to search these documents.
- [04:47]
B
So I agree, and I disagree with that. I do think that there's such an incredible volume of material that it is difficult for them to sift through it all. But I do know that there are certain members of Congress and Connie and Khanna Ro. Khanna and Tom Massey are in that group who have very specific questions about very specific redactions. And the goal would be that their staff prepares them enough to be able to go right into the system and find those specific documents and see what is being hidden in those specific redactions. I mean, there were certain files, case files, in which entire pages were blacked out. So you might want to go and start there. Right. But to your broader point, there's just such an overwhelming amount of information, and the Department of Justice is not making it easy. They have to go into a very specific room. They have to be logged on to a DOJ computer portal. The member of Congress has to go in on their own. They can't bring any staff with them. They're allowed to take handwritten notes, but they have no access to any electronic device. There's only so much that they're gonna be able to glean from that experience. And they're not setting a time frame frame for how long they can be in that room. But members of Congress are extremely busy. They can't spend hours and hours on this. That's part of the reason that they have staff to do this kind of work. And then the other thing I'll say about it is what isn't clear, and one of the things we're trying, we're hoping to find an answer to after these guys come out of reviewing the files is, is the Department of Justice going to come in and say, hey, listen, just so you know, this information is classified. You can't share what you've learned in this experience with anyone. And you know, to me, that would be a disservice to this process, because what's the point? Those members of Congress are going in as our eyes and ears. What are they going to be able to share or not share with us after they go in and take a look at that?
- [06:40]
A
There are so many tentacles to this, to this Epstein story, and it never ends. Obviously. We know that former President Bill Clinton has appeared many times within these Epstein files that have been released both in picture and in name. Want to be clear here, he has not been accused by any authorities and denies any wrongdoing. There has been this back and forth between the Clintons and the House Oversight Committee ever since they were submitted to testify last year. In order to avoid being held in contempt, they have agreed to testify now, but they want their testimony to be public. The House Oversight Committee has said no, it's going to be taped. Why is the committee insistent on this not being live but being taped and, and who wins out here?
- [07:29]
B
So the first thing I will say is that the Clintons don't get a vote. They're right. You know, they're subject to this subpoena. They have to abide by not a.
- [07:36]
A
Formal vote, but they get, they get a vote. When it comes to the public wanting.
- [07:40]
B
To have transparency when it comes to, in the right. In the court of public opinion, and that's certainly the avenue that they're trying to, to go down right now is to try and pressure Republican Chairman James Comer to make this public. There's a couple of important things to keep in mind about this deposition. The first is it's going to be videotaped and the full transcript is going to be released. So the public is going to be able to see the fruits of this interview under any circumstance, whether it's a formal public hearing that we get to watch live or it's something that takes place behind closed doors and is taped and then released later. So there's not an issue of transparency here. We are going to be able to see the full breadth of what comes out of this conversation under any circumstance. And what I would say in defense of the Republicans on this panel is the way congressional investigations generally operate is through the process that Chairman Comer is asking for. It generally begins with a closed door deposition that is largely led by staff who are usually trained litigators who have experience in and asking these type of questions. And after that lengthy deposition, which can sometimes take hours, the members of Congress take the information that they learned from that deposition and then they move to a more public hearing where the members of Congress get to ask questions almost every time. The closed door deposition provides more substantive information than what we can learn in a public hearing. The format is different. The questions are different. The people asking the questions are different. Usually a public hearing is somewhat of a show. The members of Congress are trying to make a point. A lot of times they don't even ask questions. They'll get five minutes and just they'll spend the five minutes, you know, making some sort of lofty statement and at the end of it say yes or no, you know, and it ends up not being that substantive.
- [09:32]
A
Much of the people that we're talking about in Congress right now that are leading this investigation, and obviously it's because Republicans are in control of Congress, are the Republicans. And I can't help but wonder when you have the President of the United States saying, let's just drop this thing and move on. And most of the time, when President Trump says this, most Republicans fall in line and follow his lead. But for some reason, when you take into account what took place today with Ghislaine Maxwell, when you take into account how now folks are having to line up to view these unredacted Epstein documents, why it is that Republicans are willing to die on this Hill, on the Epstein files hill, to break with the.
- [10:13]
B
President on this topic, because that's what their voters want. There are very few issues that I've covered in my time in Capitol Hill in which there is universal agreement from the average voter, Republican, Democrat or Independent, that they want as much information made public and transparent about the Epstein files.
- [10:35]
C
They.
- [10:35]
B
And as powerful as Donald Trump is with the Republican base, his pleas for this thing to go away have just not resonated. If you're a member of Congress, and especially if your name's on a ballot in November of this year, you do not want to go in front of those voters with even the mere suggestion that you're trying to cover something up. And that's why I think Donald Trump can beg his people till he's blue in the face to end this. And they just, they can't. The political costs would be too great for them to end this at this point, because this is what the American people want.
- [11:10]
A
Ryan Nobles, thank you.
- [11:12]
B
Thank you.
- [11:14]
A
All right, we're going to take a very quick break, and when we are back, we are joined by alpine skier Breezy Johnson, the first American to take gold in the 2026 Winter Olympics. Oh, and hey, while you're waiting, I would love for you to go ahead and subscribe to here's the Score, wherever you're listening. That way, the latest episodes are going to be in your feed as soon as they drop.
- [11:41]
D
Hey, everybody, it's Kate Snow. I'm an NBC News anchor and host of the new podcast the Drink with Kate Snow. So here's the deal. I sit down with all kinds of celebrities, actors, musicians, athletes, for a casual conversation over a drink of their choice. It's always about their journey, the successes, the struggles, the lessons they learned. I thought I knew all about self help superstar Mel Robbins, but in our candid conversation, she got really honest about a business decision that almost bankrupted her and how she was able to pull herself out and then build an empire. Trust me, you're going to learn something. I always do. I hope you'll listen. Just search for the drink with kids, Kate Snow, wherever you get your podcasts and follow now.
- [12:26]
E
Stay informed with the NBC News app.
- [12:29]
B
Breaking news just coming in moments ago.
- [12:31]
E
Watch, read and listen throughout your day. And now unlock even more with a subscription. It's the best of NBC News with fewer ad interruptions, including ad free articles, podcasts and full NBC News shows. Plus deeper access and exclusive exclusive content.
- [12:47]
A
Let's just take a step back.
- [12:48]
E
It's more context and clarity from the reporters you trust. Download the NBC News app now and subscribe for more.
- [13:00]
A
And we are back with. Here's the scoop from NBC News. At the Milan Cortina Olympics, Italy leads in the medal count, followed by Norway and Japan. The US Is trailing in fifth place, but it's alpine skier Breezy Johnson who took the first of Team USA's medals, winning gold with her 1 minute and 36.1 second downhill run this weekend. It was an incredible run and Breezy Johnson is joining us now. Hi, Breezy.
- [13:29]
C
Hi.
- [13:29]
A
Congratulations. I've, I've heard that your, your medal already broke. What happened?
- [13:35]
C
Um, yeah, I was jumping up and down in excitement. Somebody told me that Tom Daly, they were gonna get me in touch with Tom Daly and he also knits and is an Olympic gold medalist. And then the metal immediately just broke off the ribbon and fell to the ground.
- [13:53]
A
Are you gonna get a new one?
- [13:54]
C
They actually already gave me a new one. I have to go get it engraved, though. But I do have it.
- [13:59]
A
Thank God. I can't believe it already broke. But nonetheless, I mean, it is incredible that you are the first gold medal winner of these Olympic Games and only the second US Woman to ever win Olympic gold in downhill skiing. So congratulations on that. How do you get your head in the right place ahead of that race?
- [14:19]
C
You know, there's so much in ski racing that you have to contend with. And so, you know, I'm always just trying to come back to my plan. We work with our coaches, we watch extensive video and we come up with, here's the line that you're going to hit. Here's the sometimes as small as a postage size stamp space that you're gonna hit with your skis. This is the moves you're gonna do. This is, you know, what you're gonna think about. So you just keep coming back to your planning. You. I just kept telling myself, if I execute my plan, I can do this. Like, you just have to execute your plan. That's what you're here to do. And so, yeah, today it worked out.
- [14:54]
A
I mean, you're going 85, 90 miles an hour. Are you ever scared?
- [14:57]
C
Yeah. You know, you don't go that fast. And, you know, sometimes things are shaking so much, you can't even see, like, the gates. You're just kind of, like, guessing that it's probably right there. But I always say that, like, fear is a lot allowed to come with me, but it has to sit in the backseat. It can't tug on the steering wheel. It doesn't get to decide what we do. So. Yeah.
- [15:17]
A
Breezy. This race was obviously clouded by Lindsey Von's crash, and you have gone through an ACL injury yourself. You had to drop out of the 2022 Beijing Games because of it. What was it like watching Lindsey crash, having known what she's gone through and. And also being someone that you have looked up to. The only other American woman to have won gold in this event.
- [15:38]
C
Yeah, I mean, my heart goes out to her, obviously. You know, I. I felt for her. It. It sort of felt like 2022 was happening all over again. It just wasn't happening to me. I don't pretend to know what she's going through, but it definitely had kind of an eerie similarity to it. And I, you know, I felt for her. I felt for, you know, wanting to prove people wrong and being unable to do so, about trying to find peace. And I hope she knows that, you know, despite everything that happened here, she still proved so much and, you know, been such an incredible inspiration. So there's so much more to the story, and I hope people understand that and don't just see the one day see everything that she's been through and see it for a positive.
- [16:28]
A
Did you guys talk at all after that crash?
- [16:31]
C
She texted me this morning at, like, 4:20am I was still sleeping. Her coaches told me that even as they were loading her into the. Into the helicopter, she was, like, saying grass to Breezy, like, good luck to her. So I know that she definitely felt at least yesterday that if she couldn't win, she wanted me to, and I really appreciate that. To. To think about somebody else in those moments is really hard to do and definitely shows the type of person she is.
- [17:00]
A
Looking ahead, you are going to race again Tuesday, I believe, with Michaela Shiffrin. Um, you guys are close in the combined event. Do you have less or more anxiety going into that event knowing that you've already clinched gold?
- [17:14]
C
I think I have less anxiety for me because I already have something to bring home from the Games, which is really what I wanted, but more anxiety because I know what it is to have an Olympic dream. I know what it is to want those medals, and I hold not only my own faith, but Mikaela Shifrin's and obviously, you know, want to be part of that for her. Want to help, you know, do my part to bring her home a gold medal, which she 100% deserves. So team combat is interesting because it's both the most pressure you ever feel and the least pressure because somebody else gets to take it half the distance. So it's a really cool event.
- [17:52]
A
Yeah. You're not just singularly thinking about yourself. You're having to think about someone else as well. Can we do a quick speed round of questions before we wrap?
- [18:01]
C
Of course.
- [18:01]
A
What's your favorite pastime when you aren't.
- [18:04]
C
Skiing, making ice cream, or shopping in.
- [18:08]
A
Etsy, what do you like to shop for?
- [18:09]
C
I literally shop for everything. I shop for yarn, I shop for furniture. I shop for little doodads. You can buy anything on Etsy.
- [18:20]
A
What's your favorite Olympic sport to watch besides skiing?
- [18:24]
C
I would say luch.
- [18:27]
A
What about summer tennis? If you weren't a skier at the Olympic Games, what sport would you want to do?
- [18:33]
C
Probably tennis.
- [18:34]
A
Yeah, me too. We should hang out sometime.
- [18:37]
C
I love playing tennis.
- [18:39]
A
Me too. Who is the Olympian you're most excited to see at the Winter Games?
- [18:45]
C
So my best friend actually competes in moguls for Austria. So I'm going to go head over to Lumino and watch her compete in duels after my events are over. And so that's who I would say Breezy Johnson.
- [18:59]
A
We are. We are so happy for you. We're going to be rooting for you guys and your team come Tuesday. Thank you so much.
- [19:06]
C
Thank you.
- [19:08]
A
Coming up, we are going to get an update on Lindsey Vaughn in our Olympic minute. Plus the latest on the investigation into Nancy Guthrie's disappearance. Stay with us for the headlines.
- [19:21]
F
On the night before Halloween in 1975, 15 year old Martha Moxley was murdered. But police failed to make an arrest until in 2000, her one time neighbor, Michael Skakel was arrested. He was also a cousin of the Kennedys. The Kennedy connection is the reason that most people know about this. But the deeper I dug, the more I came to question everything I thought I knew. Dead certain the Martha Moxley murder. All episodes are available now. Wherever you get your podcasts.
- [19:52]
G
Team USA takes the gold.
- [19:55]
A
Let's go.
- [19:56]
C
I wish I could play hockey like that.
- [19:58]
G
That's a big dream, Kyle. But Xfinity can help you chase it.
- [20:02]
C
Wait, you talking to me?
- [20:03]
G
Sure, am I. Because your reliable WI fi keeps you right in the action.
- [20:07]
C
Wow. What else can it do?
- [20:09]
G
It makes sure you can do homework, stream and game smoothly, even under pressure.
- [20:13]
C
Kinda like a good coach.
- [20:14]
G
Yes, but with less yelling.
- [20:16]
C
Uh oh. Snowboarding and speed skating are starting, so.
- [20:19]
G
Fire up MultiView with Xfinity TV and stream up to four events at once.
- [20:24]
C
That's awesome. Now I want to hit the ice. Want to come?
- [20:28]
G
Well, with Xfinity Mobile, me, wi fi and 5G go where you go.
- [20:33]
C
Cool. You okay? In a pocket.
- [20:35]
A
Hey, I love a road game with Xfinity Wi Fi. Your technology works together seamlessly. Get one Internet price for five years guaranteed Xfinity. Imagine that. Proud partner of Team USA Restriction Supply select plans Only Xfinity Mobile requires Xfinity Internet. This is Olympic figure skating medalist Adam Rippon. Are you wondering who you should root for at the 2026 Winter Olympics? Well, I'm hosting my new favorite Olympian, where I will introduce you to Team USA's brightest stars and the causes they are passionate about. You're gonna have great days. You're gonna have rock bottom days. I think that that's part of life. Being a mom, being an Olympian. Get ready for the 2026 Winter Olympics by checking out my new favorite Olympian wherever you listen to your podcasts. And we are back with. Here's the scoop from NBC News. Let's get to some headlines. Day three of the 2026 Winter Games has just wrapped in today's Olympic Minute. Our correspondent Molly Hunter has the latest on the condition of downhill skier Lindsey Vonn and what's going on tomorrow.
- [21:40]
E
Hey, Yasmin. The big news here in Cortina is still Lindsey Vaughn. And we don't know that much more today than we did last night. So we were there at the race. We watched her horrific crash, 13.4 seconds in. We also watched that emergency chopper airlift her off the mountain. That helicopter brought her to Cortina, where she was briefly evaluated before being airlifted to a bigger, better equipped hospital in Treviso. It's about two hours from here. So we heard from the hospital last night. They said that she had broken her leg and that she had undergone surgery. Today, we have not heard from the US Ski Team or directly from Lindsey Vonn. Now, the excitement in Cortina this afternoon was the US Mixed doubles curling kicked out. Italy, they're the defending champs. So tomorrow, the US Will face off against Sweden, a chance to go for gold. But the big event that we will be at tomorrow, that we are very excited about, is a new Olympic event. It's the Alpine women's team combined. That means Breezy Johnson is going to ski downhill and Michaela Shiffrin is going to make her first appearance at this Olympics. She will be skiing slalom. Their times are then combined. So that's going to be really exciting. This is the first of what we expect to be three appearances by Michaela.
- [22:45]
A
Shiffrin Opening arguments have started in a landmark trial accusing meta and YouTube of deliberately addicting and harming children. The lawsuit claims that the companies made deliberate design choices so their platforms would be more addictive to kids and boost profits. The tech companies dispute those claims and say they've added a slew of safeguards for kids and argue they're not liable for content posted on their platforms under section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Executives, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg are expected to testify. TikTok and Snap were originally named in the suit, but settled for undisclosed sums in the lead up to the trial date. In an Instagram video posted this afternoon, Today show co anchor Savannah Guthrie thanked the public for their love and support in the search for her mother. Nancy Guthrie we believe our mom is still out there.
- [23:39]
B
We need your help.
- [23:40]
A
In another video this weekend, Savannah addressed her mother's possible kidnapper, saying the family would pay for her mother's return. Three officials briefed on the investigation told NBC News the video was a response to a ransom note sent to a local television station in Tucson and that authorities are still working to verify its authenticity. No suspects, persons of interest or vehicles have been identified in connection with Nancy Guthrie's case. The 84 year old was dropped off at her home on the evening of January 31st and has not been seen since. In Hong Kong, one of The Chinese Communist Party's most prominent critics has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. 78 year old media tycoon Jimmy Lai was a major figure in pro democracy protests. In 2019. He was convicted in a landmark national security trial that has become a symbol of Beijing's crackdown on dissent in the Chinese territory. Lai has denied all charges against him. The US and other governments have criticized the case as politically motivated. President Trump and others have called for his release. And if you watched Bad Bunny's halftime show at the super bowl last night like I did, you'll remember there was a moment just before Lady Gaga's entrance with a couple in a white tuxedo and a wedding gown. Well, it turns out that wedding was real. The bride and groom actually did get married during the super bowl, bad Bunny's rep said in a news release, the couple had sent him an invitation to their wedding, and Bad Bunny basically said, hey, let me do you one better. The singer even signed the marriage certificate. Talk about an unforgettable dance. All right, that is gonna do it for us at here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasmin Bisugin. We'll be back tomorrow with whatever the day may bring. And if you like what you heard, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. We'll see you tomorrow.
- [25:47]
H
It's tax season, and at LifeLock, we know you're tired of numbers, but here's a big one you need to hear. Billions. That's the amount of money in refunds the IRS has flagged for possible identity fraud. Now here's another big number. 100 million. That's how many data points LifeLock monitors every second. If your identity is stolen, we'll fix it, guaranteed. One last big number. Save up to 40% your first year. Visit lifelock.com specialoffer for the threats you can't control. Terms apply.