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- [00:04]
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Hey, everybody. Welcome to here's the scoop of NBC News. I'm Yasmin Vesugin. Coming up on the show today, from the arrest this morning of a former British royal to the resignations and the firings from Wall street all the way to Hollywood to testimony under oath on Capitol Hill, we are taking a look at the fallout from the release of the latest batch of the Epstein files. And who could be next. Plus, what commitments President Trump's Board of Peace is making in Gaza. And what is next for Olympic gold medalist Michaela Shiffrin, coming off an electrifying slalom run. But first, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, the man formerly known as Prince Andrew, was arrested Thursday morning by British police on suspicion of misconduct in public office. Now, authorities haven't released many details, but the DOJ's latest trove of Epstein documents contain new revelations about Andrew's dealings with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. For years, Andrew has faced repeated allegations of sexual abuse of a minor, all of which he has denied. So for this, I want to bring in NBC News foreign correspondent Raf Sanchez. Hi, Raf.
- [01:10]
B
Hey, Yasmin.
- [01:11]
A
Crazy day I mentioned, right? Former Prince Andrew taken into custody today on his, by the way, 66th birthday. Earlier this month, RAF, the Thames Valley Police, which is the police force in charge of Windsor, said it was looking into a claim that then Prince Andrew shared confidential documents with Jeffrey Epstein. What do we know about these confidential documents and what British police are accusing Andrew of in this investigation?
- [01:39]
B
So British police have released very few details at this stage. Around 8am local time, they arrested Andrew at his new home in Norfolk in the east of England. He's been living there just a couple of weeks since he was forced out of his royal residence in Windsor, near Windsor Castle. They say he was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, basically that he abused his public position. That is the extent of what they have said so far. We do know, though, that in this vast trove of documents related to the Epstein case released by the Department of Justice were a series of emails that Andrew appears to have sent to EPSTEIN Back in 2010. Now, 2010 is important. Andrew was serving at the time as a trade envoy for, for the British government. So more than just a member of the royal family, he was actually working on behalf of the British government, trying to drum up trade business around the world. And these emails appear to show that Andrew forwarded Epstein a number of potentially sensitive British government documents related to trade policy.
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For folks that don't know Raf, I want to take them through a little bit of the Timeline when it comes to former Prince Andrew and, and how we got here right in 2019. Then Prince Andrew stepped away from public duties because of the controversy over his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. That announcement was just days after he discussed Epstein in a BBC interview in 2022. In February, Andrew reached a legal settlement with Virginia Giuffre for an undisclosed amount after she filed a civil case against him in a New York court accusing him of sexually assaulting her when she was just 17 years of age. He has repeatedly denied having met her and previously denied that a photograph of the two of them is actually real. Then last fall, Virginia Giuffre's posthumous memoir was published, detailing the allegations against Andrew. And following the publication of that book, RAF King Charles stripped Prince Andrew of his titles and ejected him from the Royal Lodge. And King Charles released a statement today in which he said the Royal Family was offering authorities their, quote, full and wholehearted support and cooperation. And then he said, let me state clearly, the law must take its course. This arrest is unprecedented for the British monarchy, which is putting it mildly.
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B
So when we say unprecedented, which is a word we use a lot in the media, but this really is. You have to go back to the 1600s to find anything even remotely comparable. King Charles I was arrested back in 1647. That was literally during the, during the English Civil War. There is nothing comparable in the modern era. The idea that the younger brother of the sitting monarch has been arrested by British police and the King is put in a position where he has to comment on it. The statement was really interesting in a couple of ways. First of all, the King referred to his little brother as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. Nothing in that indicated any kind of familial warmth, any even literal recognition that it was his brother he was talking about. And he stressed that the Royal Family fully supports an independent investigation, that they will cooperate with that investigation however they need to. It is, in some ways, this is obviously a major, major crisis for the Royal Family. It in some ways, the fact that there is now an arrest, that there are active criminal proceedings, at least means that King Charles has a fairly clear explanation for why he's not going to be commenting any further.
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I mentioned the woman who accused Andrew, Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide last year. Her brother and sister in law spoke to NBC News now anchor Hallie Jackson, our colleague, about what Andrew's arrest means to them. It feels like this surreal moment, a piece of justice that, like Virginia, has been fighting for this entire time. And I think we're just so proud. We're so proud. We're so freaking proud of our sister right now.
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C
I think the first step here has been taken by the uk, which is amazing. I think there's so much more that needs to be done here.
- [06:29]
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I want to note, obviously, Andrew's arrest deals with separate issues from the sexual assault allegations made by Virginia Giuffre. But you can't help but wonder if today's action is an indication that there may be more to come for the former prince.
- [06:49]
B
Yeah, it's impossible to say, but the one that they have taken action on today is this fairly discreet issue of suspicion of misconduct in public office. But the fact that they are going down this route today does not mean that they can't go down other routes in future.
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One last question for you, Raf. Andrew's not the only one who's getting caught up in this. You now have European investigators that have been combing through the DOJ's latest batch of Epstein files. Is there a possibility that there could be other cases connected to Epstein?
- [07:28]
B
Yeah, absolutely. And what's so interesting is we have thought of the Epstein scandal as a sex abuse scandal, and of course it is. But what is really gaining momentum on the criminal investigation side are these probes into whether powerful people abuse their positions in public office. So Prince Andrew, for starters, but the former British Ambassador to Washington, who was fired just a couple of months ago, he is also under a police investigation. Similar theme emails were found from him to Epstein, potentially containing sensitive data. There is an investigation into the former Prime Minister of Norway on similar grounds. And there is no reason to think that there might not be more probes into other powerful people across Europe.
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Raf Sanchez coming to us from the inside of a van in London as he makes his way to Buckingham Palace. Thank you, raf.
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B
Thank you.
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A
So just after our conversation with raf, former Prince Andrew has now been released under investigation from a UK police station. That's according to the British police. All right, we are going to take a very quick break. And when we are back, how the latest trove of Epstein files have forced a wave of reckonings here in the United States. That's next.
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And we're back with here's the scoop from NBC News. The former Prince Andrew is not the only person caught up in the fallout from the latest batch of Epstein files released by the doj. There has been a wave of high profile resignations here in the US From Wall street to Hollywood, leaders at Goldman Sachs, the talent management company Wasserman, Yale University, the law firm Paul Weiss, the list goes on. But so far no one has been accused of criminal activity and the Department of Justice has said there will be no further prosecutions. So I want to bring in chief Capitol Hill correspondent Ryan Nobles to talk more about this. Hey, Ryan.
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C
Hey, how are you? Yes, thanks for having me.
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A
It's great to have you. So after Andrew was arrested, former Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene criticized the president on social media this morning saying, quote, zero Epstein related arrests here in the United States. Of course, how else are we seeing this news reverberate here in the US what has been the reaction that you've been hearing so far?
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C
So I think it has a potential to be an earthquake. Yes. I think that already you're starting to see a lot of American politicians and American thought leaders appointing to the swift action that is taking place in the United Kingdom as an example of what needs to happen here in the United States. You know, the royal family often thought of as untouchable, as a group of people that are kind of exempt from this type of scrutiny and accountability, I think is what many who have been leading the charge for accountability and transparency and the Epstein files are pointing to as an example of what should happen here.
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You know, Ryan, so much of the fallout that we have been seeing from the release of these Epstein files came after lawmakers gained access to the unredacted version of these files. Right. And a lot of high profile folks have had to step down from their gigs, from their jobs, from their companies, from universities, as I mentioned, from law firms. Who are some of those people and what is their connection from what we understand to Jeffrey Epstein?
- [11:36]
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Well, maybe the best example is Kathy Rummler, who was the former Obama White House chief counsel, somebody that was very connected to the Obama family and Democratic politics and who was also a high powered lawyer for Goldman Sachs, has been in that job for a long time. She pops up over and over again in the Epstein files, served as some level of legal counsel to Jeffrey Epstein but also appeared to have some sort of a personal relationship with him. And she stepped down from that job at Goldman Sachs. But she's not the only one. You have Tom Pritzker, who is the executive chair of Hyatt Hotels, who was forced to step down, and then Casey Wasserman of the high profile Hollywood talent agency. Wasserman faced all kinds of serious pressure from some of very high profile people that they represent. The best example being from Chapel, Roan, a pop star who said that she was no longer gonna be represented by Wasserman. And while there are certainly people losing their jobs, there are two things that we haven't seen happen yet, Yez, and that's first, any political consequence for someone popping up in the Epstein files. We've seen members of the Trump cabinet, Howard Lutnick being the best example, who has at least, at the very least mischaracterized his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein still in his job. We obviously have the President himself. And then the second part of it is that we haven't seen any criminal accountability for it. There've been no further prosecutions. And while the attorney general kind of waved at the idea during her tense hearing on Capitol Hill that they're still exploring possible investigations and that further prosecutions can happen, there's been no evidence of any kind of tangible movement in that direction. And that's something that the survivors truly believe needs to happen.
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Well, and it seems like Congress recognizes that, right? Because in one respect, you have the DOJ saying, okay, this is it, right? We're moving on from here. Whereas Congress is like, no, no, no, we are digging deeper into these investigations. This week you had billionaire Les Wexner, the former CEO of Victoria's Secret, testifying before the House Oversight Committee. He had been subpoenaed because his name appears in the Epstein files more than a thousand times. He has denied any wrongdoing, maintaining that he cut ties with Epstein back in 2007. But take us inside your reporting. What did we learn from Wexner? His relationship with Jeffrey Epstein as well. And we know obviously the Clintons are coming next week, but is there a possibility we could see more folks called to the Hill to testify because of their ties to Epstein?
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C
I'll answer your last question first, and that is absolutely yes. I think that there is going to be a steady, long line of people that are called to testify. I think that Kathy Rummler, for instance, who we just talked about, is somebody that Democrats have already said that they want to hear from. And Republicans have not turned down the idea of perhaps hearing from her. So I think that's an absolute possibility. But. But going back to the Wexner testimony, I'm very interested to see that transcript. They're gonna release the transcript and the full video of it. But he answered questions for more than six hours, and the members of Congress that were in the room said that he answered every single question. I think there was some effort on his part to try and distance himself from the awful things that Jeffrey Epstein did. He certainly, as we saw in his opening statement, said that he was duped by a con man. But. But I'm interested when that transcript comes out, to see. To kind of read between the lines behind some of the very specific questions that the congressional investigators had for him, because I think what's interesting is nothing really on its own is a smoking gun, but when you see one piece of information and then you connect it to another piece of information, it's like a puzzle. Exactly. I think that's the Howard Lucknick equation. Right. Howard Lucknick goes on a podcast and emphatically states that he cut ties with him because he was horrified by Jeffrey Epstein in 2005. But then there's a trove of emails that show him having a conversation with him in 2008, actually traveling to Epstein island with his family. And so I think that all these things piece together and the Wexner deposition could lead to a deposition of someone else, which could lead to a deposition of someone else tied in with what we already know in the files. And I think what's most frustrating for those who have called for Epstein transparency from the very beginning is that there were clear investigative lines that prosecutors should have explored at the very beginning of this controversy that for whatever reason, they chose not to.
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So the other folks that are gonna be testifying, as I mentioned, former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, that's happening next week, I believe, over two days. They asked to make it public. It's going to be public. Give us a preview. What do we think is gonna happen there?
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C
So it'll be public after the fact. As far as we know, it'll still be a closed door deposition to start, but eventually all of the video and the transcript which will be released, which the committee has done a very good job of doing and actually doing on a pretty short timeline. But listen, here's the thing, and I think this is something that Democrats on the committee, given the fact that they've asked for Kathy Rummler to come forward, seem to understand. There is no getting around party affiliation when it comes to the Epstein controversy. And if you are going to be very critical of Donald Trump and his Cabinet and the names that have popped up in the Epstein files that happen to be associated with Republicans, there needs to be just as much pressure put on Democrats and people affiliated with Democrats in the Epstein files. And there's no one, I think, that is more prominent that is known as a Democrat than Bill Clinton in the Epstein files. So that's not to say that he's guilty of anything. That's not to say that he's been accused of anything. Republicans admit that as well. But the fact that there's someone in these files who's been mentioned so often and clearly had a relationship with him, and if you're trying to uncover every single possible stone in this investigation, it makes sense that he comes in and answers questions. And then ultimately, then that opens the door to whether or not the Howard Lutnicks and the Donald Trumps of the world also will be forced to answer questions.
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I'm glad you said that, because that's exactly what was on the tip of my tongue, which is, well, then, are they going to call on the president of the United States to answer questions under oath in front of the House Oversight Committee?
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There was a moment last week on Capitol Hill where James Comer came out and gaggled with all of us. And I asked him directly this question, do you think calling in a former president sets a precedent and could that impact Donald Trump? And his exact words were, of course it sets a precedent. Everything we do sets a precedent. So the Republicans on the committee, the chairman of the committee, are not even trying to reject this idea that perhaps it could lead to a situation where Donald Trump is subpoenaed or be forced to answer questions now in the same breath. They also say he answers questions about this all the time whenever somebody in the press asks him questions about it. If you're Robert Garcia and you're the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee and you're looking at the polls that show Democrats have a real possibility of winning back the majority in 2026, who's the first name that you're gonna put on your subpoena list once you get that subpoena power?
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Ryan Nobles. Thank you.
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C
Thank you, guys.
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Coming up next, how much money President Trump wants the United States to give to his new Board of Peace? And Mikayla Shifrin reflects on her Olympic gold. That's coming up in the headlines.
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And we're back with here's the scoop of NBC News. Let's get to some headlines. The Gaza ceasefire was front and center as the president met with the newly formed Board of Peace for its inaugural meeting in Washington this morning. The board drew representatives from at least 40 nations, although it was missing some of the US closest allies. NBC News senior White House correspondent Gabe Gutierrez has more on this meeting.
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The Board of Peace meeting lasted about three hours. It included dozens of speakers, including heads of state like Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban. And President Trump said that he pledged the US would commit $10 billion to the board of Peace. Now, this is a body that he created and that he leads. It's meant for the security and redevelopment of the Gaza Strip. Now, the president didn't specify the source of that funding, but really what was remarkable to watch in this gathering was that so many traditional US Allies weren't there. Many European countries just declined to participate, citing concerns that this could undermine the U.N. now, for his part, the president says the Board of Peace is going to almost be looking over the UN and making sure it runs properly. Now, speakers at today's meeting floated ideas for the future of Gaza's coastline, including the potential for some 200 hotels and 100,000 homes for 500,000 residents.
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At the same meeting, President Trump said, quote, good talks are being had with Iran as the administration works towards a new nuclear deal.
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Maybe we're going to make a deal. You're going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days. But this meeting today is proof. With determined leadership, nothing is impossible.
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But the Pentagon has been ramping up its military presence in the Middle east, sending warships, air defenses and a second aircraft carrier as officials are preparing for a possible US Strike on Iran if the president orders one. NASA ran a critical wet dress rehearsal for a moon launch at Kennedy Space center today, a key hurdle before the agency can lock in a date to launch Artemis, too. Engineers fuel the towering lunar rocket and step through a full countdown simulation, verifying repairs to the hydrogen leak that scrubbed last month's test. The mission will send four astronauts on a 10 day Figure 8 flight around the Moon. It is the first crewed lunar journey in more than 50 years, and if all goes well, liftoff. Windows open as soon as March 6th. And finally, it is time for our Olympic minute. Ski mountaineering made its Olympic debut today with three events on the the men's sprint, women's sprint and mixed relay. And American speed skater Jordan Stoles claimed silver in the 1500 meter final, adding to the two golds he's already won at these Games. He has another shot at a medal on Saturday as well. And speaking of golden moments, I spoke with Alpine skier Mikayla Shifrin, who took gold in the slalom on Wednesday. Hi, Mikayla.
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Hi.
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How are you doing? Do you have a mantra that you really focus in on before your races or when you're going through a difficult time in your life? Even something, some phrase that you always go back to here in Cortina, something I kept repeating to myself was like, I want to feel powerful and connected with a mountain. So that was one of the things I wrote down on my mirror and just kept saying, I want this. I want to feel connected. And it was like, I want the moment between the start and the finish. I accept that the moment after the finish might not be what I want. That's something we can all apply to our own lives. I feel like I want to feel powerful and connected to fill in the blank. By the way, my discussion with Mikaela Shifrin was so good that we are going to release the full conversation this Saturday on a special edition of here's the Scoop we talked about. Yes, of course, her perfect slalom run to gold and her mental health journey. Okay, that is going to do it for us at here's the Scoop from NBC News, I'm Yasmin Vesugin. We'll be back tomorrow with whatever the day may bring. And if you like what you heard, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. And you can also subscribe to our daily newsletter, the Inside Scoop. It is a deeper dive on the main stories of the day that comes out every weeknight straight to your inbox. You can sign up for the Inside Scoop as part of our paid subscription@nbcnews.com.
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