Pod Save the World - Episode 505: Epstein Files Reveal Depraved Global Network

Date: February 4, 2026
Hosts: Tommy Vietor & Ben Rhodes
Interview Guest: Ali Vaez (International Crisis Group, Iran Expert)

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into two interconnected themes: elite corruption spanning global power centers, most notably revealed by the bombshell Epstein files; and the mounting consequences for global affairs, from major Trump-era corruption scandals to the gathering crises in Ukraine and Sudan. The hosts dissect the latest revelations about Trump’s dealings with authoritarian states and crypto, explore the international fallout from the Epstein files, and scrutinize the dysfunctions within the U.S. intelligence community, especially surrounding Director Tulsi Gabbard. The episode also delivers updates on Ukraine, Sudan, and a lighter segment on Canada’s separatist tensions and an unforgettable story from France.
The show concludes with an interview analyzing the current crossroads for Iran.

Major Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump, the UAE, and Global-Scale Corruption

[08:20-16:15]

• Wall Street Journal “Bombshell”: UAE’s royal family secretly purchased 49% of the Trump family’s crypto company, World Liberty Financial, for $500 million just days before inauguration. The company had no products, and the structure gave investors no access to their (minimal) revenue stream.
  • Upfront payment: $187 million to the Trumps; $31 million to ally Steve Witkoff’s family.
  • Emirati point-man: Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan (UAE’s National Security Advisor, manages $1.3 trillion in assets).
• Further Emirati Ties: UAE state fund MGX invested $2 billion in Binance via the Trump family’s new “stablecoin,” potentially netting the Trumps $80 billion/year in passive interest.
• Export of Sensitive Tech: Trump administration, following these deals, allowed UAE to buy 500,000 of Nvidia’s most advanced AI chips—over White House and Pentagon objections and export bans—risking tech exposure to China.
• Trump’s Dismissal: When asked about the “quid pro quo,” Trump said (sarcastically),

  “I don’t know about it... My sons are handling that. I have all I can handle right now with Iran and Russia and Ukraine...” (Trump, [10:53])

• Implications:
  • Scale: Not garden-variety “cash-in-freezer” corruption; this is “monetizing the most valuable assets of the United States—national security stuff… national interests being traded away” (Ben, [12:59]).
  • Systemic shift: Trump, in a second term, is “doing what Putin, Erdogan, or Malaysia have done—on a bigger scale, because the US has more to trade away...” (Ben, [13:50]).
  • The common thread: American financial elites are repeatedly “moths to the flame” of Gulf money, demanding deep anti-corruption reform (Tommy & Ben).

2. The Global Reach of the Epstein Files

[20:00-31:21]

• File Release and Fallout:
  • DOJ released millions of Epstein files, under Congressional order, uncovering deep ties across US and international elites, including “market-moving” secret leaks, blackmail material, and outright criminality.
  • UK Impact: Prince Andrew faces calls to testify before US Congress; Peter Mandelson (former ambassador to US & powerful British Labour figure) resigned from all posts and faces criminal investigation for passing ultra-sensitive economic information to Epstein.

    “That’s not a small fucking matter… being in meetings about ECB bailouts, it was unthinkable to leak that information.” (Ben, [21:44])

  • Norway: The (future) Queen Crown Princess was “deeply chummy” with Epstein even after his conviction; former PM and Nobel Committee members implicated as island guests and dinner companions.
  • Israel: Former PM Ehud Barak’s tapes with Epstein show Epstein facilitating his financial post-leadership, including tech investments and “window” into how political elites monetize power after office.
  • Intelligence Overlap: Epstein “operated like an intelligence agency unto himself,” exploiting royal/elite “weak spots,” collecting kompromat, connecting parties across the US, Europe, Middle East, Russia and Israel—and leaving open the strong possibility that “Mossad, FSB, maybe CIA, were watching or even involved.” (Ben, [28:35])
  • Trump: Mentioned tens of thousands of times, but never used email, leaving much unknown.
• Thematic Takeaway:
  • “Americans need to look much harder at our own elites... actual stakes—power, intel, market information—were constantly traded in this Epstein web.”
  • The files’ release is the “tip of the iceberg”—and brings disturbing questions about victims and lack of accountability.

3. Tulsi Gabbard: Dysfunction at the Top of Intelligence

[31:22-46:13]

• Who Is Tulsi Gabbard?:
  • Former Democratic Congresswoman, Iraq War veteran, early Syria Assad visitor, “quirky anti-regime-change” credentials—now Director of National Intelligence under Trump.
• Recent Revelations:
  • Georgia FBI Raid: Gabbard, despite her purely analytical, non-operational role, appeared at the site of a controversial FBI raid on an Atlanta election office—phoned Trump in on speakerphone to the agents, in a wild breach of protocol.
  • Sen. Mark Warner responded ([34:20])

    “The Director of National Intelligence does not conduct criminal investigations, she... does not belong on the scene of a domestic FBI search, particularly one tied to the President’s personal grievances...”

  • Broader Pattern: Gabbard is running her own “separate review” of the 2020 election, and has dismissed/demoted officials in both Venezuela-related and Iran intelligence matters for defying Trump’s desired narrative.
  • Whistleblower Block: A “super sensitive” whistleblower report involving Gabbard and another agency is being suppressed by her handpicked IG, with rumors of executive privilege, possible foreign intelligence collaboration, or high-level leaks swirling.
    • Theory: Potential direct involvement of top Trump aides (e.g. Kushner) in sharing/consuming intel.
  • Conspiracy Theories:
    • The right is concocting ever-more baroque stories about Obama, Iran, CIA satellites, and “ghosts of Hugo Chavez” stealing the 2020 election—“the only audience is the dumbest bag of rocks who sits in front of Fox News…” (Ben, [40:10])

4. Global Crises: Ukraine & Sudan

[49:30-61:27]

4.1 Ukraine

• Winter Escalation:
  • Russia is targeting Ukraine’s energy grid with bombardments during freezing temperatures, causing blackouts and civilian suffering.
  • Trump claims he “got Putin to agree to one-week ceasefire”—instantly debunked by fresh attacks ([50:44]).
  • NATO support is fracturing; Musk (finally) restricts Russian use of Starlink; Russia importing African mercenaries.
  • Nuclear Arms Treaty: Bilateral arms controls with Russia set to expire, risking fresh arms races.

4.2 Sudan

• Dire Warnings:
  • Country locked in a devastating proxy war: UAE, KSA, Qatar, Turkey, Russia, and Egypt are arming different factions; up to 100k civilians may have died in Al Fasher.
  • Norwegian Refugee Council Secretary General warns of coming “famine of biblical proportions” ([58:22-59:33]).
  • Over 33 million—a majority of Sudan’s people—need aid; US/Western aid drastically shrunk after USAID dismantling.

5. Trump Administration & Alberta Separatism

[61:27-68:06]

• Trump officials have met three times with Alberta secessionists, who want to split from Canada—mainly for control of oil resources—and are seeking $500B US support to “transition.”
• Comparisons to Russia’s Playbook:
  “The play is so Russian… foster separatism for resource gain.” (Ben, [66:35])

6. History Buffs Delight—The French Artillery Shell Incident

[68:06-70:17]

• A young French man arrived at a Toulouse hospital with “a large object up his rectum”—revealed to be a live WWI German artillery shell. The ER was evacuated, bomb squad called; the shell was safely removed.
• Ben’s takeaway:

  “It’s just a story... about the unintended consequences of war.” (Ben, [69:32])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Ben on Trump’s scale of corruption ([12:59]):

  “What Trump is doing is monetizing the most valuable assets of the United States. Right? Like, it is national security stuff… National interests being traded away and there’s no payment to the United States. It’s just to Eric Trump and the Witkoff family.”

• Tommy on American moths to Gulf money ([14:56]):

  “One of the sad things... is just Americans, we’re like moths to a flame... The Gulf has figured out... if you have that much money and people willing to trade away, you’re gonna do it.”

• Ben on Epstein as intelligence vehicle ([28:35]):

  “He operated like an intelligence service himself... The Mossad, the FSB, maybe the CIA, must have been paying close attention… At a maximum, favor trades... He didn’t necessarily have to be on any payroll to work with them.”

• Senator Mark Warner on Tulsi Gabbard ([34:22]):

  “She does not belong on the scene of a domestic FBI search... particularly one tied to the President’s personal grievances...”

• Ben on infectious conspiracies ([40:10]):

  "They just take random scandals and jam them all together in like a sandwich… the only audience they're speaking to is the dumbest fucking bag of rocks who sits in front of Fox News for 12 hours a day."

• Sudan, Jan Egeland (Norwegian Refugee Council) ([58:54-59:33]):

  “I’ve hardly seen, in my many years as a humanitarian worker, so little available aid in such a tremendous emergency... we’re in a countdown to a famine of biblical proportions.”

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• Trump-UAE Corruption: [08:20] – [16:15]
• Epstein Files Global Fallout: [20:00] – [31:21]
• Tulsi Gabbard/Intelligence Dysfunction: [31:22] – [46:13]
• Ukraine War Update: [49:30] – [56:17]
• Sudan Crisis: [56:17] – [61:27]
• Alberta Separatists/Trump Admin: [61:27] – [68:06]
• Bizarre French Hospital Story: [68:06] – [70:17]
• Ali Vaez Interview on Iran: [73:47] – [99:50] (see below)

Interview: Iran at a Crossroads (with Ali Vaez)

[73:47-99:50]

• Protests & Repression: Mass unrest in Iran, brutally crushed by the government. Prospects for regime change debated.
• Negotiations: Trump admin pushing hard-line terms (no enrichment, no missile program, no proxies), but Iranians’ nuclear and regional infrastructure are “significantly degraded.” Room for creative diplomacy exists, but deep mutual mistrust and regional mediation (by Qatar, Turkey, Egypt) are new features.
• Possibilities of Regime Change:
  • Few viable “organized” alternatives inside or outside Iran.
  • Most likely paths: (1) soft transformation by insiders; (2) hard “strongman” coup (e.g., Mohammad Baghr Kaliba); (3) “Syria scenario”—state collapse and civil war.
  • On the Iranian diaspora leaders: “You’re an enemy if you disagree even a little bit… Diaspora hasn’t constructed a viable alternative.” (Ali Vaez, [94:08])
• Key Insight: Any US/Iranian regional imbroglio is as likely to unleash chaos—and refugees—as “democracy,” reminding listeners of lessons from Iraq, Syria, Libya.

Tone and Style

Lively, irreverent but deeply informed; sharp with expletives and gallows humor in the face of corruption and geopolitics at their ugliest. Irrepressibly critical of both U.S. and global elites, with no patience for conspiracy-mongering or technocratic cover-ups.

Final Takeaway

This episode lays bare the depth, scale, and impunity of elite corruption and its catastrophic political, humanitarian, and security consequences—locally, globally, and on the most intimate level. The Epstein files are merely the surface of the rot. From Trump’s shadow deals to global proxy wars and the catastrophic mismanagement at the top of America’s intelligence community, these stories underscore a world in desperate need of accountability, transparency, and real reform.