Walls are closing in on Trump as missing Epstein documents point to avenue of inquiry

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Briefing with Jen Psaki

Episode Title: Walls are closing in on Trump as missing Epstein documents point to avenue of inquiry
Date: February 28, 2026
Host: Jen Psaki (MS NOW)
Notable Guests: Sarah Fitzpatrick (The Atlantic), Rep. Suhas Subramaniam (House Oversight Committee), Rep. Gina Hinojosa (TX), Soledad O’Brien (Journalist/Producer)

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Overview

In this episode, Jen Psaki dissects a series of major political bombshells, zeroing in on allegations of corruption within Trump’s inner circle, new revelations concerning the Trump administration’s connections to Jeffrey Epstein, and the growing pressure from missing Epstein-related documents. The episode features exclusive interviews with investigative journalist Sarah Fitzpatrick, Oversight Committee member Rep. Suhas Subramaniam, Texas Rep. (and gubernatorial candidate) Gina Hinojosa, and former CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien, offering perspectives on political accountability, media consolidation, and the evolving 2026 Texas elections.

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Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. Corruption and Conflicts in Trump’s Cabinet

Segment Start: [00:50]

• Howard Lutnick, Commerce Secretary, as a Corruption Standout:

  • Psaki identifies Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as arguably the “most corrupt” member of Trump’s cabinet (excluding Trump), detailing his involvement in multiple scandals.
    • Detroit-Windsor Bridge Scandal: Lutnick allegedly held a meeting with the billionaire owner of a private toll bridge, after which Trump threatened a competing new bridge project.
    • Tariff Profiteering: Despite being a cheerleader for Trump’s tariffs, Lutnick’s family business reportedly bet against them, profiting immensely when the Supreme Court struck the tariffs down.
    • Family Wealth Increase: “Politico reports that the Lutnick family business has seen its revenues increase 25%...since Donald Trump took office.” ([06:45])
    • Trump’s Jealousy: The president is reportedly upset over Lutnick’s family benefiting from his popularity.

• Quote:

  “You'd think that given all of this, the photo, the business ties, the lies about when their relationship ended, maybe Congress might have deposed him by now…” – Jen Psaki ([09:52])

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2. Howard Lutnick’s Epstein Connections and Missing Files

Segment Start: [07:14]

• False Claims About Epstein Relationship:

  • Lutnick previously claimed never to have social, business, or philanthropic ties to Epstein after 2005—a claim contradicted by new documents showing later connections, including a photographed meeting and island visit.
  • Evidence of deliberate document deletions and subsequent reappearances points to a cover-up.

• Congressional Inaction:

  • Despite these revelations, Congress has yet to subpoena Lutnick, but momentum is building.
    • Rep. Ro Khanna: “I believe we have the votes to subpoena him.” ([09:17])

• Political Double Standards:

  • Psaki criticizes the focus on Bill and Hillary Clinton’s past Epstein ties instead of current Trump officials.
  • Raises questions: “If Bill Clinton can be made to testify about Epstein, why not Trump?”

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3. Missing Epstein Documents & Trump’s Exposure

Segment Start: [10:22]

• Blockbuster Reporting (Sarah Fitzpatrick, The Atlantic):

  • Trump and allies are concerned that Clinton’s deposition sets precedent for similar scrutiny:
    • “Trump and others have expressed concern that this effort could set a precedent for Trump to be subpoenaed to testify under oath about Epstein.” ([10:58])
    • Newly surfaced documents (referenced by nine sources) suggest key evidence implicating Trump was withheld by the DOJ.

• Notable Quotes:

  • “That freaked people out. Nobody really knew what was coming.” ([11:54]) – White House staffer (as cited by Fitzpatrick)
  • Trump’s order: “He wants his aides and allies to make the whole thing go away.” ([12:22])
  • Fitzpatrick: “There is a large amount of material that references Donald Trump, some of it that is not among the included material.” ([14:14])

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4. Journalist Interview: Sarah Fitzpatrick on Administration Panic

Segment Start: [13:29]

• Material Withheld:
  • Fitzpatrick confirms the withheld documents involve “several different cases and individuals”; not just a single accusation.
• White House Unpreparedness:
  • Administration caught "flat-footed" by the scope and content of the Epstein file release.
  • Fitzpatrick: “Donald Trump does not share…he has made representations to staffers, to members of Congress in his own party, which have then turned out not to be true on this specific issue.” ([16:15])
• Accountability Concerns:
  • The episode highlights longstanding issues with how both parties have handled the Epstein investigation.

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5. Congressional Interview: Rep. Suhas Subramaniam on Clinton Deposition and Oversight

Segment Start: [16:46]

• Clinton’s Candid Testimony:
  • Clinton was “very candid…answered every question without pleading the Fifth Amendment. There were a few times where he couldn't remember...but those are things that happened 20 or 30 years ago.” ([18:08])
  • Notable moment: Clinton claimed the Trump/Epstein “fallout” was due to a business deal, not employee exploitation as Trump said.
• Transparency & Partisan Dynamics:
  • Subramaniam contrasts the scrutiny applied to the Clintons vs. lack of oversight on Trump’s current aides.
  • “We didn’t know he tried to hide two and a half million files though.” ([17:44])

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6. 2026 Texas Primaries: Republican Chaos & Democratic Momentum

Segment Start: [22:28]

• Trump’s Uncommitted Endorsement:
  • Trump stirs up the GOP primary but still hasn’t endorsed anyone in the pivotal Texas Senate race ([24:00]).
  • Polls show Trump underwater by 4 points in Texas; Abbott’s numbers are even lower.
• Democratic Momentum:
  • Guest Gina Hinojosa highlights recent Democratic flips in deep red Texas suburbs, surging turnout, and a statistical tie for Governor.
  • Quote: “Aside from Tarrant county, there was Cy Fair outside of Houston that flipped three school board seats against big money book banners…Within the last couple of months, these are flipping. It’s happening organically.” ([26:58]) – Gina Hinojosa

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7. Trump-Favored Media Consolidation & Threats to Journalism

Segment Start: [33:11]

• FCC Pressure & Media Mergers:
  • Trump’s FCC chair Brendan Carr is pushing station owners to air more “patriotic” content; threatened repercussions for noncompliance.
  • Nexstar is seeking to acquire Tegna, raising concerns about unprecedented media concentration ([33:45]).
  • Trump directly lobbies for merger approval, seeking to “knock out the fake news.”
    • Quote: “We need more competition against the enemy, the fake news, national TV networks.” ([36:14])
• Paramount & CNN Takeover:
  • Trump ally Larry Ellison inks deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery (owner of CNN), after already acquiring CBS.
  • Ellison’s son and Bari Weiss remade CBS News into a more conservative outlet; similar moves expected at CNN.
  • Soledad O'Brien: “Word inside CNN…is that people are panicking now at CNN. We have been through 50 million bosses…but I think this is chaotic in a bit of a different way.” ([41:22])
• Threat to Press Freedom:
  • Psaki: “The way you just described this going down sounds a little more like Hungary or India or Turkey than America.” ([41:40])
  • O’Brien: “If you believe that journalism and good journalism is the cornerstone of any democracy, all of that sounds very uncomfortable.” ([42:27])

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8. Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Trump’s Motives:

  • “What the president has clearly said, often in a barking tone, is that he wants his aides and allies to make the whole thing go away.” ([12:22]) – Pull from The Atlantic

• On Clinton’s Testimony:

  • “He was very candid. He answered every question without pleading the Fifth Amendment.” ([18:08]) – Rep. Subramaniam

• On Texas Shifting:

  • “Republicans are in trouble…Greg Abbott…has 10 challengers on his primary side. A first ever.” ([28:17]) – Gina Hinojosa

• On Media Consolidation:

  • “It becomes clear then there’d be pressure to make [CNN] a more conservative outlet, as we have seen happen at CBS.” ([39:45]) – Soledad O’Brien

• On Journalism in Democracy:

  • “We are here to bear witness and to hold power to account—not to be friends with the president.” ([41:40]) – Jen Psaki

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• [00:50] — Cabinet corruption focus: Howard Lutnick and Trump’s Bridgegate
• [07:14] — Lutnick’s questionable Epstein denials and document tampering
• [10:22] — Precedent for subpoenaing Trump over Epstein
• [13:29] — Sarah Fitzpatrick (The Atlantic) on the missing Epstein documents
• [16:46] — Rep. Subramaniam on Clinton deposition and transparency
• [22:28] — Texas primary chaos, polling, and Democratic gains (w/ Rep. Gina Hinojosa)
• [33:11] — FCC pressure, media mergers, Trump-favored outlets
• [39:35] — Soledad O’Brien: CNN/CBS takeover and press freedom under threat

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Tone & Style Reflection

• Jen Psaki's tone: Wry, incisive, a mix of seriousness and dry wit (“It’s like I handed you a bag of M&Ms and asked you to tell me which one is the most chocolatey…” ([05:58]))
• Guests: Offer expert, measured analysis, often sharing inside perspectives and sounding both concerned and vigilant about the implications of the unfolding news.

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Summary

This episode delivers a hard-hitting exposé on the mounting legal and political pressure facing Trump and his administration, particularly over the Epstein files and internal corruption. Parallel stories of growing Democratic strength in Texas and the creeping consolidation of conservative media underscore dramatic national shifts in both political and information environments. With concise analysis and revealing interviews, Psaki and her guests provide a comprehensive, accessible deep-dive into evolving stories that could reshape 2026’s political landscape.

Transcript

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We got a lot of news to get to tonight. Today is the last day of early voting before Texas primaries on Tuesday. And on the Republican side of the primaries, Trump has thrown himself, well, he's thrown the entire really into chaos, flying down to the state today for a big rally despite the fact that he hasn't chosen which Republican candidate he wants to back for the big Senate seat. We're also following the big news that a top Trump ally who already owns CBS has now officially inked a deal to acquire the parent company of cnn. I'll talk to my former colleague and the former CNN anchor Soledad o' Brien about what that all means. And we're following big new revelations tonight about the Trump administration's to try to derail the Epstein investigation and downplay Trump's ties to the notorious sex trafficker. That's new reporting. It's coming as a Republican led investigation into Epstein spent the day questioning a different president, Bill Clinton, about his alleged ties to Epstein. I'll talk to the reporter behind those new Trump revelations as well as one of the Democratic members of Congress who was in the room during Bill Clinton's deposition in just a moment. So like I said, we got a lot tonight. I want to start with this question. Hope you're sitting down. This is a tough one. You might need a pen and paper. Who is the most corrupt member of Donald Trump's Cabinet? I know, it's like I handed you a bag of M and Ms. And asked you to tell me which one is the most chocolatey, right? But if one had to pick a cabinet member, excluding Donald Trump himself, who's engaged in the most outrageous self dealing and influence peddling. The one whose personal conflicts of interest are most in need of oversight. If I had to ask you to pick one cabinet secretary, we'd have to go with this guy, the Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick. Now, hear me out on this one, because I think a lot of what Lutnick has gotten up to in recent weeks has flown completely under the radar. For starters, there's Lutnick's role in the Trump administration's very own Bridgegate scandal. For years, the federal government's been involved in building a new bridge that runs between Canada and the United States, between Detroit and Windsor. That Detroit Windsor crossing, by the way, is the busiest land border crossing. Not just between our two countries. It's the busiest land border crossing in the entire world. More stuff goes across that land crossing than anywhere else. Trump himself was a big supporter of the project during his first term. It's called the Gordie Howe Bridge. It's named after the legendary Canadian hockey player Gordie Howe, who played for the Detroit Red Wings. Again, a bridge between the two countries. Gordie Howe was that bridge. But the new bridge was going to compete against another bridge nearby that happened to be privately owned by a billionaire who collects toll money anytime anyone crosses it. So that billionaire owner of the existing private toll bridge held a meeting a few weeks ago with the Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick. And within a few hours, all of a sudden, this bridge that Donald Trump liked. Trump was suddenly threatening to block that new bridge from ever opening to the public. The New York Times asked the Commerce Department for comment on the bridge decision. They didn't respond. And in another universe, that would have been huge front page news for weeks. It's a scandal, this massive bridge between these two countries, these massive trading partners. For Lotnick, it was just Tuesday. Then there was the way Lutnick's family appears to be profiting from their bets against Trump's signature tariff policy itself. So if you know anything about Howard Lutnick, you know that when he's in front of the cameras, big smiley guy, he's been one of the biggest cheerleaders for those tariffs. He even went so far as to embarrass himself by telling a member of Congress that Americans could avoid paying tariffs on imported bananas if companies would just, quote, build them in the United States. Build a banana or a banana farm, I suppose is what he must have meant. But at the same time, Wired reports that in the lead up to the Supreme Court's widely anticipated ruling, which struck down those tariffs. Lutnick's family business was helping companies bet against the Trump policy. A subsidiary of the business that was run by Letnick's two sons was reportedly buying up other companies rights to sue the for tariff refunds so that when the Supreme Court struck down the tariffs, as it was expected to do and as it eventually did, the Lutnick family business would make a killing. A spokesperson for the Commerce Department told Wired that Lutnick has, quote, no insight or strategic control over the firm run by his two sons, end quote. But Congressman Jamie Raskin announced just today that he is demanding an investigation into the family's business practices. And that may not be the only way that Lutnick's family firm is benefiting from his role in the administration. Politico reports that the Lutnick family business has seen its revenues increase 25%, 25% since Donald Trump took office. And that rise in fortunes has reportedly even irked Trump himself, who apparently thinks his should be the only family profiting off his presidency. Politico reports, quote, the president's been upset that Letnick's family is profiting so aggressively off his popularity, and he confronted Lutnick directly about it during an episode at Mar a Lago over the winter holiday, said two people familiar with the exchange. One of the officials familiar with Trump's thinking said the president reacts viscerally when someone else profits over Trump considers his own brand, end quote. Okay, so there you go. That's the case. If you're unconvinced everything I just mentioned is reason enough. You don't think that everything I just mentioned is reason enough to believe that Howard Lutnick should face some tough questions from Congress right now? Then hold on, I got more for you. What I've got for you is what has become Howard Lutnick's single biggest liability of all. Never mind everything I just told you, he's been lying about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. Back in October, Howard Lutnick was asked about the fact that he and Epstein had been neighbors in their swanky Manhattan neighborhood. And in response, Lutnick told the story of visiting Epstein's home in 2005, saying this

[A]

and in the six or eight steps it takes to get from his

[B]

house to my house, my wife and I decided that I will never be in the room with that disgusting person ever again.

[A]

So I was never in the room with him socially for business or even philanthropy.

[B]

If that guy was there, I wasn't going to because he's gross. He's gross. Never. I will never be in the room with him socially for business or even philanthropy. Turns out that wasn't true. First, we got the revelation from the Epstein files that Lutnick and his family visited Jeffrey Epstein's island seven years after Lutnick claims to have cut ties with him. Then we learn that Lutnick also appears to have had long standing business ties to Jeffrey Epstein, which also extended well past the point that Lutnick claims to have cut ties with him. And now we've learned about this photo of somebody who looks an awful lot like Howard Lutnick with Jeffrey Epstein. And the interesting part about this photo is that it was mysteriously deleted from the Epstein files after they were initially released. It was only after people started pointing out that the photo had been removed that it magically reappeared in the publicly available files today. Because that's how your Justice Department works. Things just go missing and then they reappear. Now, just let's be entirely clear here. This is about who should get fired from Trump's Cabinet. Letnick has not been accused of any, any wrongdoing relating to Jeffrey Epstein and he's denied any impropriety. But you'd think that given all of this, the photo, the business ties, the lies about when their relationship ended, you would think that maybe Congress might have deposed his him by now as part of their investigation. And that may still happen. Today, the Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna told Politico, I believe we have the votes to subpoena him. One would hope that's true given that Howard Lutnick is a sitting member of the current administration and is therefore directly subject to congressional oversight. It's not optional that members of the administration are subject to congressional oversight. But so far, the Republican led committee has been much more focused on a president who was last in office 25 years ago, as well as his wife, the former Secretary of State. Today, Republicans finally held their closed door deposition with former President Bill Clinton. And so far there have been no major revelations from that interview. We will let you know if anything newsworthy emerges from that hearing. But the real question here is if Congress can force a former president to sit and answer questions about Epstein, what stops Congress from doing the same thing for a current president and multiple members of his cabinet who have ties to Epstein? If Bill Clinton can be made to testify about Epstein, why not Trump? And I'm not the only one who seems to be asking that question. Just listen to what President Trump himself said today when he was asked about Bill Clinton's deposition.

[C]

Are you concerned at all about President Bill Clinton being deposed, and that, that sets precedent for you and your family.

[B]

I don't like seeing him deposed, but, you know, they certainly went after me

[D]

a lot more than

[B]

I don't like him.

[D]

Look, I like him and I don't

[B]

like seeing him depose. I don't like seeing him deposed. That's not Donald Trump, by the way, expressing newfound sympathy for Bill and Hillary Clinton. In case you were wondering, that's Donald Trump's fear that he's next. As the Atlantic Sarah Fitzpatrick reports. In a blockbuster news story today, quote, Trump and others have expressed concern that this effort could set a precedent for Trump to be subpoenaed to testify under oath about Epstein, according to four people familiar with the situation. As one administration official said, everyone's looking for an off ramp. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what we're learning from this new reporting, because according to the Atlantic, not one, not two, not three, not four, but nine people. Nine people familiar with information that was submitted to the FBI and the DOJ in recent years told the Atlantic that they were alarmed that many documents, including those that they say include references to Trump, were not made public. Nine people with insight into the FBI's investigation of Epstein know that those materials relating to Trump exist and that they have been omitted from the DoJ's production of documents as required by law. This report also sheds light on how people inside the administration reacted when they realized the potential implications for the president. Trump's prominence in the files, quote, surprised White House staff members who told us they were unprepared for the release, end quote. As one staffer told the Atlantic, quote, that freaked people out. That freaked out people. Nobody really knew what was coming. The report also details how the administration appears to have targeted Republican Congressman Thomas Massie for his campaign to get the files released, quote, some of Massey's key staff members were suddenly offered more prestigious jobs in the Trump administration or more lucrative jobs in the private sector, the idea being that if Massie no longer had a full staff, he couldn't pursue ambitious legislation. But despite his relentless efforts to undermine this investigation, Trump's interest in keeping the files hidden remains a mystery, even to his closest allies. The Atlantic reports that Trump, who's not exactly known for his discretion, does not detail, even privately, what precisely in the files might be so embarrassing to him and those close to him. Four administration officials told the Atlantic. What the president has clearly said, often in a barking tone, is that he wants his aides and allies to make the whole thing go away. But this issue is not going away. If anything, the hunt for answers about Jeffrey Epstein is just beginning. And neither the president nor his allies nor his cabinet secretary should assume that they will not end up in the hot seat. Starting us off tonight, Sarah Fitzpatrick. She's a staff writer for the Atlantic behind the remarkable reporting that broke late today. Sarah, welcome to the show. Nice to see you again.

[E]

Nice to see you.

[B]

I want to start with a piece of reporting that really jumped out at me. Nine people as you, as you document, nine people familiar with the information that was submitted to the FBI and the DOJ in recent years told you they were alarmed that lots of documents that they know to exist, including some that reference Trump, were not made public. Now, I guess I'm trying to figure out were they alarmed about the 50 pages or so that are reportedly under wraps and that describe an accusation that Donald Trump sexually abused a minor, or are they alarmed about the concept that documents are withheld or other documents entirely? Do you have any sense of that?

[E]

Yes. So I can't get into, you know, the sourcing of my reporting, but what I will tell you is that this is a broad range of documents that cover several different kind of cases and individuals. So there is a large amount of material that references Donald Trump, some of it that is not among the included material. Now, the New York Times and NPR has done some great reporting about a specific set of documents related to one accusation. But my reporting is broader than that about multiple allegations that have been submitted to the FBI and DOJ in recent years and do not appear in the files.

[B]

You've reported on Jeffrey Epstein and his crimes and the young survivors for a really long time, I think closing in on a decade. This piece outlines how White House staff members were entirely unprepared for the Epstein files release and the tens of thousands of times that Donald Trump's name was actually mentioned in the documents that were actually released. I guess my question is, did it surprise you that they were surprised?

[E]

Yes. I mean, perhaps not so much of this investigation, the handling of the Epstein, kind of anything to do with Epstein has been mishandled from the very beginning. Regardless who's been handling it, a Democratic administration, a Republican administration. But this in particular does surprise me because remember that the Trump administration, it was a campaign promise out on the campaign trail that these files were going to be released. There was so much interest in it. But Pam Bondi said that the alleged client list was sitting on her desk. So I think there is a real disconnect between, you know, the interests that they said that they had, and then seemingly not having the interest to gain more information about this before, you know, before any of this became public. Now, I will say it's important that these are investigative material. So we would not expect the White House to have access to DOJ materials, or at least we should expect that.

[B]

Yeah, just conceptually you'd think they'd know, right?

[E]

Exactly, exactly. But I do think it speaks to a kind of larger thing, which is my reporting reflects, which is that Donald Trump does not share. You know, he has made representations to staffers, to members of Congress in his own party, which have then turned out not to be true on this specific issue. And so that is raising a real alarm on Capitol Hill and even among some White House staff that they just are caught flat footed and they cannot fully trust what the president tells them.

[B]

Sarah, thank you for your reporting. We appreciate you. Sarah Fitzpatrick reporting in the Atlantic. All right, I want to turn to the Democratic Congressman Suhas Subramaniam. He's a member of the House Oversight Committee, and he was in the room for that deposition of former President Bill Clinton today. Congressman, good to see you. Thank you for being with us. I want to, before I get to the Bill Clinton stuff, I want to just get your thoughts on Sarah Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick's reporting about the White House being sort of unclear on what Donald Trump's exposure to this whole thing and sort of seeming flat footed and very concerned about it.

[D]

It's not surprising. We knew that President Trump was playing games when it came to the release of the files. He ignored our subpoena from our oversight committee that we issued back in August. He clearly didn't want to release certain files. And so when he was forced to by law, a law that he signed, we knew that he was going to try to hide some files. We didn't know he tried to hide two and a half million files, though. And we certainly don't know the extent to which he has hid things about himself. But certainly her piece helps guide us in that process as we try to figure out how we get full transparency through this whole process.

[B]

Let's talk about today and the testimony from Bill Clinton. What can you tell us without having to kill me?

[D]

You know, he was very candid. He was very open. He answered every question without pleading the Fifth Amendment. There were a few times where he couldn't remember the answers to questions, but those are things that happened 20 or 30 years ago. There was one interesting exchange where he brought up a conversation he had with Donald Trump where Donald Trump actually told him that Trump and Epstein had a fallout because of a fail or a conflict over a business deal, a land deal. And so that contradicts what Donald Trump has said to date, which is that he and Epstein had a following up because Epstein was trying to take advantage of his employees at Mar a Lago. And so that was just interesting. But other than that, you know, the fact that the Clintons were here and they answered every question and were so open to questions is pretty interesting given that this is a former president and a former Secretary of state. It's pretty unprecedented, the transparency we had this week.

[B]

Are you able to tell me if there were any specific questions put to President Clinton specifically about any of anything that would cause him to be culpable in this investigation that he answered or did not answer to anybody's satisfaction?

[D]

He answered every question we asked. I mean, we went through all of the documents and pictures through a very detailed timeline. You know, I think, you know, given the amount of questions we had for him, he did quite well, actually, in answering each and every one of them. And even trying to remember specifics from 20, 30 years ago is pretty difficult sometimes, but he was able to do so in many cases. And it was similar to Secretary Clinton's interview we had yesterday, although she had much less information to share since she didn't even know Jeffrey Epstein for the most part. I would say that the tone, you know, there are a lot of Republicans here. You know, compare that to Les Wexner a few weeks ago who bankrolled Jeffrey Epstein. There were no Republicans at that deposition. And so the Republicans showed up in full force, but it was respectful, especially compared to yesterday with Secretary Clinton. But overall, you know, we learned a lot more about the Clintons relationship with Epstein and Maxwell. I don't know if we learned a lot about Epstein's criminal enterprise, given that the Clintons were such a small, if anything, insignificant part of Epstein and Maxwell's life. But certainly we got the answers that people were asking publicly.

[B]

Congressman, thank you for joining us. We appreciate your time as always. Congressman Suha Subramaniam is a member of the House Oversight Committee. Up next, Republicans are sweating in Texas, and Donald Trump's only making things work worse. I'm sorry. That's up next.

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to endorse in the primary.

[B]

Mr. President? Pretty much, yeah. No, not yet. No, not yet. Early voting is, like, over. I mean, this is kind of crazy. No horse in this race. Maybe Trump is just visiting Texas to drive turnout. That might seem like a smart move in a deep red state that he won by double digits until you actually check the pools, the polls. Cuz a survey from the University of Texas this month has Donald Trump underwater by 4 points. In Texas, the disapproval is 49%. The approval rate is 45%. So Trump may be juicing up just as many voters who don't like him as he's juicing up voters who do. That's a tough spot to be in because that primary in Texas is about to become the first real test of Maga's electoral resistance. 2026. As I mentioned, Senator John Cornyn has been in the United States Senate for almost a quarter of a century. He's a favorite of the Republican old guard. But the Ride or Die MAGA faithful are backing a challenge from State Attorney General Ken Paxton, who's a guy with a boatload of baggage. And with a third candidate in the race as well, there's a good chance of a runoff because none of them are likely to earn 50% of the vote, which is required to advance in Texas. So in the end, we could see a weakened Republican facing off against a really strong Democrat. And that Democrat might be the congresswoman, Jasmine Crockett, or it might be the state representative, James Tallarico. But more important than that specific dynamic is this. The midterms have begun, and since last November, we've seen Democrats consistently outperform their numbers from 2024 by 10 points or more. They've flipped local races in deep red, including one in Texas just four weeks ago. Even Greg Abbott, the Republican governor who's seeking his fourth term, could be vulnerable as Texas voters grow frustrated at how Republicans are doing when they're in charge. And believe me, I get it. Texas has been the great white whale for Democrats for years. One more conversation about Texas being purple, I'm gonna lose my hair. But for Republicans, Texas could be the canary in the coal mine this time around. Joining me now is the Texas State Representative, Gina Hinojosa. She's a Democratic candidate for governor of Texas looking to unseat Governor Greg Abbott. Thank you for being with us tonight. Nice to see you again.

[F]

Good to see you too, Ali.

[B]

Let's talk about this, because this happens every time. There's an election in Texas, they talk about how close the Democrats get and they're gonna be Democrats and the Democrats are gonna do this to the Republicans and then the Republicans win. I look at the Beto o' Rourke candidacy. He was a strong candidacy. Ted Cruz is a super flawed candidate who ran a bad campaign, and yet Ted Cruz won. How do you explain that and overlay that with the enthusiasm we're seeing from Democrats in this race?

[F]

Right. Well, this time it's not talk. Actually, this time it's happening on the ground in real time. You mentioned Tarrant County. A county, a seat, a Senate seat that swung 31 points for a Democrat. Aside from Tarrant county, there was Cy Fair outside of Houston that flipped three school board seats against big money book banners. We have Robstown, that flipped the mayor's seat. We have Leander's, Leander that flipped the mayor's seat. These are all Republican, traditional Republican suburbs in Texas. And just within the last couple of months, these are flipping. It's happening organically. Timing is everything. And people are so tired of politics as usual.

[B]

So look at Tarrant County, 30 points, right? And Republicans were saying, well, these special races, you know, turnout is smaller outside, money comes in. But it was 30 points. Wasn't even close. And that's the thing that we're looking at here. If you combine the voter frustration with the voter enthusiasm, voter turnout for advanced voting in Texas is way higher. For Democrats, it's way up. It's up by 200,000 over the last similar race. Republican turnouts up by, you know, I think about 6 or 8,000.

[F]

That's right. Republicans are in trouble. They knew they were in trouble in Tarrant county and there was nothing for them to do about it. Our own polling against Greg Abbott, who, by the way, has been in office now 12 years, Governor of Texas, shows we are in a statistical tie with Greg Abbott. So he is deeply unpopular. You showed Trump's numbers. Abbott's are worse. That's why Abbott called Trump, to try to shore up his own vote where he has 10 challengers on his primary side. A first ever.

[B]

Let's talk about the Senate race. It's interesting because I think I know where Donald Trump's sentiments lie. I think he'd be inclined because he's sort of spiritually akin to Ken Paxton. But Ken Paxton's got a lot of baggage and I think Trump is tired of endorsing people who lose. This has been happening a lot lately where the Trump endorsed candidate does not win.

[F]

Well, they don't have a winning candidate, that's his problem. He wants to go with the winner, but he, there's not one who is currently running on the Republican side. This is the Republicans problem in Texas. After 30 years of Republican rule, Texans are ready for change. We hear it all over this state. I'm in South Texas where Trump won in the Valley where I'm from and the enthusiasm is through the roof. People are showing up. We just had people wait for hours to take pictures with us Democrats running for statewide office.

[B]

Let's talk about, let's talk about Democrats running for statewide office. You got two major candidates for Senate. They're different. They got different backgrounds, different approaches to things. They're both very popular. One of them's got to get 50%. We're not sure how that'll work because if you don't get 50% in Texas, you go to runoff. It's driving enthusiasm. Probably a good thing for Democrats to have two good choices. The Republicans don't have that problem in Texas right now.

[F]

That's right. We have an embarrassment of riches on our side. And both James Talrico and Jasmine Crockett are good friends of mine. Both can beat whoever emerges as the Republican on the Senate side. But yes, people are engaged. People are showing up. There are rallies all over the state where barnstorming the state until Tuesday, the primary and people are showing up. It is full on election season in

[B]

Texas and ironically, that's making it full on election season in the whole country because everybody's watching how this is gonna play out when you're watching in Texas and that Texas is a nail biter. It means the country is in an interesting place. Great to see you again. The Texas state representative Gina Hinojosa. She is a candidate for governor in Texas.

[D]

All right.

[B]

Up next, Trump friendly Paramount snatches up Warner Bro Discovery in the MAGA media makeover entires a frightening new phase. My former colleague and former CNN anchor Soledad o' Brien joins me. Just a moment. We'll be right back.

[A]

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[B]

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[C]

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[B]

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[C]

Mr. Chairman, you announced your Pledge America campaign encouraging broadcasters to air more pro America content such as starting each day with the Star Spangled Banner or the Pledge of Allegiance. Tell us more. What kind of a response are you getting?

[B]

Many broadcasters have embraced it. Some on the left push back. Apparently they have a problem with patriotic pro America programming, but it's a good opportunity for broadcasters to let their viewers know exactly where they stand. Starting your day off with the Pledge of Allegiance. What are we in school here? That was Donald Trump's FCC chairman, Brendan Carr this morning on Fox News saying the TV broadcasters entities that his agency regulates should start airing more of what he considers patriotic content. Now, coming out of anyone else's mouth that that might sound fine. But remember, Brendan Carr is the guy who actually pressured broadcasters to take one of Trump's perceived media enemies, the late night host Jimmy Kimmel, off the air because he didn't like what Kimmel was saying at the time. Carr told broadcaster to quote, take action, end quote on Kimmel and that he and the FCC could, quote, do this the easy way or the hard way, language that even Ted Cruz likened to a mafia shakedown. Now, while the company says that Carr's comments had nothing to do with their decision for a period of time, nexstar Media Group, the company that owns the most local TV stations in the United States, did in fact take Jimmy Kimmel off their airwaves, which raised eyebrows because nexstar, that company that owns Those local TV stations is trying to acquire one of its biggest competitors. That's a company called Tegna, which also owns a bunch of local news stations. But that proposed $6.2 billion merger is likely illegal under current Federal Communications Commission regulations because if the merger were to go through, that would mean that one company would own 265 local TV stations that reach a whopping 80% of the households in the country. That's media consolidation. It would be giving one singular company way too much control over the nation's local news to pass regulatory muster. But earlier this month, Trump himself demanded that the nexstar Tegna merger go through, saying, quote, we need more competition against the enemy, the fake news, national TV networks, end quote. Letting good deals. He continues, by the way, letting good deals get done like nextar, Tegna will help knock out the fake news. Okay, now we're done. Yesterday on an earnings call, the CEO of nexstar said the company appreciates the support of the President and expects the merger to go through by the end of June. Of course he does, because the dynamic here is clear. You do something that Donald Trump and Brendan Carr like, you make your content and more, quote, unquote, quote, patriotic and more Trump friendly. And you start with the national anthem and maybe you do the Pledge of Allegiance. You get rewarded if you don't do that stuff. Well, Ted Cruz explains what happens. He threatens it. He says, we can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way. Yeah, and I gotta say, that's right out of Goodfellows. That's right out of a Mafioso coming into a bar going, nice bar you have here. It'd be a shame if something happened to us. Now, as wild as Ted Cruz's fake attempt at an Italian accent was just there, the dynamic he's describing is right on the money. This isn't just a threat to local news. Today we learned that Paramount skydance, a company owned by the billionaire Trump ally Larry Ellison, has officially inked a deal to purchase Warner Bros. Discovery, which, among a ton of other things, owns cnn. Now, if that's giving you deja vu, it may be because last year Larry Ellison's Skydance bought Paramount, which owns CBS News. And last year, the New York Times reported that Trump has said privately that Larry Ellison assured him that he would turn CBS News into a more conservative outlet. And Ellison has done exactly that after buying the company and putting his son in charge. His son, David Ellison handpicked Barry Weiss, an avowed enemy of so called wokeness, in the Media to be the network's new editor in chief. And Weiss got right to work, laying off old staff, hiring a slew of new conservative commentators, tilting the network's coverage in a direction more favorable to Trump, making content that Brendan Carr might call more patriotic. In fact, just this week, Brendan Carr himself, the regulator of the networks, praised the direction of CBS under the leadership of Bari Weiss and David Ellison, specifically saying, I think they're doing a great job. Last year the Guardian reported that in conversations with the White House about getting this new merger approved, Larry Ellison discussed firing specific CNN hosts that Trump does not if he and his family take control of the network. Now the Ellison family's inked a deal that would let his family take control of the network and they now need the approval of Brendan Carr. So what does all this mean for the freedom of the free press in this country? Is there anything that can be done to stop it? The journalist and former CNN anchor Soledad o' Brien joins me. Let's take a quick trip down memory lane to last October, just after the Ellison family took over Paramount, the company that now controls CBS News. Larry Ellison is great and his son David is great. They're friends of mine, big, they're big supporters of mine and they'll do the right thing. They're going to make cbs, hopefully the, you know, they called it the Tiffany Network and it's got great potential. CBS has great potential. They're going to do the right thing. Clearly, Larry and David Ellison did the right thing in Trump's eyes and now they're about to take over the company that owns cnn. Joining me now is the former CNN anchor Soledad o'. Brien. She's the host of Matter of Fact with Soledad o' Brien and the producer on the Academy Award nominated documentary, the short film film the Devil Is Busy. Hi, old friend. I, I don't know, I don't even have a first question for you. I, my, my only question for you is psy.

[C]

Yeah, your last segment was like maybe I should run down and get a cocktail before we start this segment. A lot unfolding and I think all of the things that you pointed out are highly likely to happen. Right. Barry Weiss, many predict if this goes through, it still obviously requires regulatory approval. So, you know, there could be some hurdles there. But if that does go through, and I think there's a lot of indications that it will, many people predict that Bari Weiss then would become in charge of cnn. I think that it becomes clear then there'd be pressure to make it a more conservative Outlet, as we have seen happen at cbs. So I don't think that would be a big surprise. I think you would see layoffs. I don't think that would be a big surprise. I think you would see firing of specific CNN anchors that don' Meet the approval of the President because that has been sort of proposed and predicted. And so I don't think that would be a big surprise. And so all of those things, obviously, I think would be in the big picture, bad bird journalism to have sort of this political bent that is run by the President and also by an organization that sort of oversees and runs everything or many, many platforms. Digital network, you know, it would be cnn, hbo, know, Paramount, you know, so I think obviously there's, there are some hurdles, but I think it would be really, really problematic. I mean, word inside cnn, where I have a handful of friends there still I left, you know, more than 10 years ago, is that people are panicking now at CNN. We have been through 50 million bosses when I was there, the 10 year.

[B]

That's right.

[C]

I think I had five leadership changes in my tenure. Right. So, you know, it was always a little chaotic, but I think this is chaotic in a bit of a different way considering the degree to which the President has been very clear about what he dislikes deeply about CNN and specific CNN anchors.

[B]

And that's the distinction. It's not, it's change happens, the industry's undergoing change. CNN's not the same place it was when you and I worked there. But that's really all separate from the idea that the way you just described this going down sounds a little more like Hungary or India or Turkey than America. The idea that the president says, I think they're gonna do the right thing. We don't want the president thinking that the media is going to do the right thing by the president, whether that president is Donald Trump or Barack Obama or Joe Biden. It is not their business to want to determine what a news organization, what the right thing is for a news organization. We are here to bear witness and to hold power to account out not to be friends with the president.

[C]

If you believe that journalism and good journalism is the cornerstone of any democracy, all of that sounds very uncomfortable. And I will say, I mean, one of the things that I think is always wise is to see how things play out because sort of, you know, panicking in advance, I think is, is not super helpful. And again, I think there's some hurdles to still be overcome, but it is really concerning. And it's also just concerning when you have consolidated right even outside of the politics, which are very strange and I think bad at this moment. I think you just have fewer options. It's not good for journalism, it's not good for democracy. It's just overall not good.

[B]

You and I talked last couple months ago about your documentary the Devil is Busy. It's kind of remarkable. You follow an Atlanta abortion clinic which is besieged by protesters and whose workers are facing threats. We're a couple of weeks out from the Oscars. You've been nominated. What do you want people who have not yet seen this film, I'm sure there are a few of them still to know about it.

[C]

Yeah, he's been interesting because I think because we sort of take the point of view of the woman who's a security guard, deeply religious woman who's a security guard at the clinic. A lot of people have said, regardless of where they stand on the issue of their pro choice, their pro life or whatever you want to call it, it people have really liked the fact that it is a true story of what happens a day in the life of this clinic post Roe v. Wade. And I think in a way, because reporters credibility and trust is at an all time low. We've all seen those numbers. I think it's below 30% now. It's been kind of nice as a reporter to stay out of it and actually just let this woman speak to what she goes through and to see what happens in the clinic. And so we've gotten very good feedback from people in red states, people in blue states. A guy came up to me, we did a screening in, in Atlanta and he said, well, I'm, I'm pro life. Was older guy, I'm pro life. But I really like this talk. And so we've just been encouraging people it's on HBO Max, just to go see it, you know, watch it and if you like it or if you have questions about it, talk about it. Because I think just getting awareness out there about an issue that's kind of disappeared from the headlines partly because the headlines are overwhelmingly kind of insane right now on every front. As you know, since you're delivering them all the time. I that a lot of kind of what's happening on the abortion front has really disappeared from the headlines and so we like bringing attention to it.

[B]

I watched it and I loved it and I think people should watch it. Great to see. My old friend Soledade o' Brien is the Oscar nominated producer of the new documentary the Devil is Busy. We'll be right back. This week marks four years since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. And coming up tomorrow morning on Velshi, I'll check back in with someone who's grown up as a child of the house. I first met Nastya Spot in Warsaw, Poland, just one month into the war. She had been forced to flee her home along with most of her family, and yet she was focused on helping other Ukrainian refugees. You're going to those train stations. You've been going there and helping people, giving them food. I guess that must make you feel a little better at least. Yeah, it makes me feel better.

[A]

Because I know that I'm not alone.

[B]

And who lost everything. You're not alone. Thank you. You're not alone for sure. Thank you for being with us. Can I hug you? You'll get through this. Yeah. Tomorrow, 10:00am Eastern. I'll check in with my brave young Ukrainian friend. I'll see you then.

[A]

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