wavePod

3623 - Trump's Epstein Email Problem; Anti-Trust Import to Socialists w/ Ryan Cooper - The Majority Report with Sam Seder | Wave AI Podcast Notes

Back to The Majority Report with Sam Seder

3623 - Trump's Epstein Email Problem; Anti-Trust Import to Socialists w/ Ryan Cooper

The Majority Report with Sam Seder

Wed Nov 12 2025

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Majority Report with Sam Seder – Episode 3623

Trump’s Epstein Email Problem; Anti-Trust Import to Socialists w/ Ryan Cooper
Date: November 12, 2025

Overview

This episode of The Majority Report dives into two headline issues:

The newly released Jeffrey Epstein emails that name Donald Trump and shed light on his relationship with Epstein and the victims.
An in-depth discussion with Ryan Cooper (The American Prospect) on the intersection of socialism and antitrust policy, the risk of a government bailout for the AI sector, and the case for Chuck Schumer stepping down as Senate Majority Leader.

Sam Seder, with guest Ryan Cooper, breaks down these complex topics with sharp political analysis, historical context, and a healthy dose of irreverence.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Breaking News: Epstein Emails Link Trump to Victims

[06:27–19:00]

House Oversight Committee Releases New Emails:
- Democrats published emails written by Epstein that mention Trump by name and situate him directly in the context with victims, Ghislaine Maxwell, and author Michael Wolff, spanning roughly 15 years.
- These documents were obtained via bipartisan subpoena of Epstein’s estate (per Kaitlan Collins, CNN [07:02]).
Dissection of Key Emails:
- April 2, 2011: Epstein to Ghislaine Maxwell: “I want you to realize that the dog that hasn’t barked is Trump. [Victim Name Redacted] spent hours at my house with him. He has never once been mentioned. Police chief, etc. I’m 75% there.”
  - Sam Seder: “Let’s be clear...there’s no way to read this where it doesn’t look like Donald Trump certainly knew what was going on.” [08:33]
  - The “dog that hasn’t barked” is explained as an idiom from Sherlock Holmes, meaning Trump’s silence is meaningful because he knew the people involved. [19:21]
- December 15, 2015: Email between Epstein and Wolff as Trump enters the presidential race. Wolff discusses potential CNN questions about Trump’s relationship with Epstein.
  - Ryan Cooper: “Wolf wrote back, I think you should let him hang himself... If he says he hasn’t been on the plane or to the House, that gives you a valuable PR and political currency.”
  - Discussion points out oddness—why would denying visits be “currency” if the denial were true? [14:53]
- January 31, 2019: Epstein to Wolff regarding Mar-a-Lago:
  - Epstein: “Trump said he asked me to resign. Never a member ever. Of course, he knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop.”
  - Sam Seder: “If he knows that Ghislaine is getting [girls]...and he says 'stop,' he’s a real Bruce Wayne. Not 'never do that again,' but rather stop the ongoing thing you’re doing that I am aware of.” [16:22]
- The emails paint a picture of Trump’s familiarity with Epstein’s activities, and possible complicity or willful ignorance.
Political Implications:
- The revelations are likely to place further pressure on House Republicans and the Senate regarding ongoing investigations and the possible release of the full Epstein files.
- This may shake up alignments in the House, making it harder for Republican stragglers to avoid the issue. [19:00]
- Emma Viglin: Highlights related investigative reporting on intelligence ties to Epstein by Murtaza Hussain and Ryan Grim (“drop site”). [18:49]

2. Interview: Ryan Cooper on the Socialist Case for Antitrust

[28:46–51:32]

Origins of the Debate:
- Seder and Cooper reference Matt Bruenig’s critique (in response to Barry Lynn’s book “Cornered”) that antitrust, while valuable, isn’t a substitute for the welfare state or true socialism. [29:16]
- Bruenig’s main point: antitrust can’t replace robust wealth redistribution and public provision.
Ryan Cooper’s Response/Argument:
- Markets are “technologies” that require regulation to function competitively—neither pure capitalist nor fully socialist societies can dispense with them entirely.
  - “Markets don’t work without regulation...to create competition. Without it, you don’t get low prices or high quality.” [30:38]
- He cites Greenland’s public/private fishery sector and China’s state-owned companies (especially in solar and EVs) as examples where competition—even among state actors—yields efficiency and progress.
  - “China does antitrust with a sort of a public option...and they’ve just totally dominated in solar, EVs.” [33:53]
Antitrust as Political and Economic Tool:
- Excess economic concentration not only corrupts the market but also breeds politically dangerous oligarchy; antitrust can check this even before full socialist transformation.
- Ryan Cooper: “There is a level at which wealth concentration becomes like a national security emergency...” [48:34]
- Public ownership/social wealth funds (Bruenig's suggestion) may be ideal for equality, but antitrust is a necessary step to break up entrenched power blocking progress.
  - “If you want to get hardcore equality, antitrust is not going to get there...To get something like that, you would need a more socialist policy.” [37:46]
- Cites the Nordics and cooperative models (like Finland’s grocery coops) as proof of pragmatic combinations of competition and public ownership. [43:05]
- Vigorous antitrust enforcement—as in the Biden years—can weaken the ability of monopolists to block welfare or egalitarian reform. [45:16]

3. Government Bailouts and the A.I. Sector

[51:32–61:03]

Sam Altman (OpenAI) and Government as ‘Insurer’:
- Altman, asked about AI’s economic impact, casually suggests the federal government may become “the insurer of last resort” for the AI sector. [52:26]
  - Sam Seder, mockingly: “I have a problem with any of the ‘resorts’ that they are hanging out there.”
- Seder and Cooper criticize the notion that speculative, unproven AI ventures are already laying claim to government backstops, noting the parallel with the 2008 bank bailout.
  - “This is a classic situation in highly unequal countries...the only thing to invest in is a company that not only has low profits, but negative profits, setting money on fire...” [54:48]
Bankruptcy and Bailout Logic:
- Cooper: When companies mismanage and lose huge sums, they're supposed to go bankrupt. “That’s kind of the entire point of capitalism...” [56:33]
- Government intervention is appropriate to prevent systemic collapse (as in banking), not just to bail out “too big to fail” tech darlings or their investors.
Current Risks:
- Thus far, most AI investments are funded through tech giants' profits, but rising debt and speculation could change that, making a future tech-driven crash more possible.
  - “So far at least...most of this stuff has been funded out of profits, not debt...That has been changing though...” [59:06]

4. The Weakness of Senate Democratic Leadership (Chuck Schumer)

[63:04–70:17]

Case for Schumer’s Ouster:
- Cooper argues that Schumer leads by promising inaction—he’s a “concierge” for Senators who don’t want to make tough votes or enact discipline. [64:20]
  - Sam Seder: “He’s not there to lead. He’s there to provide...Broadway show tickets, or...buff your shoes.”
- Senate Democrats lack the procedural tools and party will to enforce discipline, especially compared to Republicans, who keep their caucus tight partly via their handling of committee assignments and lack of seniority-based entitlements.
  - “Republicans are part of a movement that is contesting for power...Democrats just don’t have anyone like that.” [68:41]
- The filibuster and ‘big tent’ culture devalue formal leadership roles, further entrenching stasis.
Recent Example of Defensive Weakness:
- Schumer and Senate Dems cave on the government funding resolution, sneaking in provisions that let senators subpoenaed during the January 6 investigation sue for damages and harm small hemp producers. [66:27]
  - “That is not exactly a deterrent to doing it again next time.” [66:27]

Notable Quotes & Moments

Sam Seder [08:33]:
“There’s no way to read this where it doesn’t look like Donald Trump certainly knew what was going on. Never mind that they were best friends.”
Ryan Cooper [45:16]: “If you think that antitrust doesn’t inspire corporate rage, you are definitely wrong...the whole of Silicon Valley was driven to an absolute frenzy of hatred by Lina Khan.”
Sam Seder [56:33]:
“When a company makes terrible decisions and loses lots of money and has no viable business model, it’s supposed to go bankrupt. That’s like kind of the entire point of capitalism...”
Ryan Cooper [48:34]:
“There is a level at which wealth concentration becomes like a national security emergency—not only impossible to have a functioning democracy, but you will have crazy policy...”
Sam Seder [64:20]:
“[Schumer's] not there to lead, he’s there to provide, like, you know… Broadway show tickets, or… I got a great place to buff your shoes. Like, he’s not doing anything as a leader.”
Emma Viglin [18:49]:
“Check out Drop Site—Murtaza Hussain and Ryan Grim have been doing really great work on the intelligence connections of Epstein…”

Timestamps for Key Segments

Epstein Email Breakdown: 06:27–19:00
Historical Lens on Antitrust & Socialism: 28:46–37:46
Political Importance of Antitrust for Socialist Aims: 39:56–51:32
AI Bailout Discussion (Sam Altman/‘Insurer of Last Resort’): 51:32–61:03
Senate Dem Leadership & Schumer: 63:04–70:17

Tone & Atmosphere

The episode blends policy wonkery with signature Majority Report irreverence: sharp critique, humor, and a healthy skepticism of establishment narratives.
The hosts are forthright in their analysis, often sarcastic about centrist politicians and billionaire “innovators”.
There’s recurring in-studio banter, especially during transitions, maintaining a friendly but oppositional tone to political and corporate power.

Conclusion

This episode provides a deep dive into explosive political developments (Trump-Epstein), while situating contemporary policy debates around antitrust, welfare, and socialism in both historical and practical contexts. Ryan Cooper’s perspective on antitrust as an essential precondition for socialist reform and democratic vitality is nuanced and well-argued, and the discussion highlights both political and structural weaknesses of the Democratic Party leadership. The show is a must-listen for anyone seeking trenchant, informed, and critical progressive analysis of current events.

Loading summary...

Transcript

Sam Seder (0:00)

You are listening to a free version of the Majority Report. Support this show@jointhemajorityreport.com and get an extra hour of content daily. It is Wednesday, November 12, 2025. My name is Sam Seder. This is the five time award winning Majority Report. We are broadcasting live steps from the industrially ravaged Gowanus Canal in the heartland of America, downtown Brooklyn, usa. On the program today, Ryan Cooper, writer at the American Prospect on the relationship between socialism, antitrust and also on the potential of a government bailout for AI and also why we should say bye bye to Chuck Schumer. Also on the program today, newly released Epstein emails say Trump knew and spent hours with the Epstein victims and knew what was going on. House to vote on ending the government shutdown today. Also supposedly at 4pm Adelita Graballa to be sworn in today by Mike Johnson. Venezuela orders a massive mobilization in response to multiple US Warships and an aircraft carrier being moved into the region. Jack Schlossberg, Kennedy Air he's the grandson of jfk. That's correct. Announces he will run for the seat to be vacated by Gerald Nadler. So see who else jumps into that race. Feel maybe we're done with the Kennedys. I don't know. Secretary Transportation Duffy has no timeline to restore full flights as ICE leaves Chicago. DHS pretends it helped crime numbers go down there. Trump regime set to sign a new defense pact with Saudi Arabia. And in wake of his 50 year mortgage fiasco, Bill Pulte is being investigated by Fannie Mae investigators for snooping through Democratic mortgage records that was the basis of their attacks on Letitia James and also Linda Cook, the Fed member of the Fed. All this and more on today's majority report. Who's Lisa Cook? Lisa Cook, Sorry, apologies. Long week, ladies and gentlemen, a long week here. Brian went to Benihana's last night, so he's a little bit wiped out. Yeah, me and all the vets, we went to many.

Brian (3:37)

Honey.

Sam Seder (3:38)

Hana, There you go. Okay. Crazy radical lunatic says Sam, you sound like a disappointed dad. Well, that's, I mean everybody's doing their best and just being corrected from yesterday. I tried to remember the name of the doctrine of discovery, which in a, in a phone conversation we had yesterday with somebody talking about the ongoing project of colonization that is this country. And the doctrine of discovery still remains within the context of our laws in this country, not necessarily statutory, but as ruled upon by the courts last cited by Ginsburg in 2005, I think. And it wasn't directly the doctrine of discovery. It was how the doctrine of discovery became canon within the context of US Law. And she cited that, if that makes sense. All right, let's get to the big story of the day. Well, the second big story of the day, in many, in some respects, they're related because as you know, the government, they're, they're going to vote on restarting the government today. It's also going to require Mike Johnson to swear in Gravalha, I'm sorry, I can't pronounce it. Grijalva. And Mike Johnson's going to swear her in. At that moment, there'll be theoretically 100218 votes to force legislation to the floor. And it's going to take a couple of days. I think Johnson has a couple of days after that vote is made or that petition is addressed. And then eventually the House will vote on whether to release the Epstein files. Then remember, that legislation will go to the Senate and the pressure will be on the Senate and who knows, they may never take it up. In the meantime, investigators on the Government Oversight Committee, House Oversight Committee, Democrats, I should say, released emails that were written by Jeffrey Epstein. And there's actually a couple other emails sort of embedded in these emails. Right. Like you email me, I reply to you. I can see both your email to me and my email. Here is Caitlin Collins teeing this up.

Sam Seder (21:18)

There are some things on that to do list yours anyways that you need to get done and I'm talking about estate planning trust and will turns estate planning from a when I have time to task into a quick straightforward process ensuring you're protecting your family's future today go to trustandwill.com majority get 20% off. They're simple secure expert backed estate planning services. It took me a couple of years before my daughter after my daughter was born to get a will and it was the entire time that I was I felt like I had a sort of Damocles over my head. I was like I got to do this, I got to do this, I got to do this. I was intimidated. It took a long time. I wish Trust and Will was around because it makes it so much easier. I've noodle around on this site and it is super straightforward, super easy to use. You go in, they ask you questions, step by step by step makes it super easy. And all the information, all your documents are securely stored with bank level encryption on their site. Each Will or Trust is state specific, they are legally valid and they are customized to your needs. Like I say, I've walked through this process and it was super easy to use, very straightforward, far less complicated than I think you assume. And I will tell you, once you do this, the sense of relief in not having this hanging over your head is going to be amazing. It gets an overall rating of excellent. Thousands of five star reviews on trustpilot. Add some peace of mind to your future with Trust and will go to trust and will.com majority you get 20% off. That's 20% off at trust and Will comm slash majority. Check it out. Also, doesn't matter whether you're still planting some of your warmer zones. You can be planting outside or if you want some trees inside. I'm trying to get Brian to get a fig tree in his house. Oh yeah, it's not gonna be that hard to get me to do it. Nope, doesn't matter whether you're planting now or later. Fast Growing Trees has everything you need to make your dream yard a reality. You can also order, I think now and get it delivered early spring, get there early so you don't get the, you don't, you get the full selection of apple trees they have there. And of course they have the best quality and selection of plants and they deliver them straight to your door. Fast Growing Trees is America's largest online nursery. Has over 1600 unique trees and plants all locally grown in the US and cared for by experts. And they know how to do it right. Order online, get your plants delivered directly to your door in just a few days without ever leaving home. And plants make a great gift. Their alive and thrive guarantee ensures your plants arrive happy and healthy and ready to thrive. This is one of those companies that I was using for years before they became a sponsor and I was super psyched. The best thing about this is that you don't have to go to a, you don't go to a big box store, you don't go to a, you know, a home improvement store. Get their Meager, really uncared for garbage plants, with all due respect. And you don't put it in the back of your Subaru and have it tip over and have all the dirt on the back and then you get home and the thing falls apart. Anyways. This is all hypothetical. Hypothetical. But the point is you get a huge selection of plants and trees. They have a 14 point quality checklist, sure as you're getting the best quality plants ever. Each plant is cared for individually based on its needs, from watering routines to the amount of sunlight, giving your plants the care they deserve from the time they start growing to when they ship to your home. Fast Growing Trees makes it super easy to order online. Your plants are delivered, like I say, in just a few days, no experience necessary. At Fast growing Trees, every plant comes with instructions and tips so you'll be able to care for your new plants so they can grow to their fullest potential. I mean, hosia pears, bloomerangs, those are amazing. Actually, you should look that up.

Ryan Cooper (30:38)

Yeah. So, you know, Matt, who I respect a lot and I think I consider a good friend of mine, he is coming at it from a little bit of a different angle for me. So he's talking about this book, Cornered. I think it was written by Lyn in 2010. And the book makes some good points about how consolidation can cause problems in the marketplace. But I do think one of Bruinig's points is well taken in the sense that I think that Lyn and some of the antitrust crew, they tend to think that you can get everything that you, you know, want to get politically with just antitrust, kind of overstate the case a little bit. And so Bruining saying that, you know, antitrust is no replacement for the welfare state, that's his main thing. And, you know, that's fair enough. But what, what I'm saying is that, you know, insofar as you have a market, an economy of any sort, whether it's capitalist or socialist or whatever, a market is an important technology that can be useful depending on the context. But one of the lessons that the antitrust people teach us, that is totally correct, is that markets don't work without regulation. And they don't work without regulation in particular to create competition, you know, because like, otherwise, all the sort of, you know, Econ 101 stuff about how markets are supposed to produce good outcomes, like, you know, low prices, high quality, all that sort of thing, that just doesn't happen. And so, you know, actually one thing I did, ironically, funded by Matt Bruning, was I traveled to Greenland where they have a whole bunch of state owned companies. The, the biggest company in the country is called Royal Greenland and it's owned by the government and it does fishing. It deploys like 10% of the workforce of Greenland, but it's not a monopoly either. They have private sector competition and I think that that serves an important purpose for Greenland and that it keeps the state owned company honest. And I think an even more relevant example of the value of this sort of markets as a technology that are basically created by the government is in China. You know, you look at how does China do antitrust and they do antitrust with a sort of a public option almost. They have a bunch of state owned companies that participate in the EV and the solar space and in the battery space. And they also extend all of these, you know, low cost loans to, you know, different regions. And the intention of this is to create lots of different companies that will then compete like cats in a sack, you know, to create, you know, the lowest cost, the highest volume of, of, of, you know, solar evs, whatever. And they've just totally dominated. You know, you look at Chinese solar production and installation and beating the rest of the world put together, it's like 60 odd percent of the entire global production and installation of solar panels and.

Ryan Cooper (37:46)

But situation that is. But yeah, I mean, you know, you. You look at. Compare the United States with our sort of national champions like Boeing. You know, we have a. Our. Our. Our great airline manufacturer, and it's it. They just end up, you know, sort of too big to fail. And it's better to have, you know, a number of different companies, you know, even if you sort of have to, you know, bend the quote unquote rules of economics to make sure that they sort of stick around and keep fighting each other. But I don't think necessarily that socialists and antitrusts would disagree on that too much. I think a lot of the disagreement comes back to Barry Lynn. Kind of comes out of the Jeffersonian tradition. And when you're talking about concentrated money and, you know, like Jefferson wanted to be everyone to be a yeoman farmer, you know, that that's the way that we're going to ensure we have political liberty, that everybody's got their own little piece of land and so we can't be like, coerced by the marketplace. And like, that's just not remotely. Nobody lives like that anymore. Not even farmers live like that anymore. And, you know, I think again, you know, Bernie has a point in that, like, concentrated economic power is bad. Big monopolies are bad. Elon Musk is bad. You look at the level of oligarchy in this country has gone completely crazy. But if you really want to get hardcore equality, any trust is not going to get there. You look at the Haiti of the New deal in the 40s and the 50s, it was still a highly concentrated ownership class of people. They owned a lot less as a percentage of the economy. But it was still the case that the bottom 40, 50% of Americans owned essentially nothing, maybe a house, but not big chunks of the great corporations and so on. To get something like that, you would need a more socialist policy, like a social wealth fund, like what Bruinig says that the government owns all the companies through the stock market and then holds those in trust on behalf of the whole population.

Ryan Cooper (40:47)

Yeah, so I think it's just something that as a socialist, I would think as far as keeping the market sector of the economy sort of thriving and dynamic and not dominated by a bunch of sluggish, you know, behemoths that are like managed very improperly. You know, in my reporting on business, I think that there's, there's kind of a, Economists talk a lot about efficiencies of scale, that if you have a bigger company then by definition you're going to have a more efficient company because you can like buy larger quantities of supplies and so on. And I think that's true up to a point. I think you see a lot of just terrible mismanagement in companies that get so big that they just have many, many different divisions and they don't really know where their profits are coming from. And so to keep business sort of streamlined, you want to have like, have them broken up into sort of reasonably logical sectors and to have at least three to four to five competitors for each one. You're talking about like cell phones or something like that and to, you know, just, just make sure that the, the economy is ticking over. And you know, if you're a socialist, one of those things could involve the public ownership of, of companies like, like Zoran's idea of starting up a city run grocery store in New York City. That's a, that's kind of a crazy place to compete because that's a really cutthroat industry with very low margins. But on the other hand, if you're ambitious, you know, and you want to prove that you can make this work, it's not crazy. You know, there are places where the market is not serving the population of New York. There are food deserts in New York City where, you know, because of the low income of the neighborhoods and so on and so forth, that there are not, you know, fresh vegetables that are readily available at a decent price for New Yorkers. And that's something the city absolutely could do if it were sufficiently determined and competent. This is something that cities all across the world have done, including in red states. You know, I think you may have discussed this before on the show.