Episode Overview

Title: Trump Promised the Epstein Files. Tomorrow’s Release May Be a Letdown
Date: December 18, 2025
Host: Tara Palmeri
Guests:

• Danielle Bensky (Epstein survivor and advocate)
• Nick Confessore (New York Times reporter)
• Harry Litman (former Deputy Attorney General, host of "Talking Feds" podcast)

Main Theme:
This episode examines the much-anticipated court-ordered release of Jeffrey Epstein-related files, focusing on expectations, survivor perspectives, and the complicated ties between Donald Trump and Epstein. The conversation explores the possibility that tomorrow’s document release will be underwhelming, and investigates the enduring pursuit of transparency, survivor solidarity, legal obstacles, and the cultural mechanisms that enabled Epstein’s crimes.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Survivors’ Anticipation and Emotional Toll

• High tension ahead of the release: Survivors are bracing for the many possible outcomes from tomorrow's "deadline to release" the Epstein files. As Danielle Bensky notes, “Survivors have really been… set up to be able to wait. And then when you see these bits and pieces and you’re told maybe it won’t happen… it’s really hard to brace yourself for 1,000 different outcomes.” (01:48)
• Diverse experiences, shared community: Survivors feel solidarity but are not a monolith. “Each survivor has their own experience, and it’s all very unique… and it really does bond you. Like, I love these women. There is such an extreme bond between us.” (02:52)
• Public visibility and isolation: Many survivors are just now disclosing their abuse to close friends and family. Danielle describes her own coming forward in 2021 as a deeply personal and public act. (04:45)
• Enduring impact of lost leaders: The conversation honors Virginia Giuffre, a prominent Epstein survivor who passed away before the current moment of potential accountability. “This moment would have been everything to her… I think she’d be proud of her survivor sisters.” (06:10)

Skepticism and Frustration Over Government Transparency

• Low expectations for the release: Tara Palmeri reports, “They’re not really expecting a lot tomorrow… They want accountability. Like, that’s not enough… They were jaded by the process.” (07:26)
• Persistent loopholes: The DOJ has wide discretion to withhold or heavily redact documents, and the survivor community worries critical files may remain secret. Harry Litman explains, “There’s a whole squadron of people doing redactions now… If I’m betting we don’t see them tomorrow.” (09:06)
• Few means to force accountability: Palmeri points out, “There would need to be a congressional investigation… Lawmakers are being sent out of town and cannot answer questions for what we’re going to see tomorrow, which could just be more blank pages.” (07:26)

The Trump–Epstein Relationship

• Historical context: Nick Confessore details the close relationship between Trump and Epstein in the 1990s and 2000s, marked by “chasing women” and hosting parties at Mar-a-Lago.

  “Jeffrey Epstein felt that he was Donald Trump’s closest friend… Their passion was chasing women… Some of them [at Mar-a-Lago parties] were of age, some were 17-year-old models from Miami.” (10:49)

• No direct evidence yet linking Trump to trafficking, but...

  “We have not found any evidence that Donald Trump was a part of Epstein’s trafficking of minors. But... these were two guys who wanted to get girls and women and went after them.” (11:15)

• Modeling agencies as enablers:

  “There are agencies that would send busloads of women to Mar-a-Lago for parties… I’ve talked to women for this story who were underage and were served alcohol at Mar-a-Lago.” (11:35)

• Survivor perspective: Danielle adds, “The closer the survivor community gets, the more you know other stories and you carry them with you… although you don’t speak for anybody else, you can still feel what they’ve been through.” (14:24)
• Power imbalances at play:

  “It’s what the survivors have said all along. There are other perpetrators, there are johns who are out there who have not faced justice at all… [The girls] didn’t forget the way that he demeaned them or treated them, you know, like meat.” (17:34) — Tara Palmeri

The Vital Importance and Obstacles of FBI 302s (Witness Statements)

• Files out of reach: Many survivors have never seen their own FBI witness reports (“302s”), even after years of requesting via FOIA.

  “A number of us have requested our FOIA, our 302… we still have not seen them. So many of us… Nobody has seen their own file.” (13:23) — Danielle Bensky

• Why are files withheld? “Basically: ‘We’re working on it,’ and that’s the extent of it. Some people have been requesting this for 10 years.” (13:34)
• Legal explanation: Harry Litman clarifies,

  “You come and you want to talk to the FBI and they just take a report and pretty much everything you say… That’s the real stuff… I’m surprised that you can’t get it as a FOIA. They must give some excuse—pending criminal investigation. But that’s the real deal.” (15:13)

Secrecy, Fear, and Survivor Safety

• Reluctance to testify:

  “I have never done a story where people were so terrified of even responding to an email or returning a call. In my entire career as a reporter, I have never encountered this level of fear and terror.” (21:47) — Nick Confessore

• Threats and manipulation: Survivors face intimidation, harassment, and threats extended even to family members, often through subtle channels. (21:02)
• Why names aren’t named:

  “Of course there’s fear, tremendous fear around that. And some of us don’t know last names. It was all a power play and it was all manipulative and it was a game to Jeffrey.” (20:05) — Danielle Bensky

Abuse, Power, and the Culture that Enabled It

• Objectification, grooming, and control:

  “This is the Trump of, you know, Access Hollywood. We shouldn’t be surprised if what comes out is… really a kind of roving guy.” (15:58) — Harry Litman

• Modeling industry and beauty pageants:

  “Unfortunately, this has been happening in the modeling world for a really long time… in these cultures that are controlled by men, sometimes they have to hand over their passports… then they’re controlled by Jeffrey Epstein. It’s just a sick, sick world.” (19:00) — Tara Palmeri

• Abuse as power:

  “It’s all about power… the way that these men are talking about their sexual exploits around another woman to make them feel uncomfortable. It’s a power play. It’s a way of saying, we don’t really care about you and how you feel… rape in general is about power and dominance over somebody else.” (17:34) — Tara Palmeri

• Mental trauma persists:

  “Sometimes the mental would be so much harder than the physical… it was like you were inside a cage all the time and you had to abide by his rules.” (23:25) — Danielle Bensky

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Survivors’ anticipation:

  “We survivors have really been… set up to be able to wait. And then when you see these bits and pieces and you’re told maybe it won’t happen… it’s really hard to brace yourself for 1,000 different outcomes.”
  — Danielle Bensky (01:48)

• On the limits of government transparency:

  “They were able to literally stand up to the most powerful man in the world and essentially bring him to his knees. But we’ll see if they end up getting the follow through that they deserve.”
  — Tara Palmeri (07:26)

• On the Trump–Epstein relationship:

  “Jeffrey Epstein felt that he was Donald Trump’s closest friend… their passion was chasing women… Some of them were of age, some were 17-year-old models from Miami.”
  — Nick Confessore (10:49)

• On why survivors don’t “just name names”:

  “Of course there’s fear, tremendous fear around that. And some of us don’t know last names. It was all a power play and it was all manipulative… it was a game to Jeffrey.”
  — Danielle Bensky (20:05)

• On the culture that enabled Epstein:

  “It’s a power play. It’s a way of saying we don’t really care about you… rape in general is about power and dominance over somebody else.”
  — Tara Palmeri (17:34)

• On the climate of fear:

  “I have never done a story where people were so terrified of even responding to an email or returning a call. In my entire career as a reporter, I have never encountered this level of fear and terror.”
  — Nick Confessore (21:47)

Key Timestamps

• 01:32 — Danielle on survivor experience ahead of the file release
• 04:45 — Danielle recounts coming forward as a survivor
• 06:10 — The legacy of Virginia Giuffre
• 07:26 — Tara Palmeri on survivors’ skepticism regarding the document release
• 09:06 — Harry Litman on legal loopholes and redactions
• 10:49 — Nick Confessore details the Trump–Epstein friendship
• 13:23 — Danielle on survivors’ inability to access their own FBI witness statements
• 15:13 — Harry Litman explains what FBI 302s are
• 17:34 — Tara Palmeri on the broader culture of misogyny and exploitation
• 20:05 — Danielle on why survivors don’t and can’t always “name names”
• 21:47 — Nick Confessore discusses unprecedented climate of fear
• 23:25 — Danielle Bensky on the mental toll of Epstein’s abuse

Tone & Atmosphere

This episode is somber, direct, and unsparing—reflecting the seriousness of the content and the gravity of the survivors’ pursuit of justice. The conversation is deeply empathetic, especially in highlighting the lived experiences of survivors, while also unflinchingly critical of institutional failures and the systems that have allowed such abuse to flourish.

Summary for New Listeners

This episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking an insider’s, survivor-centered perspective on the ongoing efforts to achieve transparency around Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes and the political, legal, and cultural obstacles still standing in the way. It dispels myths, contextualizes the significance of the expected records release, and holds space for the pain, resilience, and complexity of survivor experiences. The panel casts doubt on the likelihood of major revelations in the coming document release, but underscores the relentless demand for truth and accountability—however long it takes.