Full Transcript for Mega Edition: Why Did Wall Street Enable Jeffrey Epstein?

as much 35 00:02:34.159 --> 00:02:39.520 face as possible. But even that is going to be 36 00:02:39.639 --> 00:02:44.000 ripped from him relatively soon. Because at the end of 37 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:48.360 the day, no one's buying what Leon Black is selling anymore. 38 00:02:50.210 --> 00:02:54.979 Our article tonight is from Vanity Fair. Headline, What a 39 00:02:55.090 --> 00:03:00.120 sad tale of sycophants. Wall Street isn't buying Leon Black's 40 00:03:00.400 --> 00:03:06.240 Epstein story. Deckert's report on the Apollo co-founder's decades-long dealings 41 00:03:06.280 --> 00:03:10.469 with the late convicted sex offender, pedophile, including payments of 42 00:03:10.469 --> 00:03:17.129 $ 158 million, is raising eyebrows, and more questions, on Wall Street. 43 00:03:18.050 --> 00:03:24.789 One lawyer dismissed it, as a whitewash. Well, let's go 44 00:03:24.849 --> 00:03:27.229 back in time. Pretty sure that's what I say about 45 00:03:27.289 --> 00:03:32.250 every single one of these so-called impartial investigations that are 46 00:03:32.310 --> 00:03:37.580 initiated by the company who's in trouble. Oh yeah, that's 47 00:03:37.620 --> 00:03:40.099 exactly what's going to happen. The people that you're paying 48 00:03:40.360 --> 00:03:41.699 are going to go out and find, they're going to 49 00:03:41.719 --> 00:03:44.780 dig extra hard for that dirt. Or are they going 50 00:03:44.819 --> 00:03:48.310 to just try and dig deep enough to make it 51 00:03:48.349 --> 00:03:51.129 look like they did their job while at the same 52 00:03:51.210 --> 00:03:56.770 time saving you the embarrassment and the eventual black eye 53 00:03:57.189 --> 00:04:02.039 of your real transgressions and your real actions. And I'm 54 00:04:02.060 --> 00:04:03.659 glad I'm not the only one who feels like that. 55 00:04:03.699 --> 00:04:06.199 I'm glad that this lawyer feels the same way because 56 00:04:06.319 --> 00:04:09.150 I'm certainly not a lawyer, right? I'm just your average 57 00:04:09.250 --> 00:04:11.889 everyday person like the rest of you folks, you know. 58 00:04:13.969 --> 00:04:16.709 know enough to be dangerous about most of the world, right? 59 00:04:17.430 --> 00:04:21.829 But sometimes when you look at something and it doesn't 60 00:04:21.889 --> 00:04:25.410 make sense and people try and tell you that an 61 00:04:25.569 --> 00:04:29.230 ostrich is a duck, well, I'm not going to believe 62 00:04:29.269 --> 00:04:31.649 the gaslighting. I'm going to go with what I know 63 00:04:31.740 --> 00:04:34.139 and what I can see and what I can prove. 64 00:04:34.740 --> 00:04:39.180 And folks, Leon Black is a duck. Most certainly isn't 65 00:04:39.240 --> 00:04:45.740 an ostrich. This article was authored by William D. Cohen. 66 00:04:49.459 --> 00:04:54.079 Nice try, Leon. You must think we are pretty stupid, gullible, 67 00:04:54.459 --> 00:04:57.259 or insane to believe the tale you spun to Deckert, 68 00:04:57.579 --> 00:05:01.980 the Wall Street firm, about your decades-long involvement with Jeffrey Epstein, 69 00:05:02.259 --> 00:05:06.100 the late convicted pedophile. Well, I, for one, am not 70 00:05:06.139 --> 00:05:09.220 buying it. Not any of it. And neither are many 71 00:05:09.560 --> 00:05:13.449 other smart Wall Streeters. What a sad tale of sycophants 72 00:05:13.810 --> 00:05:16.569 was the way one longtime Wall Street banker explained it 73 00:05:16.610 --> 00:05:20.240 to me. Add in a Wall Street lawyer, it's preposterous. 74 00:05:20.980 --> 00:05:22.800 And I'm telling you, folks, that's what my people were 75 00:05:22.839 --> 00:05:25.839 telling me, too, that this is a bunch of BS, right? 76 00:05:26.300 --> 00:05:28.920 This is the kind of thing that only Leon Black 77 00:05:29.060 --> 00:05:32.370 or somebody as powerful as him could try and pull off. 78 00:05:34.160 --> 00:05:39.279 This is so brazen and so ridiculous that he's trying 79 00:05:39.319 --> 00:05:44.129 to actually force feed us this narrative. It is straight 80 00:05:44.189 --> 00:05:48.089 up gaslighting. We all know the truth and the score. Look, 81 00:05:48.129 --> 00:05:52.870 the receipts don't lie. You're not paying this dude $ 158 82 00:05:52.029 --> 00:05:57.439 million to come over and yap about the state of 83 00:05:57.480 --> 00:06:01.040 the stock market. Give me a break. Nobody's buying any 84 00:06:01.060 --> 00:06:05.420 of that shit. So really, Leon Black The real question is, 85 00:06:05.439 --> 00:06:13.019 you ginormous dickbag, what was the money really for? Leon is, 86 00:06:13.259 --> 00:06:16.839 of course, Leon Black, one of the billionaire co-founders of 87 00:06:16.920 --> 00:06:21.930 Apollo Global Management, the publicly traded private equity and investment 88 00:06:21.990 --> 00:06:27.850 firm with around $ 350 billion under management. Chew on that 89 00:06:27.910 --> 00:06:34.800 number for a little while, folks. $ 350 billion dollars. That's 90 00:06:35.600 --> 00:06:41.660 the capital that is under his control. I mean, wow. 91 00:06:43.199 --> 00:06:45.579 So this guy's in control of all of that money. 92 00:06:46.000 --> 00:06:49.519 He's in control of a bunch of different pensions and 93 00:06:49.839 --> 00:06:55.189 in control of all kinds of different financial futures for people. 94 00:06:55.579 --> 00:06:59.910 But yet he's relying on the Coney Island hot dog salesman, 95 00:06:59.970 --> 00:07:05.509 Jeffrey Epstein. That's what he's relying on, huh? I'm sure 96 00:07:05.870 --> 00:07:11.250 that just instills all sorts of confidence in the people 97 00:07:11.290 --> 00:07:14.310 who entrusted their money to him. Let me tell you, 98 00:07:14.430 --> 00:07:16.949 I would have my money out of there so quickly 99 00:07:19.240 --> 00:07:21.259 that you wouldn't even know what hit you if you 100 00:07:21.300 --> 00:07:28.860 were Apollo Global. According to Bloomberg, Black has a net 101 00:07:28.899 --> 00:07:32.509 worth of nearly $ 10 billion. That's with a B,

folks. 102 00:07:33.189 --> 00:07:36.110 Of course he has a private jet and a luxury 103 00:07:36.189 --> 00:07:40.610 yacht and lots of fancy homes. In 2012, he paid 104 00:07:40.649 --> 00:07:44.779 nearly $ 120 million for one artwork, one of the four 105 00:07:44.839 --> 00:07:51.040 versions of Edvard Munch's 1895 pastel, The Scream. Well, now 106 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:55.800 that he's out over at Apollo, him and his art 107 00:07:55.839 --> 00:07:58.439 collection will have a lot of time to console each other. 108 00:08:00.910 --> 00:08:04.290 He has a world-class art collection, cost about a billion dollars. 109 00:08:04.329 --> 00:08:06.449 It doesn't say it here in this article, but that's 110 00:08:06.529 --> 00:08:10.529 what the estimated worth of his art collection is. Now 111 00:08:10.629 --> 00:08:14.370 think about that for a minute. One billion dollars in art. 112 00:08:15.569 --> 00:08:20.769 It's just obscene. He is also the chairman of the 113 00:08:20.829 --> 00:08:24.790 board of trustees at the Museum of Modern Art. His wife, Debra, 114 00:08:25.050 --> 00:08:27.990 is on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 115 00:08:28.370 --> 00:08:32.690 He is rich and powerful. That means he can hire 116 00:08:32.789 --> 00:08:35.889 what appear to be reputable law firms to put their 117 00:08:35.950 --> 00:08:38.860 stamp of approval on a version of the truth that 118 00:08:38.899 --> 00:08:43.100 is not likely to be independently verified by anyone not 119 00:08:43.299 --> 00:08:48.070 getting paid by Black or by Apollo. That's not the 120 00:08:48.169 --> 00:08:53.100 same as transparency. Folks, it's almost as if the author 121 00:08:53.139 --> 00:08:56.750 here has been digging around in my head and coming 122 00:08:56.809 --> 00:08:59.789 up with some different ideas because this is all the 123 00:08:59.830 --> 00:09:03.610 same stuff I talk about all the time. This is BS. 124 00:09:04.049 --> 00:09:06.299 And the way that these people get away with it, 125 00:09:06.340 --> 00:09:14.100 with these independent investigations that they're paying for, it's absolutely ridiculous. 126 00:09:14.799 --> 00:09:18.279 I'll tell you what. If we've learned anything lately with 127 00:09:18.340 --> 00:09:21.379 Wall Street bets, it's that we have the power. The 128 00:09:21.419 --> 00:09:24.570 power of the people is still what works, folks. You 129 00:09:24.590 --> 00:09:27.169 know how I always say one nat can be ignored, 130 00:09:27.210 --> 00:09:30.490 but 10 million, well, that's a different story. And you're 131 00:09:30.549 --> 00:09:35.309 seeing that with Reddit and with Wall Street. And, you know, 132 00:09:36.840 --> 00:09:40.039 when we come together and we work towards a common goal, 133 00:09:40.639 --> 00:09:44.259 even the richest and most powerful amongst us have to 134 00:09:44.299 --> 00:09:48.659 take heed. And that's why I am always railing about 135 00:09:48.779 --> 00:09:51.580 us fighting with each other. It's ridiculous. It has to stop. 136 00:09:51.639 --> 00:09:55.590 The tribalism and shit has to stop. These people, folks, 137 00:09:56.049 --> 00:10:02.139 are the real problem. These hedge funders. these financial banker 138 00:10:02.200 --> 00:10:07.500 types who are legitimately working on a daily basis to 139 00:10:07.559 --> 00:10:10.899 make our lives worse. Don't you remember Occupy Wall Street? 140 00:10:11.500 --> 00:10:14.029 When all of these hedge funders were literally looking down 141 00:10:14.110 --> 00:10:18.710 at people, sipping from their glasses of champagne after they 142 00:10:18.769 --> 00:10:22.860 literally bankrupted the whole entire country. How many companies were ruined? 143 00:10:23.279 --> 00:10:28.139 How many people's pensions were ruined? I know personally more 144 00:10:28.179 --> 00:10:30.789 than a handful of people who still have not recovered. 145 00:10:32.110 --> 00:10:35.870 and yet these banksters, these dickbags, like Leon Black and 146 00:10:35.889 --> 00:10:38.909 the rest of them, sit there and sip their bubbly, 147 00:10:39.279 --> 00:10:43.919 eat their caviar, and continue to enable sick bastards like 148 00:10:44.039 --> 00:10:51.490 Jeffrey Epstein. In October, the Conflicts Committee of the Apollo 149 00:10:51.519 --> 00:10:54.049 Board of Directors, which is three people, by the way, 150 00:10:54.490 --> 00:10:58.330 hired Deckard to conduct a thorough investigation into the relationship 151 00:10:58.370 --> 00:11:02.519 between Black and Epstein... After the New York Times reported 152 00:11:02.580 --> 00:11:06.080 that Black had paid Epstein at least $ 50 million for 153 00:11:06.220 --> 00:11:10.000 Epstein's services. And again, props to the New York Times 154 00:11:10.399 --> 00:11:13.879 for actually going the extra mile here. And I get it, right? 155 00:11:13.919 --> 00:11:16.919 They did it because they don't like Leon Black. He's 156 00:11:16.960 --> 00:11:21.159 a dickbag. And, you know, it's always nice to slam 157 00:11:21.750 --> 00:11:26.830 a scumbag billionaire's face in their own waist, right? So 158 00:11:26.909 --> 00:11:29.730 I get why they went after him or they're going 159 00:11:29.850 --> 00:11:31.889 after him. But I'd love to see this kind of 160 00:11:31.929 --> 00:11:34.620 zeal with other people involved in this case. And it 161 00:11:34.649 --> 00:11:40.700 doesn't matter who. Go after them all. Trump, Mnuchin, Clinton, 162 00:11:41.000 --> 00:11:45.500 you name it. Go after them. Wexner. Let's see that 163 00:11:45.620 --> 00:11:49.740 zeal from these journalists. Let's see them earn people's trust 164 00:11:49.799 --> 00:11:55.149 back because it's at an all-time low. Nobody trusts the media. 165 00:11:55.230 --> 00:11:57.230 It doesn't matter what side of the aisle you're on. 166 00:11:57.490 --> 00:12:01.809 And it's because they make shitbag moves. It's because people 167 00:12:01.850 --> 00:12:05.730 look at them like they're corrupt or they're tilted one

168 00:12:05.769 --> 00:12:11.309 way or the other. Here's an idea. How about you 169 00:12:11.350 --> 00:12:15.129 just report the facts and follow the evidence wherever it leads? 170 00:12:20.639 --> 00:12:22.399 Over the years, there has been a lot of bad 171 00:12:22.480 --> 00:12:26.590 press about the relationship between Black and Epstein and many rumors, 172 00:12:27.070 --> 00:12:29.830 but the Times report appeared to be the last straw 173 00:12:29.889 --> 00:12:33.970 for some of the members of the Apollo board. The 174 00:12:34.009 --> 00:12:38.129 conflict committee comprises Michael Ducey, its chairman, a consultant, and 175 00:12:38.190 --> 00:12:42.529 something of a professional board member, A.P. Buzzy Crongard, the 176 00:12:42.610 --> 00:12:46.769 former CEO of Alex Brown & Sons, the defunct investment bank, 177 00:12:47.080 --> 00:12:51.340 and a former executive director of the CIA. and Pauline Richards, 178 00:12:51.480 --> 00:12:55.519 a former insurance executive, like Ducey, a professional board member. 179 00:12:55.879 --> 00:12:59.860 Isn't that nice, huh? Got yourself a nice former executive 180 00:12:59.899 --> 00:13:03.340 director of the CIA. That's exactly what we need. The 181 00:13:03.399 --> 00:13:08.820 financial world and the CIA holding hands and playing patty cake, huh? 182 00:13:09.539 --> 00:13:12.360 Do you understand yet, folks? Do you see why I'm 183 00:13:12.480 --> 00:13:17.019 always railing about the CIA? It's not just some sort 184 00:13:17.179 --> 00:13:25.519 of half-cocked, rant. These people are involved in everything, everything, 185 00:13:26.830 --> 00:13:34.330 and they shouldn't be. During its three-month investigation, Deckert reported 186 00:13:34.370 --> 00:13:38.629 that it reviewed more than 60,000 documents voluntarily provided to 187 00:13:38.700 --> 00:13:42.759 it by Black, his family office, Apollo Executives, and by 188 00:13:42.840 --> 00:13:47.330 Apollo's outside counsel, Paul Weiss. Deckard said it spoke with 189 00:13:47.370 --> 00:13:51.669 more than 20 individuals, some more than once, including Black, 190 00:13:52.029 --> 00:13:56.269 and also on a voluntary basis. Deckard did not have 191 00:13:56.309 --> 00:14:00.269 the ability to subpoena either documents or witnesses. Yeah, no shit. 192 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:03.620 It wasn't through the court. Of course they didn't. They 193 00:14:04.240 --> 00:14:07.539 act like it was this big investigation, but Deckard, they 194 00:14:07.580 --> 00:14:12.399 had no power to compel Leon Black to turn over 195 00:14:12.460 --> 00:14:18.570 documents or to be completely... um, honest. So how can 196 00:14:18.730 --> 00:14:21.649 anyone believe what the hell's going on over here? Give 197 00:14:21.690 --> 00:14:23.669 me a break. I said it from the beginning, folks, 198 00:14:23.690 --> 00:14:27.970 that this was a, a gigantic game of BS and 199 00:14:28.009 --> 00:14:31.190 that's what it was. That's what this investigation was. And 200 00:14:31.450 --> 00:14:35.509 even with them being in the bag for Leon Black 201 00:14:35.529 --> 00:14:39.529 and Apollo, they still found a hundred million dollars that 202 00:14:39.620 --> 00:14:43.289 Leon Black wasn't honest about when it comes to his 203 00:14:43.370 --> 00:14:47.710 financing Jeffrey Epstein or being in bed with Jeffrey Epstein financially. 204 00:14:47.950 --> 00:14:51.269 So if you're lying about that, what else are you 205 00:14:51.409 --> 00:14:58.460 lying about? According to the Deckert report, which was dated 206 00:14:58.539 --> 00:15:02.600 January 22nd and then filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, 207 00:15:03.000 --> 00:15:07.440 Black and Epstein had a social relationship from the mid-1990s 208 00:15:07.950 --> 00:15:11.409 to 2018. Are you kidding me right now? From the 209 00:15:11.470 --> 00:15:15.509 mid-90s to 2018. That's right around the time that Jeffrey 210 00:15:15.570 --> 00:15:19.350 Epstein started visiting Bill Clinton in the White House, isn't it? Yeah, 211 00:15:19.649 --> 00:15:26.190 I think it is. So this dude, Leon Black... was 212 00:15:26.210 --> 00:15:28.730 friends with Jeffrey Epstein for all of these years. He 213 00:15:28.809 --> 00:15:31.789 knew that Jeffrey Epstein was a sick pervert. He knew 214 00:15:31.850 --> 00:15:36.000 that Jeffrey Epstein was trying to not only recruit and 215 00:15:36.059 --> 00:15:42.399 groom underage girls, but he was also abusing them. Unless 216 00:15:42.419 --> 00:15:45.250 you lived under a rock or on Mars or in 217 00:15:45.269 --> 00:15:48.450 a place without any sort of internet service or news service, 218 00:15:48.870 --> 00:15:54.360 you knew exactly what Jeffrey Epstein was up to. They 219 00:15:54.399 --> 00:15:58.820 were introduced by an unnamed mutual friend. An unnamed mutual friend, huh? 220 00:15:59.059 --> 00:16:02.179 I wonder who that could be. That'll be a fun 221 00:16:02.279 --> 00:16:06.490 investigation to go on, folks. That's your homework assignment for 222 00:16:06.519 --> 00:16:12.389 the weekend. Who's the mutual friend? Black viewed Epstein as 223 00:16:12.429 --> 00:16:16.309 someone who was very intelligent and knowledgeable regarding issues relating 224 00:16:16.330 --> 00:16:21.309 to estate planning and taxation, the report allowed. In 1997, 225 00:16:21.309 --> 00:16:24.070 Black appointed Epstein to be one of the initial directors 226 00:16:24.110 --> 00:16:28.980 of the Black Family Foundation, established to facilitate his charitable giving. 227 00:16:30.159 --> 00:16:33.820 I mean, does this sound like somebody who really wasn't 228 00:16:33.860 --> 00:16:37.559 too connected to Jeffrey Epstein, folks? Sure doesn't sound that 229 00:16:37.620 --> 00:16:39.960 way to me. Sure sounds to me like this is 230 00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:45.710 somebody who was very much connected to Jeffrey Epstein. Sounds 231 00:16:45.750 --> 00:16:51.070 to me like somebody who... knew all of Leon Black's secrets,

232 00:16:51.769 --> 00:16:56.889 and somebody who Leon Black, well, you know, fellow travelers 233 00:16:56.929 --> 00:17:07.900 and all. Black apparently was impressed that David Rockefeller had 234 00:17:07.940 --> 00:17:12.140 appointed Epstein to the board of Rockefeller University, a scientific 235 00:17:12.220 --> 00:17:15.319 research university on the east side of Manhattan. Yeah, because 236 00:17:15.339 --> 00:17:18.440 the Rockefeller family is just fantastic human beings as well. 237 00:17:20.349 --> 00:17:24.430 another group of so-called elites that I could do without, 238 00:17:24.630 --> 00:17:28.650 that I've had a belly full of. According to the 239 00:17:28.710 --> 00:17:33.359 Deckert Report, Black's understanding was that Epstein was extremely knowledgeable 240 00:17:33.390 --> 00:17:37.339 about science and technology, as well as a strong proponent 241 00:17:37.539 --> 00:17:42.559 of scientific research and development. Epstein had somehow convinced Black, 242 00:17:42.859 --> 00:17:46.279 one of our most gifted financial engineers, that he was 243 00:17:46.339 --> 00:17:52.200 the ultimate auto... auto-diadect, exceptionally skilled in both the arcane 244 00:17:52.240 --> 00:17:58.839 rules of tax structuring and estate planning and also scientific research. Oh, yeah, because, 245 00:17:58.880 --> 00:18:01.640 you know, Jeffrey Epstein was all of those things, right? 246 00:18:01.880 --> 00:18:05.069 And he had the resume to prove it. So what 247 00:18:05.109 --> 00:18:07.650 Leon Black wants us to believe is anybody could just 248 00:18:07.710 --> 00:18:12.269 walk into his office and start railing about what they've 249 00:18:12.309 --> 00:18:17.460 done or what they've accomplished and get the job. Because 250 00:18:17.500 --> 00:18:21.039 he certainly didn't have the resume to get this kind 251 00:18:21.079 --> 00:18:26.319 of job. That's certainly the case. He didn't graduate from 252 00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.500 any fancy college. What was he ever involved in that 253 00:18:29.559 --> 00:18:35.359 would garner him that kind of respect from somebody like 254 00:18:35.500 --> 00:18:41.519 Leon Black? According to the Deckert Report, Epstein introduced Black 255 00:18:41.539 --> 00:18:45.910 to well-regarded researchers at MIT and Harvard. Epstein stayed on 256 00:18:45.950 --> 00:18:49.329 the Black Family Foundation board for about 10 years until 257 00:18:49.369 --> 00:18:53.450 he resigned in the mid-2007, the year before his conviction 258 00:18:53.490 --> 00:18:57.329 for pedophilia. Because of an oversight, the foundation reported to 259 00:18:57.359 --> 00:19:02.660 the IRS that Epstein remained on its board until 2012. 260 00:19:02.660 --> 00:19:07.539 When the mistake was discovered in 2013, the reporting was changed. 261 00:19:08.240 --> 00:19:10.400 Oh yeah, I'm sure that was just a mistake. That 262 00:19:10.460 --> 00:19:14.029 is all that was, folks. Come on. How dare anyone 263 00:19:14.130 --> 00:19:17.910 think that they would keep sick-ass Jeffrey Epstein on their 264 00:19:18.009 --> 00:19:21.950 board after his arrest? Not Leon Black, because Leon Black 265 00:19:21.990 --> 00:19:26.099 is such a pillar of the community, such an upstanding citizen. 266 00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:31.900 Black's reputation on Wall Street was as a ruthless dealmaker. 267 00:19:32.460 --> 00:19:35.619 He learned his craft at Drexel Burnham Lambert, the defunct 268 00:19:35.640 --> 00:19:39.500 investment bank, and from its superstar banker, Michael Milken, a 269 00:19:39.579 --> 00:19:43.890 recently pardoned convicted criminal who helped create the junk bond market. 270 00:19:44.230 --> 00:19:51.339 Michael Milken was an absolute scumbag. Another scumbag financial jerk. And, well, 271 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:56.220 guess what? Another jerk from the financial sector, or I 272 00:19:56.240 --> 00:19:59.369 guess you should say from the so-called elite sector, well, 273 00:19:59.509 --> 00:20:03.910 he just pardoned them. Black was head of mergers and 274 00:20:03.990 --> 00:20:07.009 acquisitions at Drexel before it blew up. In one of 275 00:20:07.069 --> 00:20:11.619 Apollo's earliest deals, it negotiated to buy, at a significant discount, 276 00:20:11.990 --> 00:20:15.839 the bond portfolio of Executive Life Insurance Company, which had 277 00:20:15.960 --> 00:20:20.960 failed after, among other things, buying too many Drexel underwritten 278 00:20:21.000 --> 00:20:26.609 junk bonds. Boy, isn't that ironic, huh? The irony never 279 00:20:26.690 --> 00:20:30.750 ceases to amaze me. So this company, who bought a 280 00:20:30.769 --> 00:20:35.089 bunch of underwritten junk bonds from Drexel, where Leon Black worked, 281 00:20:36.029 --> 00:20:39.569 went defunct because of those junk bonds, and then Leon 282 00:20:39.609 --> 00:20:43.670 Black went in and bought them all up. Hell of 283 00:20:43.730 --> 00:20:46.380 a guy, that Leon Black. How about we have him 284 00:20:46.470 --> 00:20:52.660 over for dinner? Black was highly adept at fighting for 285 00:20:52.680 --> 00:20:55.140 the last penny in deals and was one of Wall 286 00:20:55.160 --> 00:20:59.289 Street's most feared vulture investors. The people who buy bonds 287 00:20:59.349 --> 00:21:02.390 of distressed companies at a discount and then get control 288 00:21:02.410 --> 00:21:05.910 of companies by converting the debt they own to equity. 289 00:21:06.349 --> 00:21:09.190 Hostile takeover. And what they would do is then they 290 00:21:09.210 --> 00:21:12.450 would liquidate that shit. And they don't care if people 291 00:21:12.490 --> 00:21:16.099 lose jobs or careers or whatever. Doesn't matter to them. 292 00:21:16.539 --> 00:21:19.660 When they say vulture investor, there should be a picture 293 00:21:19.700 --> 00:21:25.839 of Leon Black. in the dictionary. As Apollo grew, Black 294 00:21:25.880 --> 00:21:29.470 and his growing team engineered bigger and bigger deals. Among 295 00:21:29.509

--> 00:21:34.849 its biggest successes are Lionel Basel, a chemical company, ADT, 296 00:21:34.990 --> 00:21:38.490 the security company, and among its biggest flops are Caesars 297 00:21:38.549 --> 00:21:42.650 Entertainment and Linens and Things. I remember with the Caesars 298 00:21:42.690 --> 00:21:46.380 Entertainment situation, and that didn't turn out well for them 299 00:21:46.440 --> 00:21:49.819 at all. Caesars has been on a decline for quite 300 00:21:49.859 --> 00:21:54.950 some time now, And even Mr. Dickbag Leon Black couldn't 301 00:21:54.990 --> 00:22:01.730 stop that. For reasons that Deckert does not completely make clear, Black, 302 00:22:02.029 --> 00:22:05.779 the rapacious financier, Bloomberg once referred to him as the 303 00:22:05.839 --> 00:22:08.660 most feared man in the most aggressive realm of finance, 304 00:22:09.119 --> 00:22:13.259 had a soft spot for Epstein even after his 2008 305 00:22:13.259 --> 00:22:17.900 guilty plea for soliciting prostitution and procuring a person under 306 00:22:17.940 --> 00:22:21.670 the age of 18 for prostitution. Oh no, it wasn't 307 00:22:21.710 --> 00:22:25.890 a soft spot. These dudes were connected. They were buddies. 308 00:22:26.619 --> 00:22:29.420 And it wasn't even about a soft spot. It was 309 00:22:29.460 --> 00:22:34.859 about Leon Black willing to overlook Jeffrey Epstein's behavior. Because 310 00:22:35.539 --> 00:22:47.049 they had themselves a nice, disgusting, parasitic relationship. According to Deckert, 311 00:22:47.109 --> 00:22:51.450 Black believes in rehabilitation and giving people second chances. Yeah? 312 00:22:51.750 --> 00:22:54.009 How many felons does he have working for his company? 313 00:22:54.750 --> 00:22:58.380 How many ex-felons are working for Apollo Global in the 314 00:22:58.430 --> 00:23:02.599 financial sector? I'm guessing not many. So how many people 315 00:23:02.859 --> 00:23:05.779 have you given second chances to by giving them jobs, 316 00:23:06.099 --> 00:23:12.210 dickbag Black? That's also why, Deckert wrote, Black has stayed 317 00:23:12.250 --> 00:23:15.430 friendly with both Milken and Martha Stewart, who have spent 318 00:23:15.490 --> 00:23:19.619 time in prison for financial crimes, you asshole. Okay? You 319 00:23:19.640 --> 00:23:22.579 can come back from that. Financial crimes, while it makes 320 00:23:22.599 --> 00:23:25.200 you an absolute piece of shit, you can come back from. 321 00:23:25.559 --> 00:23:28.720 You can be sorry about it. You can rehabilitate yourself. 322 00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:33.490 You can make amends. There's no coming back from sexual 323 00:23:33.549 --> 00:23:39.410 assaulting children. There's no coming back from human trafficking. Apparently, 324 00:23:39.470 --> 00:23:42.059 Black seemed to be converted to a pushover for two 325 00:23:42.140 --> 00:23:45.660 other reasons. First, Black believed Epstein when he said he 326 00:23:45.700 --> 00:23:49.519 had only solicited a minor for prostitution

once, and that 327 00:23:49.759 --> 00:23:54.420 Epstein mistakenly understood the prostitute in question. Whoa, hold on. 328 00:23:54.529 --> 00:23:57.529 The prostitute in question? You mean the little girl in question, okay? 329 00:23:57.769 --> 00:24:00.829 Let's get our words right, Vanity Fair. You've done enough 330 00:24:01.230 --> 00:24:05.150 to hurt the people involved in this case with your 331 00:24:05.150 --> 00:24:08.980 2003 puff piece. So don't even get me started on you, 332 00:24:09.079 --> 00:24:14.079 Vanity Fair. Prostitute? This was a little girl. In question 333 00:24:14.119 --> 00:24:17.740 was older. And second, because so many other rich and 334 00:24:17.799 --> 00:24:22.740 influential people, including CEOs and Nobel laureates, still hung out 335 00:24:22.759 --> 00:24:25.559 with them. So, you know, if your friends are doing it, 336 00:24:25.690 --> 00:24:27.769 you should do it too, because that's a great idea. 337 00:24:28.170 --> 00:24:30.339 I know when I was younger... My mom used to 338 00:24:30.380 --> 00:24:32.960 say something to me all the time. And she would say, 339 00:24:33.339 --> 00:24:35.339 if your friends all jumped off a cliff, would you 340 00:24:35.420 --> 00:24:37.779 follow them and do the same thing? And it's the 341 00:24:37.819 --> 00:24:40.200 same thing here, Leon Black. What, your mom never told 342 00:24:40.240 --> 00:24:45.549 you that one? Never gave you that old adage? This 343 00:24:45.569 --> 00:24:49.269 guy's an absolute douche. And the fact that these CEOs 344 00:24:49.589 --> 00:24:52.650 and Nobel laureates are hanging out with Jeffrey Epstein and 345 00:24:52.690 --> 00:24:57.430 helping him refurbish his image, don't you see that's part 346 00:24:57.450 --> 00:25:03.880 of the problem, Dick Bag Black? So how about for once, 347 00:25:04.359 --> 00:25:07.980 you idiots in the financial sector, stop being part of 348 00:25:08.019 --> 00:25:15.579 the problem. Oh, it was just so cozy. Black viewed 349 00:25:15.680 --> 00:25:18.809 Epstein as a friend worthy of his trust, according to Deckert. 350 00:25:19.240 --> 00:25:22.930 They attended social events together. Black confided in Epstein on 351 00:25:22.990 --> 00:25:27.240 personal matters, and Black introduced Epstein to his family. Black 352 00:25:27.339 --> 00:25:30.809 regularly visited Epstein's townhouse in New York to either discuss 353 00:25:30.890 --> 00:25:34.589 business or to meet other prominent guests who were visiting Epstein, 354 00:25:35.009 --> 00:25:41.890 including well-known businessmen, political figures, diplomats, scientists, and celebrities. Well, 355 00:25:42.069 --> 00:25:44.970 did you ever get a massage there, Mr. Black? That's 356 00:25:45.009 --> 00:25:47.359 the question that should really be asked. I want to know, 357 00:25:47.670 --> 00:25:51.079 did Leon Black ever get a massage at Jeffrey Epstein's? 358 00:25:53.029 --> 00:25:55.529 Point blank period. Is anyone ever going to ask him that? 359 00:25:55.809 --> 00:25:57.829 Maybe I should shoot him an email and see what 360 00:25:57.849 --> 00:26:04.690 he has to say. In general, one-on-one breakfast meetings between 361 00:26:04.769 --> 00:26:07.769 Black and Epstein would be more common for business meetings, 362 00:26:08.210 --> 00:26:11.769 whereas afternoon meetings with other guests would be more common 363 00:26:11.809 --> 00:26:15.980 for social visits. Black invited Epstein to his son's 30th 364 00:26:16.019 --> 00:26:20.119 birthday party in the Hamptons in 2015, according to someone 365 00:26:20.140 --> 00:26:24.359 who was there. These days, apparently, Black is contrite and 366 00:26:24.400 --> 00:26:26.960 would not have given Epstein a second chance had he 367 00:26:27.000 --> 00:26:31.680 known more about Epstein's criminal activity, according to the Deckert Report. 368 00:26:32.359 --> 00:26:37.759 Such BS, okay? Nobody believes you. Not the penguins. Not 369 00:26:37.779 --> 00:26:42.490 the polar bears. Nobody believes you. And you're another one. 370 00:26:42.880 --> 00:26:47.339 inviting Epstein to your son's birthday party in 2015, it 371 00:26:47.400 --> 00:26:52.099 was well-established what Jeffrey Epstein was by 2015. Who in 372 00:26:52.960 --> 00:27:00.289 the hell actually believes this? Turns out, according to Deckert, 373 00:27:00.549 --> 00:27:02.650 the Times was off by more than $ 100 million in 374 00:27:02.690 --> 00:27:05.690 its estimates of payments from Black to Epstein. In the 375 00:27:05.730 --> 00:27:11.170 years between 2012 and 2017... That is after his second 376 00:27:11.190 --> 00:27:15.210 chance started and after a 2011 report in the Daily 377 00:27:15.250 --> 00:27:22.839 Mail about Epstein's continued atrocious behavior. Black paid Epstein $ 158 378 00:27:21.730 --> 00:27:28.720 million for advice on issues including tax, estate planning, and 379 00:27:28.799 --> 00:27:32.220 structuring that, Deckert wrote, saved Black between $ 1 billion and 380 00:27:32.220 --> 00:27:39.200 $ 2 billion. $ 158 million for his advice. That's what they 381 00:27:39.240 --> 00:27:44.380 want you to believe. I do not believe that. Somehow, 382 00:27:44.700 --> 00:27:47.920 we are supposed to believe that Jeffrey Epstein, a college 383 00:27:47.960 --> 00:27:51.039 dropout who taught math for about two years at the 384 00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:54.140 Dalton School on the Upper East Side and then worked 385 00:27:54.200 --> 00:27:58.369 at Bear Stearns before being fired, is responsible for between 386 00:27:58.369 --> 00:28:04.319 10% and 20% of Leon Black's net worth. What did 387 00:28:04.400 --> 00:28:06.519 I say the other day? I mean, maybe I should 388 00:28:06.539 --> 00:28:10.099 start writing some articles. I guess iTunes will probably find 389 00:28:10.160 --> 00:28:12.579 a way to limit that as well. So maybe I'll 390 00:28:12.599 --> 00:28:14.880 just keep the run in my fat mouth. But I've 391 00:28:14.900 --> 00:28:17.160 been saying this

for how long, folks? Everything that this 392 00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:19.869 gentleman is saying in this article is all the stuff 393 00:28:19.910 --> 00:28:22.849 I've been saying for literally months about Leon Black and 394 00:28:22.890 --> 00:28:29.670 Jeffrey Epstein and how deep the ties ran. Apparently, Epstein's 395 00:28:29.730 --> 00:28:32.730 big break for Black came in 2012 when he solved 396 00:28:32.769 --> 00:28:35.519 what the report says was a mounting problem in a 397 00:28:35.579 --> 00:28:39.920 grantor trust that Black had established in 2006 with the 398 00:28:39.980 --> 00:28:42.599 help of a trust and a state's attorney recommended to 399 00:28:42.640 --> 00:28:46.660 Black by, wait for it, Epstein. But the flaw in 400 00:28:46.700 --> 00:28:50.180 the trust, if not fixed, would have cost Black between 401 00:28:50.180 --> 00:28:54.349 $ 500 million to $ 1 billion or more, Deckert wrote. There 402 00:28:54.380 --> 00:28:58.029 seems to be no plausible explanation for how Black allowed 403 00:28:58.049 --> 00:29:01.089 this to happen or why a tax expert would make 404 00:29:01.150 --> 00:29:04.980 such a colossal mistake. Black tried to solve the problem 405 00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:08.819 with all his experts, but he couldn't, alas. Oh yeah, 406 00:29:08.900 --> 00:29:11.220 I'm sure. All of his experts couldn't figure it out. 407 00:29:11.259 --> 00:29:14.589 He had to go to Jeffrey Epstein. Jeffrey Epstein is 408 00:29:14.660 --> 00:29:20.109 the man with a plan. We're talking, remember Russell Crowe's 409 00:29:20.150 --> 00:29:23.190 character in A Beautiful Mind? Just looks at all the 410 00:29:23.250 --> 00:29:26.769 numbers and can figure out the equations right there, no 411 00:29:26.789 --> 00:29:30.480 matter how big or long. That's Jeffrey Epstein, obviously. We're 412 00:29:30.539 --> 00:29:35.549 talking about Albert Einstein reincarnated, folks. If we only would 413 00:29:35.569 --> 00:29:42.890 have known what a genius was amongst us. But Epstein could. 414 00:29:43.329 --> 00:29:48.130 He claimed his solution was proprietary, according to Deckert. Black 415 00:29:48.210 --> 00:29:51.329 asked outside legal counsel to vet Epstein's solution and to 416 00:29:51.390 --> 00:29:55.309 watch over Epstein generally. Why didn't Black's legal counsel just 417 00:29:55.349 --> 00:29:58.250 do his tax and estate work for much less money? 418 00:29:58.829 --> 00:30:03.369 One wonders. Yeah, why not? All of these people around him, 419 00:30:03.630 --> 00:30:06.789 this huge company Apollo, they don't have tax people? They 420 00:30:06.829 --> 00:30:08.910 don't have some of the best people in the world? 421 00:30:09.309 --> 00:30:11.829 You gotta go out and bring in a mercenary like 422 00:30:11.970 --> 00:30:18.960 Jeffrey Epstein, huh? Okay. According to Deckard, Epstein had hit 423 00:30:19.000 --> 00:30:22.000 a grand slam because his idea met all of Black's 424 00:30:22.059 --> 00:30:27.059 financial and estate planning goals. In 2013, Black and Epstein 425 00:30:27.099 --> 00:30:33.009 signed a contract for services... including the implementation of Epstein's solution. Usually, 426 00:30:33.029 --> 00:30:36.470 Epstein told Black, he would charge a client $ 40 million 427 00:30:36.490 --> 00:30:39.059 a year for his advice, but he offered to give 428 00:30:39.119 --> 00:30:43.380 Black a break, $ 23. 5 million, which was paid to Epstein 429 00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:47.940 in two installments in 2013. Even by Wall Street standards, 430 00:30:48.200 --> 00:30:52.549 the fees Black agreed to pay Epstein were preposterous. You 431 00:30:52.589 --> 00:30:54.769 could buy a law firm for what Leon agreed to 432 00:30:54.809 --> 00:30:59.950 pay Epstein, a retired CEO told me. No shit. I've 433 00:30:59.970 --> 00:31:03.569 been telling you guys that forever. Everybody I know that 434 00:31:03.630 --> 00:31:06.410 works in the financial sector just shakes their head and 435 00:31:06.470 --> 00:31:08.529 rolls their eyes when they see these kind of numbers 436 00:31:08.569 --> 00:31:13.380 being thrown around. You got to understand, these people, they 437 00:31:13.420 --> 00:31:15.920 don't want to let a cent leave their fingers. So 438 00:31:15.960 --> 00:31:19.299 paying this kind of money for advice for these narcissistic 439 00:31:19.720 --> 00:31:34.369 alphas like Leon Black, it just doesn't happen, folks. Based 440 00:31:34.430 --> 00:31:37.539 on the Grand Slam, Black agreed to hire Epstein again 441 00:31:37.730 --> 00:31:43.259 in mid-2013 for future services agreeing to abide by terms 442 00:31:43.480 --> 00:31:47.900 similar to the initial contract, but apparently without a signed agreement. 443 00:31:48.500 --> 00:31:51.900 According to Deckard, Black paid Epstein a total of $ 50 444 00:31:51.380 --> 00:31:53.480 million in 2013 and on an ad hoc basis, another 445 00:31:53.480 --> 00:32:02.759 $ 70 million in 2014 and another $ 30 million in 2015. Wait, 446 00:32:02.799 --> 00:32:06.049 I thought his fee was only $ 23. 5 million. What's going 447 00:32:06.130 --> 00:32:08.289 on here? Why is it getting bumped up? All of 448 00:32:08.329 --> 00:32:11.109 a sudden, you don't get the homie hookup no more there, Leon. 449 00:32:11.309 --> 00:32:13.829 I'm gonna need the full $ 30. I'm gonna need $ 50. 450 00:32:13.650 --> 00:32:16.890 I'm gonna need $ 70. Pay up, pay up, pay up. 451 00:32:17.569 --> 00:32:23.450 I mean, really? Epstein went on to advise Black about 452 00:32:23.490 --> 00:32:26.319 some loans he had made to certain family trusts, which 453 00:32:26.400 --> 00:32:30.279 appeared to save Black some money. His art collection, his yacht, 454 00:32:30.599 --> 00:32:33.660 and his airplane were which apparently unnerved a broker of 455 00:32:33.759 --> 00:32:37.579 private jets who was not pleased because, according to Deckert, 456 00:32:37.859 --> 00:32:41.119 the broker knew Epstein was sophisticated when it came to 457 00:32:41.220 -->

00:32:44.799 airplanes and that it would be hard to negotiate against Epstein. 458 00:32:45.539 --> 00:32:48.789 Once again, we are asked to believe that Jeffrey Epstein 459 00:32:49.029 --> 00:32:52.829 was a better negotiator than Leon Black. No, I will 460 00:32:52.869 --> 00:32:56.470 not believe it. I am sorry. I will not believe it. 461 00:32:57.769 --> 00:33:00.410 There's nothing that anyone can do to prove to me 462 00:33:00.750 --> 00:33:03.630 or show me that Jeffrey Epstein's a better negotiator than 463 00:33:03.769 --> 00:33:09.779 Leon effing Black. I know Leon Black. I know his reputation. 464 00:33:10.200 --> 00:33:13.960 I know the way people think of him on Wall Street. 465 00:33:14.380 --> 00:33:16.700 And I know that this dude is not ceding power 466 00:33:16.720 --> 00:33:19.799 to Jeffrey Epstein, not today, not yesterday, not in a 467 00:33:19.920 --> 00:33:25.809 thousand years from now. There is more, of course. Not 468 00:33:25.910 --> 00:33:29.900 all of it fully explained. $ 20. 5 million of unpaid loans 469 00:33:29.940 --> 00:33:33.180 to Epstein from Black, a dispute between the two men 470 00:33:33.299 --> 00:33:36.519 over Epstein wanting even more money from Black that led 471 00:33:36.559 --> 00:33:40.380 to their falling out in 2018. But the report suggests 472 00:33:40.440 --> 00:33:43.960 that it was all legit and that the value Epstein 473 00:33:44.009 --> 00:33:49.130 provided to Black substantially exceeded the total compensation that Black 474 00:33:49.190 --> 00:33:52.490 paid to him, while also noting that Black paid more 475 00:33:52.529 --> 00:33:55.609 in fees to Epstein than he paid to any other professional. 476 00:33:56.089 --> 00:33:59.410 Imagine that, huh? Of all the professionals Leon Black's working with, 477 00:33:59.650 --> 00:34:02.910 all the people in his realm and in his atmosphere, 478 00:34:04.130 --> 00:34:09.500 Jeffrey Epstein was the person he paid the most money to. Why? 479 00:34:13.619 --> 00:34:16.519 Concurrent with the release of the Deckert Report, Black agreed 480 00:34:16.539 --> 00:34:20.659 to resign as Apollo CEO in July, around his 70th birthday, 481 00:34:21.019 --> 00:34:24.869 but will remain chairman of the board. Mark Rowan, one 482 00:34:24.909 --> 00:34:29.230 of Apollo's founders, will succeed Black. Josh Harris, another Apollo 483 00:34:29.269 --> 00:34:33.590 co-founder who was reportedly angling to succeed Black, has, at 484 00:34:33.630 --> 00:34:38.409 least publicly, endorsed Rowan as CEO. There's more going on there, folks, right? 485 00:34:38.650 --> 00:34:40.800 I don't have any proof of that, but there is 486 00:34:40.840 --> 00:34:44.550 a struggle going on behind closed doors. Rowan had taken 487 00:34:44.590 --> 00:34:49.320 a step back. He was basically in self-imposed retirement, and 488 00:34:49.360 --> 00:34:51.360 now all of a sudden he steps back up and 489 00:34:51.400 --> 00:34:53.760 into the plate, And Harris is getting pushed to the 490 00:34:53.840 --> 00:34:56.340 side again? Do you really think that Harris is okay 491 00:34:56.360 --> 00:35:00.389 with that? I highly doubt it. Black also agreed to 492 00:35:00.429 --> 00:35:04.070 donate $ 200 million to initiatives that seek to achieve gender 493 00:35:04.130 --> 00:35:08.409 equality and protect and empower women, according to a statement, 494 00:35:08.730 --> 00:35:12.360 including those that help survivors of sexual assault and human trafficking. 495 00:35:13.000 --> 00:35:17.760 Deckard's report cleared him of wrongdoing, of course. These are 496 00:35:17.840 --> 00:35:22.099 not the droids you are looking for. And it really 497 00:35:22.159 --> 00:35:24.300 is that, right? That's what they're trying to do. They're 498 00:35:24.320 --> 00:35:27.380 trying to do the old Jedi mind trick on us, right? 499 00:35:27.659 --> 00:35:29.960 Wave their hand in front of us and say, all right, 500 00:35:30.000 --> 00:35:33.480 this is it. No big deal. It's all good. It 501 00:35:33.500 --> 00:35:37.059 was a bad judgment call by Leon Black. That's all. 502 00:35:40.059 --> 00:35:42.239 The Wall Street lawyer says it's all just a load 503 00:35:42.280 --> 00:35:45.300 of crap. He uses the words whitewash and cover up. 504 00:35:45.780 --> 00:35:48.699 His unproven theory is that Black was using Epstein to 505 00:35:48.760 --> 00:35:50.920 pass money to people who he didn't want to be 506 00:35:50.960 --> 00:35:54.559 associated with by name. There's no way Jeffrey Epstein was 507 00:35:54.639 --> 00:36:00.039 keeping $ 158 million, he says. An Apollo spokesperson did not 508 00:36:00.099 --> 00:36:03.559 respond to questions about whether Black used Epstein as a 509 00:36:03.619 --> 00:36:07.340 conduit to pay others in this manner or if Black 510 00:36:07.429 --> 00:36:10.929 had any plans to return as the CEO after he 511 00:36:10.949 --> 00:36:15.190 gives up the position in July. So, again... What was 512 00:36:15.230 --> 00:36:18.110 that money being used for? Why was Jeffrey Epstein being 513 00:36:18.150 --> 00:36:22.110 given all of this money? Very possible that Jeffrey Epstein 514 00:36:22.150 --> 00:36:25.550 was washing this money and laundering it and then distributing 515 00:36:25.630 --> 00:36:28.550 it to people that Black was in business with that 516 00:36:28.590 --> 00:36:32.750 he didn't want his name associated with in public. I 517 00:36:32.789 --> 00:36:34.909 know it sounds like a movie and shit, right? But 518 00:36:35.250 --> 00:36:39.590 this is reality, folks. And now that the drapes have 519 00:36:39.610 --> 00:36:42.289 been pulled back, the curtains have been pulled back, and 520 00:36:42.309 --> 00:36:45.599 you folks have gotten a little look behind... There's no 521 00:36:45.639 --> 00:36:54.050 going back from this. There's only going forward. Apollo's board, 522 00:36:54.550 --> 00:36:58.280 allowing Black to remain as chairman, reminds the lawyer of 523 00:36:58.300 --> 00:37:03.000 the old

Wall Street saw, the king horse can talk strategy. 524 00:37:03.420 --> 00:37:06.179 There's a plot against the king, he explains. The king 525 00:37:06.219 --> 00:37:08.880 catches the head plotter. He throws him in the dungeon 526 00:37:08.949 --> 00:37:12.179 and says, two weeks hence, off with his head. The 527 00:37:12.219 --> 00:37:14.260 plotter is down in the dungeon in the bottom of 528 00:37:14.300 --> 00:37:17.639 the castle. He whispers to the guard, look, before the 529 00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:20.219 king kills me, he better realize that I can make 530 00:37:20.260 --> 00:37:23.940 his horse talk. The guy says, yeah, sure. He goes, no, 531 00:37:24.219 --> 00:37:26.570 I mean it. You better tell the king. I can 532 00:37:26.610 --> 00:37:32.110 make his horse talk. The guard wanders upstairs, sees the king, says, look, 533 00:37:32.769 --> 00:37:35.429 I don't know whether to make heads or tails of this, 534 00:37:35.889 --> 00:37:39.050 but the guy says that he can make your horse talk. 535 00:37:39.980 --> 00:37:43.619 The king says, hmm, Let me think about it. The 536 00:37:43.659 --> 00:37:47.199 guard goes back downstairs. The guy says, what did the 537 00:37:47.239 --> 00:37:51.019 king say? The king said, he'd think about it. And 538 00:37:51.059 --> 00:37:55.199 the guy smiles. The guard said, what are you smiling about? 539 00:37:55.380 --> 00:37:58.909 You can't make his horse talk. He says, well, a 540 00:37:58.969 --> 00:38:02.510 lot of things can happen between now and two weeks hence. 541 00:38:03.110 --> 00:38:06.429 The horse could die. The king could die. And who knows? 542 00:38:07.250 --> 00:38:09.949 I might figure out a way to make the horse talk. 543 00:38:10.619 --> 00:38:13.920 So Leon, in his mind, has between now and July 544 00:38:14.159 --> 00:38:17.699 to make the horse talk. Josh could die. Mark could die. 545 00:38:18.300 --> 00:38:24.789 Anything could happen. Yo, folks, that little story there sums 546 00:38:24.829 --> 00:38:27.530 it up perfectly. That is everything I've been telling you 547 00:38:27.610 --> 00:38:31.050 about this and the situation that we find ourselves in 548 00:38:31.510 --> 00:38:37.719 with Apollo Global. I have known Mark Rowan for more 549 00:38:37.739 --> 00:38:40.840 than 25 years. I used to cover him at Apollo 550 00:38:40.860 --> 00:38:43.219 when I was a banker at Merrill Lynch. I used 551 00:38:43.239 --> 00:38:46.559 to try to present him with actionable ideas, companies that 552 00:38:46.619 --> 00:38:49.219 Apollo might want to buy that were open to being bought. 553 00:38:49.920 --> 00:38:52.389 I shared with him a bunch of ideas, a few 554 00:38:52.449 --> 00:38:56.050 of which Apollo ended up doing. But Apollo never paid 555 00:38:56.090 --> 00:38:59.409 Merrill any fees as a result of my ideas. I 556 00:38:59.429 --> 00:39:01.469 get the sense that Apollo was not the kind of 557 00:39:01.550 --> 00:39:04.090 firm that would let anyone get a dollar out of 558 00:39:04.130 --> 00:39:07.570 them if it could be avoided, let alone $ 158 million. 559 00:39:09.760 --> 00:39:13.500 Rowan is now a billionaire. In May 2009, Rowan gave 560 00:39:13.539 --> 00:39:16.199 a talk to the Jewish Enrichment Center. He got to 561 00:39:16.239 --> 00:39:19.449 talking about people he worked for over the years. I 562 00:39:19.469 --> 00:39:22.750 worked directly for Dennis Levine, a former Drexel M & 563 00:39:22.469 --> 00:39:25.590 A banker who went to jail and then went to 564 00:39:25.630 --> 00:39:28.909 work for Marty Siegel, another Drexel M & A banker 565 00:39:29.269 --> 00:39:31.849 who also went to jail. I then moved out to 566 00:39:31.889 --> 00:39:35.280 California to work for Mike Milken who also went to jail. 567 00:39:35.820 --> 00:39:39.159 There are so many ethical dilemmas you are presented with 568 00:39:39.380 --> 00:39:43.139 over your career. The choices you make just determine who 569 00:39:43.179 --> 00:39:48.519 you are over time. And if that's the case, then 570 00:39:48.559 --> 00:39:53.849 the person that Leon Black has been determined to be 571 00:39:54.269 --> 00:39:59.820 over the course of time is certainly not somebody that 572 00:39:59.989 --> 00:40:03.780 any of us would want to be. Because this dude 573 00:40:05.619 --> 00:40:11.280 and his choices and his very, very strong relationship with 574 00:40:11.360 --> 00:40:16.099 Jeffrey Epstein is not just going to go away. And 575 00:40:16.139 --> 00:40:19.840 for Leon Black to think that he is just buying 576 00:40:19.860 --> 00:40:23.119 himself some time right now and waiting to cruise right 577 00:40:23.159 --> 00:40:27.320 back into his position, well, I think maybe he should 578 00:40:27.360 --> 00:40:30.840 give the Joe Exotic of the Windsor family a phone 579 00:40:30.860 --> 00:40:34.679 call and see how that's going for him. If you'd 580 00:40:34.699 --> 00:40:37.289 like to contact me, you can do that at bobbycapucci 581 00:40:37.349 --> 00:40:47.429 at protonmail.com. That's B-O-B-B-Y-C-A-P-U-C-C-I at protonmail.com. You can also find 582 00:40:47.469 --> 00:40:53.949 me on Twitter at B-O-B-B-Y underscore C-A-P-U-C-C-I. All of the 583 00:40:53.989 --> 00:40:56.750 links that go with this episode can be found in 584 00:40:56.789 --> 00:41:00.730 the description box. And folks, make sure that you are 585 00:41:00.769 --> 00:41:04.769 subscribed to the podcast at whatever platform that you get 586 00:41:04.789 --> 00:41:07.730 it from. That way, you get it as soon as 587 00:41:07.809 --> 00:41:12.590 it's uploaded. All right, everybody. Enjoy your Friday night. Please 588 00:41:12.630 --> 00:41:16.409 do not drink and drive. And I will be back tomorrow. 589 00:41:17.690 --> 00:41:20.510 What's up everyone and welcome to another episode of the 590 00:41:20.610 --> 00:41:24.889 Epstein Chronicles. A lot of people like to pretend that 591 00:41:24.929 --> 00:41:27.760 the Epstein story just fell out of the sky. Like 592

00:41:27.880 --> 00:41:31.340 one day everyone woke up and suddenly realized Epstein wasn't 593 00:41:31.380 --> 00:41:34.219 just a rich creep with a jet and a guest list, 594 00:41:34.420 --> 00:41:38.800 but something far darker and far more entrenched. That collective 595 00:41:38.880 --> 00:41:41.739 amnesia is convenient because it lets a lot of people 596 00:41:41.800 --> 00:41:45.369 off the hook. It lets institutions act surprised. It lets 597 00:41:45.429 --> 00:41:49.670 media outlets posture as late-arriving heroes instead of early enablers. 598 00:41:50.389 --> 00:41:52.739 And it lets the same voices who mocked this story 599 00:41:52.760 --> 00:41:55.900 for years now act like they discovered it on their own. 600 00:41:57.059 --> 00:42:01.840 What's happening right now isn't revelation, it's reputation management. The 601 00:42:01.880 --> 00:42:05.079 tone has changed, sure, but the framing is still careful, 602 00:42:05.320 --> 00:42:11.590 still polite, still boxed in. We're getting long essays about money, connections, careers, origins. 603 00:42:12.019 --> 00:42:15.420 We're getting safe questions with safe answers. What we're not 604 00:42:15.440 --> 00:42:19.280 getting is the one question that makes everyone uncomfortable. How 605 00:42:19.300 --> 00:42:22.150 did this man keep surviving things that should have destroyed him? 606 00:42:22.570 --> 00:42:27.849 Not once, not twice, but over and over again across decades, jurisdictions, 607 00:42:28.130 --> 00:42:32.250 and scandals. Now some might want to call that a coincidence. Me? 608 00:42:32.769 --> 00:42:35.949 I see a pattern. Epstein didn't just slip through the cracks. 609 00:42:36.320 --> 00:42:39.369 The cracks don't work like that. He walked through doors 610 00:42:39.610 --> 00:42:43.030 that should have been locked, guarded, and bolted shut. Every 611 00:42:43.070 --> 00:42:48.130 time consequences loomed, they softened. Every time exposure threatened, it dissipated. 612 00:42:48.829 --> 00:42:52.980 Careers ended around him, but his never did. Investigations stalled, 613 00:42:53.199 --> 00:42:57.239 but his lifestyle never changed. That kind of consistency doesn't 614 00:42:57.280 --> 00:43:00.739 come from charm or luck. It comes from something structural, 615 00:43:01.079 --> 00:43:05.289 something systemic, something people are still afraid to name out loud. 616 00:43:06.179 --> 00:43:08.579 And that's why the current wave of coverage feels both 617 00:43:08.659 --> 00:43:12.719 overdue and incomplete. You can write 10,000 words about where 618 00:43:12.760 --> 00:43:15.630 someone worked, who they knew, or how their money moved 619 00:43:15.909 --> 00:43:18.969 and still miss the point entirely. Because the real story 620 00:43:19.349 --> 00:43:21.670 isn't how he rose, it's how he was allowed to 621 00:43:21.690 --> 00:43:25.590 stay standing. It's how the rules bent without breaking. It's 622 00:43:25.610 --> 00:43:30.159 how alarms rang without anyone responding. Until we start asking 623 00:43:30.380 --> 00:43:33.519 why that kept happening, we're not investigating history, we're just 624 00:43:33.559 --> 00:43:37.469 curating it. So enjoy the sudden interest. Enjoy the glossy 625 00:43:37.550 --> 00:43:43.010 retrospectives and recycled timelines. Just understand this. If the conversation 626 00:43:43.309 --> 00:43:46.110 never crosses from how did he make it to why 627 00:43:46.130 --> 00:43:48.550 did he survive it, then we're still being fed a 628 00:43:48.570 --> 00:43:51.619 version of the story designed to protect someone. And if 629 00:43:51.639 --> 00:43:55.440 there's one lesson Jeffrey Epstein taught us, it's that protection, 630 00:43:55.860 --> 00:44:00.360 real protection, never happens by accident. And what you're watching 631 00:44:00.400 --> 00:44:03.400 now is not an awakening so much as a delayed reckoning. 632 00:44:04.130 --> 00:44:06.110 The people who once rolled their eyes at the Epstein 633 00:44:06.130 --> 00:44:09.510 story are suddenly acting like they've stumbled onto buried treasure, 634 00:44:09.949 --> 00:44:12.489 when in reality they've arrived at a crime scene that's 635 00:44:12.510 --> 00:44:15.829 been taped off for decades. The shift didn't come from 636 00:44:15.989 --> 00:44:20.210 courage or curiosity, it came from pressure and embarrassment. When 637 00:44:20.230 --> 00:44:23.510 the story refused to die, when survivors kept speaking, and 638 00:44:23.530 --> 00:44:27.869 when documents kept leaking, legacy media finally realized silence was 639 00:44:27.909 --> 00:44:30.550 no longer an option. That doesn't mean they're telling the 640 00:44:30.590 --> 00:44:33.050 whole truth now, it means they're telling a version of 641 00:44:33.110 --> 00:44:36.519 it that feels safe enough to publish. And that distinction 642 00:44:36.559 --> 00:44:40.059 matters more than most people want to admit. Because what's 643 00:44:40.079 --> 00:44:43.840 being presented as new reporting is often just recycled surface-level 644 00:44:43.860 --> 00:44:48.809 material stripped of its most dangerous implications. And the New 645 00:44:48.829 --> 00:44:52.789 York Times is a perfect example of this phenomenon. Suddenly 646 00:44:52.829 --> 00:44:56.369 we're getting long-form features about Epstein's early career, his time 647 00:44:56.389 --> 00:44:59.300 around Bear Stearns, and the mystery of his money. On 648 00:44:59.340 --> 00:45:02.659 its face, that sounds like progress. In reality, it's an 649 00:45:02.780 --> 00:45:06.940 exercise in historical laundering. These are stories that could have 650 00:45:06.960 --> 00:45:09.739 been written years ago, when Epstein was still alive and 651 00:45:09.920 --> 00:45:13.739 actively abusing girls. Instead, they arrive now, when the central 652 00:45:13.800 --> 00:45:18.210 figure is safely dead and incapable of contradicting anyone. That 653 00:45:18.250 --> 00:45:21.250 timing is not accidental. It's much easier to write

boldly 654 00:45:21.289 --> 00:45:24.269 about a monster when the monster can no longer implicate 655 00:45:24.329 --> 00:45:27.550 anyone else. And it's even easier when the most explosive 656 00:45:27.590 --> 00:45:32.010 questions are politely left unasked. For years, people like you 657 00:45:32.070 --> 00:45:35.010 and me were told we were exaggerating. We were called 658 00:45:35.050 --> 00:45:40.210 conspiracy theorists for suggesting Epstein's crimes extended beyond individual depravity 659 00:45:40.590 --> 00:45:45.239 into institutional protection. The idea that powerful systems enabled them 660 00:45:45.460 --> 00:45:49.800 was dismissed as paranoid fantasy. Yet, here we are, watching 661 00:45:49.840 --> 00:45:53.780 those same outlets gingerly approach the edges of that very conclusion. 662 00:45:54.619 --> 00:45:57.800 The difference is, they still refuse to name the mechanism. 663 00:45:58.280 --> 00:46:00.800 They'll describe the smoke endlessly. but they won't say who 664 00:46:00.840 --> 00:46:04.980 lit the fire. Instead, they fixate on money trails, social connections, 665 00:46:05.340 --> 00:46:08.739 and career anecdotes. Those details matter, but they are not 666 00:46:08.780 --> 00:46:11.139 the core of the story. And the Bear Stearns story 667 00:46:11.199 --> 00:46:14.940 is a perfect case study in misdirection. Yes, Epstein's exit 668 00:46:14.960 --> 00:46:19.059 from Bear Stearns is suspicious. Yes, it raises legitimate questions 669 00:46:19.099 --> 00:46:22.679 about how a college dropout with no formal credentials ended 670 00:46:22.719 --> 00:46:26.210 up managing money for billionaires. But focusing solely on that 671 00:46:26.250 --> 00:46:30.730 chapter obscures something far more important. Plenty of shady operators 672 00:46:30.869 --> 00:46:33.670 wash out of Wall Street under clouds of misconduct and 673 00:46:33.690 --> 00:46:38.329 never recover. Epstein didn't just recover, he ascended. He didn't 674 00:46:38.369 --> 00:46:43.829 disappear into obscurity or face lasting professional consequence. He landed 675 00:46:43.889 --> 00:46:46.760 on his feet every single time, often in ways that 676 00:46:46.780 --> 00:46:51.420 defied logic and precedent. That pattern demands an explanation far 677 00:46:51.460 --> 00:46:54.599 beyond luck or charm. And this is where the mainstream 678 00:46:54.639 --> 00:46:59.449 narrative consistently collapses under its own weight. Journalists ask how 679 00:46:59.530 --> 00:47:02.110 Epstein made his money, but they rarely ask how he 680 00:47:02.130 --> 00:47:05.889 survived his scandals. They catalog a social network, but they 681 00:47:05.909 --> 00:47:09.690 don't interrogate why those connections never abandoned him when red 682 00:47:09.730 --> 00:47:13.670 flags piled up. They marvel at his resilience without questioning 683 00:47:13.710 --> 00:47:17.369 what force might have been cushioning his falls. That omission 684 00:47:17.670 --> 00:47:22.869 is not accidental or benign. In journalism, what's not asked 685 00:47:22.929 --> 00:47:26.150 is more revealing than what is. And in Epstein's case, 686 00:47:26.190 --> 00:47:29.989 the unasked questions all point to the same uncomfortable direction. 687 00:47:32.320 --> 00:47:35.519 The central issue is not Epstein's financial genius, because there 688 00:47:35.579 --> 00:47:38.619 is little evidence he had any. It's not his social 689 00:47:38.679 --> 00:47:42.400 brilliance either, because plenty of social climbers are exposed and 690 00:47:42.440 --> 00:47:47.070 discarded once their utility fades. The real story is Epstein's immunity. 691 00:47:47.670 --> 00:47:50.929 Over and over again, he encountered situations that should have 692 00:47:50.989 --> 00:47:53.789 ended his freedom, his fortune, or at the very least, 693 00:47:54.130 --> 00:48:00.719 his access to victims. Instead, consequences dissolved. Investigations stalled, charges 694 00:48:01.030 --> 00:48:05.530 were softened, delayed, or quietly abandoned. That kind of consistency 695 00:48:05.570 --> 00:48:09.150 does not happen by accident. It happens when someone is 696 00:48:09.210 --> 00:48:13.550 deemed more valuable protected than prosecuted. This is where the 697 00:48:13.610 --> 00:48:17.869 allegation that Epstein functioned as a confidential informant becomes unavoidable, 698 00:48:18.369 --> 00:48:21.929 regardless of how uncomfortable it makes people. I'm not presenting 699 00:48:21.949 --> 00:48:24.949 this as a proven courtroom fact because that bar has 700 00:48:24.989 --> 00:48:28.219 never been allowed to be tested. I'm presenting it as 701 00:48:28.260 --> 00:48:33.159 the most coherent explanation for a decades-long pattern of inexplicable leniency. 702 00:48:34.070 --> 00:48:39.030 Law enforcement agencies routinely cultivate informants who are morally reprehensible 703 00:48:39.389 --> 00:48:45.110 because usefulness often outweighs ethics. Drug traffickers, arms dealers, money launderers, 704 00:48:45.369 --> 00:48:48.920 and traffickers themselves have all been protected at various times 705 00:48:49.260 --> 00:48:53.920 in exchange for information. That's not speculation. That's documented history. 706 00:48:54.809 --> 00:48:57.489 The idea that Epstein could have occupied such a role 707 00:48:57.820 --> 00:49:01.039 is not extraordinary. What would be extraordinary is pretending that 708 00:49:01.079 --> 00:49:04.699 the pattern doesn't fit. If Epstein was flipped early, many 709 00:49:04.739 --> 00:49:07.940 pieces suddenly fall into place. His ability to move freely 710 00:49:08.000 --> 00:49:12.179 across borders despite allegations, his repeated brushes with law enforcement 711 00:49:12.449 --> 00:49:15.449 that never seemed to stick, the remarkable deference shown to 712 00:49:15.510 --> 00:49:19.050 him by prosecutors in Florida, the reluctance of federal authorities 713 00:49:19.309 --> 00:49:22.190 to pursue him a even when victims were begging to 714

00:49:22.210 --> 00:49:26.650 be heard. Informants are not treated like ordinary criminals. They're assets, 715 00:49:27.070 --> 00:49:31.280 and assets are managed, not destroyed. When you view Epstein 716 00:49:31.300 --> 00:49:36.210 through that lens, the story becomes grimly coherent. And of course, 717 00:49:36.329 --> 00:49:40.550 this also reframes the 2008 non-prosecution agreement in a far 718 00:49:40.590 --> 00:49:45.530 more disturbing light. That deal wasn't just lenient, it was aberrational. 719 00:49:46.150 --> 00:49:50.989 It protected unnamed co-conspirators, concealed agreements from victims, and short-circuited 720 00:49:51.050 --> 00:49:56.670 federal oversight. People often attribute this to prosecutorial cowardice or corruption, 721 00:49:57.190 --> 00:49:59.769 and those factors may have well played a role. But 722 00:49:59.829 --> 00:50:03.650 informant status provides a structural explanation for why so many 723 00:50:03.710 --> 00:50:07.940 safeguards were overridden. It explains why DOJ leadership signed off. 724 00:50:08.380 --> 00:50:12.050 It explains why the FBI appeared disengaged. And it explains 725 00:50:12.070 --> 00:50:15.590 why Epstein emerged from the scandal not diminished, but emboldened. 726 00:50:16.710 --> 00:50:21.650 After 2008, Epstein didn't retreat. He expanded. He continued abusing 727 00:50:21.690 --> 00:50:25.010 girls with apparent confidence that the system would not stop him. 728 00:50:26.070 --> 00:50:29.650 That confidence didn't come from arrogance alone. It came from experience. 729 00:50:30.170 --> 00:50:33.719 He had learned repeatedly that consequences did not apply to 730 00:50:33.760 --> 00:50:37.320 him the same way they apply to others. When someone 731 00:50:37.380 --> 00:50:41.619 behaves that brazenly, it's usually because past behavior has been rewarded, 732 00:50:41.920 --> 00:50:46.340 not punished. That's a psychological reality, not a conspiracy theory. 733 00:50:46.920 --> 00:50:49.739 And it's one that journalists still struggle to confront honestly. 734 00:50:50.159 --> 00:50:54.150 The media's fixation on Epstein's money conveniently avoids this reality. 735 00:50:54.909 --> 00:50:58.989 Money's safe territory. You can trace accounts, speculate about shell companies, 736 00:50:59.409 --> 00:51:03.639 and analyze investments without challenging the legitimacy of federal institutions. 737 00:51:04.340 --> 00:51:08.219 But once you ask how Epstein survived criminal exposure, you're 738 00:51:08.260 --> 00:51:12.219 forced to examine law enforcement itself. You're forced to consider 739 00:51:12.480 --> 00:51:17.969 whether the FBI failed catastrophically or acted deliberately. Neither possibility 740 00:51:18.050 --> 00:51:21.889 reflects well on the institution. So instead, we get endless 741 00:51:21.949 --> 00:51:25.550 articles about Bear Stearns and billionaires as if wealth alone 742 00:51:25.869 --> 00:51:30.739 explains immunity. It doesn't. Look, it's also important to acknowledge 743 00:51:30.980 --> 00:51:34.969 the role of skepticism here, because skepticism was selectively applied. 744 00:51:35.619 --> 00:51:39.590 When survivors spoke, they were doubted. When independent researchers raised questions, 745 00:51:39.969 --> 00:51:43.630 they were mocked. When journalists outside elite circles connected dots, 746 00:51:44.010 --> 00:51:47.829 they were ignored. But when legacy outlets finally approach the story, 747 00:51:48.170 --> 00:51:52.590 their skepticism evaporates. Their assumptions are treated as serious inquiry, 748 00:51:53.250 --> 00:51:55.949 even when they trail far behind what is already known. 749 00:51:56.730 --> 00:52:00.840 The double standard is not accidental. That shit's structural. Authority 750 00:52:00.900 --> 00:52:05.699 is granted based on platform, not accuracy. And for me, 751 00:52:05.960 --> 00:52:09.659 what's particularly galling is that Epstein operated in their backyard. 752 00:52:10.590 --> 00:52:14.050 New York was not some distant jurisdiction where oversight was difficult. 753 00:52:14.349 --> 00:52:18.250 He lived openly, hosted lavish gatherings, and moved in elite circles. 754 00:52:19.230 --> 00:52:22.659 His name circulated for years alongside rumors that were treated 755 00:52:22.960 --> 00:52:27.230 as impolite rather than urgent. That kind of willful blindness 756 00:52:27.469 --> 00:52:32.760 doesn't happen without institutional permission. Journalists had access. Editors had leads. 757 00:52:33.090 --> 00:52:38.579 The silence was a choice. And choices have consequences. Especially 758 00:52:38.619 --> 00:52:42.639 when they enable abuse. Now that the tone has changed, 759 00:52:42.900 --> 00:52:45.780 we're supposed to applaud the effort without questioning the delay. 760 00:52:46.199 --> 00:52:48.469 We're supposed to act grateful that the story is finally 761 00:52:48.510 --> 00:52:53.050 being taken seriously. But gratitude is not accountability. Late coverage 762 00:52:53.269 --> 00:52:57.500 does not absolve earlier neglect. If anything, it demands harder 763 00:52:57.539 --> 00:53:01.280 questions about why that neglect occurred. Was it fear of lawsuits? 764 00:53:01.699 --> 00:53:05.929 Fear of powerful advertisers? Fear of government sources drying up? 765 00:53:06.789 --> 00:53:10.650 Or was it something more insidious, like quiet pressure not 766 00:53:10.670 --> 00:53:14.469 to dig too deep? Those questions still haven't been answered. 767 00:53:15.710 --> 00:53:17.969 The informant question sits at the center of all of 768 00:53:18.010 --> 00:53:21.170 this like a live wire. It explains why the Epstein 769 00:53:21.210 --> 00:53:25.079 case feels unfinished even after his death. It explains why 770 00:53:25.139 --> 00:53:29.360 documents remain sealed or heavily redacted. It explains why agencies 771 00:53:29.420 --> 00:53:34.000 speak in careful half sentences instead of clear denials. And 772 00:53:34.039 --> 00:53:37.159 it explains why the narrative keeps circling the perimeter without 773 00:53:37.239 --> 00:53:40.360 entering the core. You don't need secret knowledge to see this. 774 00:53:40.860 --> 00:53:45.750 You just need pattern recognition and intellectual honesty. Unfortunately, honesty 775 00:53:45.809 --> 00:53:50.300 is often the first casualty when institutions protect themselves. Sometimes 776 00:53:50.519 --> 00:53:54.420 failure is functional, sometimes it serves a purpose, and sometimes 777 00:53:54.440 --> 00:53:58.889 that purpose is invisible precisely because acknowledging it would shatter 778 00:53:58.949 --> 00:54:02.429 public trust. The tragedy, of course, is that survivors pay 779 00:54:02.449 --> 00:54:06.150 the price for this protection. Every year Epstein remained free 780 00:54:06.429 --> 00:54:10.280 was another year of abuse. Every delayed investigation was another 781 00:54:10.320 --> 00:54:14.719 stolen childhood. These aren't abstract policy failures. They're human costs. 782 00:54:15.110 --> 00:54:18.340 When media outlets dance around the real questions, they participate 783 00:54:18.360 --> 00:54:21.840 in minimizing that harm. Intent doesn't matter nearly as much 784 00:54:22.179 --> 00:54:25.659 as impact. And the impact has been decades of silence 785 00:54:25.739 --> 00:54:29.659 punctuated by bursts of belated outrage. So when people ask 786 00:54:29.699 --> 00:54:33.329 me why they waited until now, the answer is painfully simple. 787 00:54:33.769 --> 00:54:37.030 They waited because they could. They waited because the risk 788 00:54:37.070 --> 00:54:40.869 of silence outweighed the risk of truth only recently. and 789 00:54:40.889 --> 00:54:44.250 they waited because confronting the full scope of Epstein's protection 790 00:54:44.550 --> 00:54:49.570 requires confronting institutions they still rely on. And until that changes, 791 00:54:49.650 --> 00:54:52.949 the story will remain incomplete, no matter how many long 792 00:54:53.010 --> 00:54:57.050 features get published. The real scandal isn't where Epstein started, 793 00:54:57.409 --> 00:54:59.869 it's how he was allowed to continue again and again, 794 00:55:00.250 --> 00:55:03.409 with help from those sworn to stop people like him. 795 00:55:05.159 --> 00:55:07.539 All of the information that goes with this episode can 796 00:55:07.559 --> 00:55:09.360 be found in the description box.