đ¨ Jeffrey Epsteinâs Lair Revealed
House Democrats release never-before-seen photos of the predatorâs private island, Bari Weiss plans a CBS town hall with Erika Kirk, and the MyPillow guy is running for governor?
đ On this day in 1978, Dianne Feinstein became San Franciscoâs first female and Jewish mayor following the horrific assassinations of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. She went on to serve six terms in the US Senate. Some might argue that was one or two too manyâŚ
Good morning! Peter here, with some major breaking news⌠Spotify Wrapped, the streaming platformâs annual, viral marketing campaign, was released yesterday. If youâre a frequent social media user, you saw friends share their most listened to musicians this year. My results were, well, something! My top artist was Michelle Branch, architect of early-2000s melancholic mall-pop. Coming in at number two was Tame Impala, an Australian master of psychedelic rock. And then three through five were composed of a legendary 1950s jazz triumvirate, including Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, and Dizzy Gillespie. All this to say, at the end of my Spotify Wrapped, I was informed I have the listening habits of an 86-year-old! Let me know in the comments if you enjoyed your Spotify Wrapped!
In todayâs âFirst Draft,â Democrats on the House Oversight Committee distribute harrowing new pictures of Jeffrey Epsteinâs infamous hideaway in the US Virgin Islands, scandal-plagued Graham Platner surges ahead in Maine, Donald Trump pardons Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, and the presidentâs tariffs do absolutely nothing to help the American economy out of the toilet.
DONâT GET STUCK WITH THE PAYWALL: Currently, anyone can read âFirst Draft,â but it will go behind the paywall starting Monday, Dec. 8. If youâre a free subscriber, consider upgrading to your subscription to unlock all âFirst Draftâ has to offer.
Shutter Island
Late yesterday, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee dropped a tranche of never-before-seen photographs of the Caribbean isle where disgraced financier, political power broker, and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein allegedly trafficked scores of young girls and women for approximately a decade.
Some of the pictures are rather unremarkable; they capture bedrooms with standard, albeit luxurious, tropical decor, high-end art, palm trees, and an occasional ocean vista.
Many others look like images straight out of a Hollywood horror flick, some cursed, monstrous lovechild of Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick.
Several photos, like the one above, feature a small room with little more than what appears to be a dentistâs chair encircled by about a dozen masks hung upon the walls. How were those masks utilized in the space? Thatâs chthonic nightmare material that Iâd rather not ponder this early in the morning.
Another cache of pictures hone in on seemingly a library or study, one with a quartet of armchairs and a large chalkboard upon which the words âdeception,â âpolitical,â âintellectual,â and âpower,â among others, are scrawled. Some phrases were redacted, ostensibly by Democratic lawmakers.
âThese new images are a disturbing look into the world of Jeffrey Epstein and his island. We are releasing these photos and videos to ensure public transparency in our investigation and to help piece together the full picture of Epsteinâs horrific crimes,â Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said in a statement.
Garcia, it must be said, has done an utterly masterful job over the course of his short tenure as Oversight ranking member.
Since assuming the role earlier this year, the California congressman has rapidly transformed Democrats from a reactive, mealy-mouthed minority of strongly-worded letters into an actually functioning oversight force. His leadership has been defined by a relentless push for transparency in the Epstein case, including securing subpoenas for the Department of Justice, financial institutions, and Epsteinâs estate. It was Garcia and his colleaguesâ hard, smart work, that resulted in the public getting access to not only these photos of âpedophile islandâ but also the so-called âBirthday Bookâ â the compendium of letters to Epstein that the Wall Street Journal reported, including a creepy note from Trump to his âpalâ Jeffrey in a sketch of a womanâs silhouette. (Trump sued Journal owner Rupert Murdoch over that story, claiming that âno authentic letter or drawing exists.â)
Is it not exhilarating to finally see the buds of a Democratic Party that actually moves the ball down the field? That is capable of pouncing upon the political openings MAGA Republicans present to them? That finally outright refuses to continue the longstanding bleeding heart liberal tradition of bringing a butter knife to a bazooka fight?
Perhaps it required staring down true depravity, true evil, for the Democratic Party to finally find its spine.
đď¸ What You Need to Know
Pardon palooza: Donald Trump said he will pardon Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, who was indicted on bribery and money laundering charges last year. In a post on Truth Social, Trump claimed Joe Biden âused the FBI and DOJ to âtake outâ a member of his own Partyâ who disagreed with his border policy.
Hegseth in hot water: An internal investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegsethâs leak of military strike plans over the messaging app Signal found that his use of his personal device to communicate government business put US personnel in danger and violated Pentagon policy.
War criminals of the Caribbean: Trump said he supported the decision to kill all survivors aboard a boat in the Caribbean and would âcertainlyâ release video of the infamous second strike, even as officials in his own administration tell Zeteo the reported âdouble-tapâ appears to be blatantly illegal.
Name game: Donald Trumpâs full name was added above the sign on the United States Institute of Peace building in Washington, DC â where Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are set to sign a peace agreement today. The move comes amid a legal battle over whether the administration is allowed to gut the institute in a decision led by DOGE.
Magnet magnate: Vulcan Elements â a rare earths startup backed by Donald Trump Jr.âs venture capital firm â is set to receive a $620 million loan from the Defense Department in a larger deal to increase the supply of magnets. The Pentagon deal is just the latest in a series of agreements secured by companies with ties to Trump Jr.
BS from CBS: Bari Weiss, the new conservative head of CBS News, is scheduled to moderate a town hall with Erika Kirk on Dec. 13, where they will discuss her late husband and far-right Trump ally Charlie Kirk.
đ§ Pop Quiz!
Which member of Congress served the longest, at a whopping 59 years?
Keep your eyes out for the answer below!
đ
What Scandals?
Remember Graham Platner?
The oyster farmer running for Senate in Maine made headlines back in October for resurfaced controversial comments about women and race he once made on Reddit, and his tattoo that eerily resembled a Nazi symbol.
While Platner apologized for the comments and covered up the said tattoo, you might be wondering how those scandals are actually weighing on his political future.
The answer? Theyâre not.
Zeteoâs Andrew Perez has all the details on how Platner has successfully weathered the storm to lead Governor Janet Mills in the Democratic primary by a whopping 20 points, and how voters in Maine are reacting to his campaign.
Read all about it here.
đ¨ Donât Miss It!
Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman joins Zeteo contributor John Harwood for a livestream TODAY at 2pm ET (11am PT / 7pm GMT). Theyâll unpack how Trump has hurt the economy, debunk Republican claims about government programs, and theyâll take your questions, too!
đ Anywhere But America
đľđ¸ Donât forget Gaza: An Israeli strike on a tent camp housing forcibly displaced Palestinians in al-Mawasi killed at least five people, including two children, and wounded dozens of others after a fire broke out. Israel claimed it was targeting a Hamas commander after five soldiers were injured earlier in the day in what it described as an ambush by militants. Just hours later, Trump said the so-called ceasefire is âgoing wellâ and âwe have peace in the Middle East.â
đžđŞđľđ Houthis release mariners: Yemenâs Houthi rebels released nine Filipino mariners they captured in the Red Sea in July. The Philippines said the mariners had been âheld hostage,â while the Houthis claimed they rescued the survivors after the attack. The mariners are now in the custody of Oman.
đŽđąđąđ§ Israel and Lebanon to hold peace talks: Israel and Lebanon will conduct their first direct peace talks in decades, officials announced on Wednesday. Israel is sending a diplomat as part of its delegation, while Lebanon will, for the first time, send a civilian envoy. Israel has repeatedly violated the yearlong ceasefire by striking Lebanon.
đŹđ§đ°đŞ Kenyan lawmakers accuse British troops of abuse: A new report by the Kenyan parliament accused the British Army Training Unit of human rights violations, environmental destruction, and sexual abuse. A UK Defence Ministry spokesperson said they âstand ready to investigateâ new allegations once full evidence is provided.
đ˛đż Mozambique violence intensifies: The UN expressed grave concern over the escalating violence in previously âsafe districtsâ of Mozambique that has displaced 100,000 people in just the last two weeks. The conflict in the country, which had previously been primarily limited to just two provinces, has displaced more than 1.3 million people since 2017.
đ Chart of the Day
ADP is out with its latest private payrolls data, and the results are grim.
Private companies in the US cut 32,000 workers in November â an utter shock to Wall Street, which expected 40,000 jobs to be added. And with Trumpâs tariff agenda, small businesses have been hit the hardest.
Ouch.
đ§ Trivia answer: John Dingell, Jr, a House Democrat from Michigan, who was succeeded by his wife, Debbie Dingell, after his death.
𤨠WTF?!
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell appears poised to announce his run for Minnesota governor, potentially challenging incumbent Tim Walz. His resume: denying election results, cozying up to the Orange Man, and selling lumpy pillows.
ICYMI From Zeteo
Zeteoâs Melanie Riehl, Akshay Gokul, and Minnah Arshad contributed to this newsletter.
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Peter - why are you celebrating Spotify when they are supported the lawless and cruel actions of ICE? You need to drop them.
Top song on Spotify this year was called BOYCOTT! It's got a great beat. Put it in your playlist, Peter! (Much better than "ICE ICE Baby")