The Missing Records From the Epstein Files, and a Gun Battle Off the Coast of Cuba

0:00Most careers don't follow the path we're told to expect. So how do the best leaders actually make decisions when the stakes are high and the answers aren't clear? Work Life from Ted is back with a new host, Molly Graham. She goes inside real careers, the trade-offs, hidden truths, and hard lessons that shaped how today's leaders work and lead. Start with her first episode, A Conversation with Adam Grant, available wherever you get your podcasts. From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Thursday, February 26th. Here's what we're covering.

0:38A new review by the Times of documents from the Epstein files shows that the Justice Department left out key materials related to a woman who said Epstein and President Trump sexually assaulted her when she was a minor. An index in the files revealed that the FBI had conducted four interviews in connection with her claims and wrote summaries about each one. But only one of those summaries, which describes her accusations against Epstein, was released. The other memos, more than 50 pages of material, are missing. The public files do contain one description of her account about Trump, in which federal officials wrote that she claimed Trump assaulted her in a violent and lurid encounter in the mid-1980s, when she was roughly 14 years old.

1:26The files don't include any assessment about the credibility of her accusation. The DOJ had previously said there were unfounded and false claims about Trump in the files, and a White House spokeswoman said this week that the president has been, quote, totally exonerated on anything relating to Epstein. In response to questions from the Times about why the files related to the woman were not released, the Justice Department has given various responses over the past few days. It first said that the only materials it withheld were either duplicates or privileged information. It now says it's reviewing the files and that it will publish any documents it should have made public.

2:07Under a law passed by Congress last year, the DOJ can only redact material from the Epstein files in limited scenarios, like if it could be used to identify victims or would jeopardize an ongoing investigation. The law specifically forbids federal officials from withholding materials to protect public figures, quote, on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm or political sensitivity. The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Representative Robert Garcia of California, said the Justice Department had not provided a proper explanation for why the materials related to Trump are missing.

2:47Democrats plan to open an investigation into the matter.

2:59Today, the U.S. and Iran will meet for a high-stakes round of nuclear negotiations, and the outcome could determine whether or not President Trump attacks the country. Trump has demanded Iran give up its nuclear ambitions entirely, and he's moved a massive array of firepower to the region to back that up. Iran has refused, but it's now coming to the table with a compromise. Iranian officials tell The Times the country plans to make an offer that would allow Trump to declare victory while still letting Iran maintain some level of nuclear enrichment. The country's leaders insist it's not trying to develop a nuclear weapon, but they want to be able to use nuclear material for medical purposes, like cancer treatment studies.

3:46Iran's also trying to sweeten the deal with a pledge to buy American goods, like airplanes, and an invitation for American companies to invest in Iran's oil and gas industries. Their hope is that the U.S. could also lift the economic sanctions that have pushed Iran's economy to near collapse. One expert on U.S.-Middle East relations told The Times that today will be the day for both sides to lay all their cards out on the table. And, quote, if Iran doesn't show enough willingness to compromise and the U.S. doesn't show willingness to provide enough sanctions relief, things are going to explode.

4:30Now, two other quick updates on the Trump administration. Do you believe that there's no evidence that the flu vaccine has efficacy in reducing serious injury or hospitalization? I.

4:43This is an easy one, doctor. This is an easy one. On Capitol Hill yesterday, the Senate Health Committee held a confirmation hearing for Casey Means, President Trump's nominee for U.S. Surgeon General. Means, an author and wellness influencer, has been a key figure in Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Make America Healthy Again movement. over the course of the hearing, Means largely deflected specific questions about hot-button ma-ha issues like pesticides, birth control, and vaccines. Instead, she focused on how, in her view, Americans are suffering from an epidemic of chronic diseases linked to ultra-processed foods, chemicals, stress, and lack of exercise.

5:28I think what's really striking is that part of why RFK said that he wanted her to be Surgeon general is because she has rejected the traditional medical system. Dani Bloom is a health reporter at the Times. She says that Means is a highly unconventional pick for the role as the nation's doctor, as the surgeon general is called. That's in large part because while she graduated from medical school, she doesn't have an active medical license. A lot of her supporters say that that is precisely the kind of person we need in charge, someone who has been inside the medical system and so in theory knows a bit about how to dismantle it.

6:04But a lot of critics also think that that level of distrust and that sort of condemnation of the medical system is exactly why she shouldn't have this role. The Republican-controlled health committee is expected to greenlight Means' nomination, sending it to the full Senate for a final confirmation vote. Also, the Times has learned that Kash Patel, the director of the FBI, has fired about 10 employees who worked on the investigation into President Trump's handling of classified documents. Back in 2022, the FBI searched Mar-a-Lago as part of an inquiry into whether Trump broke the law by keeping sensitive national security records after his first term ended, and whether he obstructed the government's repeated efforts to get them back.

6:51Reuters revealed this week that Patel's own phone records were subpoenaed as part of that investigation. He was a close Trump advisor at the time. Now, in his position as head of the FBI, Patel has carried out a rolling barrage of retribution against people who investigated Trump. In some cases, agents who've been fired and their lawyers say that Patel has violated safeguards that were supposed to protect FBI employees from politically motivated dismissals.

7:26Suffice it to say, it is highly unusual to see shootouts in open sea like that. It's not something that happens every day. It's something, frankly, that hasn't happened with Cuba in a very long time. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S. is trying to gather more information about what Cuba is calling a deadly gunfight just off the coast of the island. The majority of the facts being publicly reported are those provided by the Cubans. We will verify that independently. According to Cuban state media, a speedboat registered in Florida neared Cuba yesterday, and the people on board fired at Cuban border guards.

8:03The guards shot back. Four people on the speedboat were killed and six were wounded. Cuban authorities say the people on the boat were armed Cuban nationals living in the U.S. They had bulletproof jackets and Molotov cocktails. The Cuban government claims they were attempting, quote, an infiltration with terrorist ends. When asked whether it was a U.S. government operation or whether any American personnel were involved, Rubio said no. Carlos Jimenez, a House Republican from Florida, called it a massacre. Tensions between the U.S. and Cuba have been escalating recently, as the Trump administration has taken steps to squeeze the communist regime.

8:45The U.S. has cut off foreign oil shipments and cut off sources of income that had kept Cuba's economy afloat. Conditions are now deteriorating, with rampant inflation, gas shortages, lengthy blackouts, and soaring food prices. all of which is threatening to destabilize the government there.

9:12And finally, for a couple years there, the real estate market in the U.S. was solidly a seller's market, almost absurdly so. Buyers weren't just making offers. They were having to desperately woo the sellers. They'd write long love notes to the house. They offered way above asking price. They waived inspections. One realtor said she even saw a buyer offer the seller a puppy. But things are swinging back. According to one estimate, for every three people trying to sell a house, there's now only two people looking to buy. So buyers are getting to be pickier. Houses are sitting for longer. Sellers are the ones feeling desperate, wondering if new paint, fresh photos, staged furniture will finally get them an offer.

10:01In terms of why it shifted, basically, some sellers who didn't want to move because they had such low interest rates have now finally been forced to put their homes on the market due to big life events. It's what realtors call one of the four D's. Diamonds, as in a wedding, diapers, divorce, and death. Notably, while the shift has helped bring housing prices down a little, it's not enough for many Americans. According to Zillow, buyers now need almost twice the yearly income than they did before the pandemic to afford a typical home. Essentially, it is a buyer's market, but only if you have the resources to buy.

10:42Those are the headlines today on The Daily. an inside look at the operation to take down Mexico's most notorious drug lord. You can listen to that in the New York Times app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow with the latest and the Friday News Quiz.

11:02This podcast is supported by Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Here's a story that's not getting nearly enough attention. Defunding Planned Parenthood has already caused chaos and harm, and access to essential reproductive care is plummeting. Right now, the Trump administration's backers in Congress want to permanently defund Planned Parenthood, forcing even more health centers to close and millions at risk of losing access to care. It takes less than a minute to help. Go to plannedparenthood.org slash defend and make a gift of any size.