Daily News — February 4, 2026

Trump's name appears 6,000 times in the Epstein files. His DOJ says: no prosecutions. Meanwhile, the Minneapolis "drawdown" leaves 2,000 agents—3.5 times the city's police force.

While others stenograph, grift, or chase the next distraction
this is the news that matters and how it’s connected.

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“Which night would have the wildest party?”

That’s Elon Musk—the man running DOGE—in a 2012 email coordinating a trip to Jeffrey Epstein’s island with his then-wife.¹ After the files dropped Friday, Musk posted on X that he “REFUSED” the invitation. The email says otherwise. The man running a department that claims to root out government waste can’t keep his own story straight about coordinating parties with a child sex trafficker.

We covered DOJ’s attempt to bury these files in January. Congress forced the release. Now we know why they fought so hard.

Trump’s name appears more than 6,000 times in the documents.² His response Tuesday from the White House: “Nothing came out about me.” In one email, Epstein bragged to Ghislaine Maxwell that Trump was “the dog that hasn’t barked”—while noting that a victim *”spent hours at my house with him.”*² The trafficker telling his accomplice that Trump has been protected. That’s the most important sentence in these files. And Trump’s DOJ just made sure he stays protected—no prosecutions, case closed.

It’s not just Trump. His Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick got boat coordinates to Epstein’s private island.¹ Steve Bannon bragged to the child sex trafficker about pulling Trump’s strings—“Dude: I just got him to pull the trigger on $400 billion in tariffs on china”—and nearly two hours of video show Bannon discussing Epstein’s sex offender classification.¹ Bret Ratner, director of Amazon’s $75 million Melania film, was photographed embracing young women on a couch with Epstein—released the day after his red carpet premiere.¹

Trump’s DOJ reviewed everything and declared: no new prosecutions.² Case closed. But the same DOJ that couldn’t find grounds to charge anyone managed to publish uncensored nude photos of victims—including a minor—along with their names, Social Security numbers, and bank account information.³ They redacted “Joseph” from a nativity scene caption. They blacked out a dog’s name. Victims’ nude photos? Those stayed up on the DOJ website.³ They found time to protect a dog’s privacy but not a child’s.

“The failure here is not merely technical,” victims’ attorney Brittany Henderson said. ”It is a failure to safeguard human beings who were promised protection by our government.”³

Protect the powerful. Expose the victims. That’s the Epstein investigation under Trump.

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The Occupation Continues

Trump told NBC he’s learned that “maybe we could use a little bit of a softer touch” in Minneapolis.⁴ So 700 agents are being withdrawn. More than two thousand remain—3.5 times the entire Minneapolis police force.⁵

We covered ICE’s retreat to Biden-era policy and Senate Democrats blocking DHS funding last week. This is the next chapter. And the framing tells you everything.

Trump called the two Americans his agents killed—Renee Good and Alex Pretti—”not an angel.”⁴ Both of them. The president smearing dead citizens his government executed. When your agents kill Americans, the first move is to destroy their reputations. That’s not accountability. That’s coverup.

Homan says the drawdown is contingent on communities ending ”illegal and threatening activities against ICE”⁵—meaning the occupation continues until people stop protesting it. The quiet part? Homan told reporters the president ”fully intends to achieve mass deportations.”⁵ Softer touch. Mass deportations. Same breath. They changed the messaging, not the mission.

Meanwhile, the machine is grinding up its own. DOJ attorney Julie Le was removed after a courtroom outburst: “The system sucks. This job sucks. And I am trying every breath that I have so that I can get you what you need.” She said she hoped to be held in contempt ”so that I can have a full 24 hours of sleep.”⁴ When the regime’s own lawyers are begging for jail to get some rest, the machine is breaking.

State Senator Scott Dibble put it plainly: ”Now we only have 2,300 aggressive, brutal, cosplaying soldiers bursting into people’s homes, brutalizing people on the streets, killing citizens, creating mayhem and chaos.”⁵

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Meanwhile

Democrats score a redistricting win. The Supreme Court allowed California to use its new Democratic-drawn congressional map for the 2026 midterms—potentially netting up to five House seats.⁶ The map was a direct response to Trump’s Texas redistricting gambit last summer. Governor Newsom: ”He started this redistricting war. He lost, and he’ll lose again in November.”⁶ The redistricting war is now a wash—which means the midterms hinge on actual voter sentiment, not rigged maps.

Iran talks set for Friday. The US and Iran agreed to meet in Oman, with Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff negotiating for the US.⁷ They’re still at odds on scope—Iran wants nuclear-only; the US insists on missiles, proxies, and human rights.⁷ The backdrop: the US shot down an Iranian drone approaching the USS Abraham Lincoln Tuesday, and Iran’s IRGC threatened to seize a US-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.⁷ Diplomacy at gunpoint.

Polling. On January 20, Trump’s approval sat at 42.4%, disapproval at 55.6%, net approval -13.2—matching the shutdown peak. Today: approval 42.6% (+0.2), disapproval 54.6% (-1.0), net approval -12.0⁸. That’s a 1.2-point improvement in net approval over 15 days—a modest recovery, but he’s still deeply underwater. More than half the country disapproves, and these numbers don’t yet fully reflect the Epstein revelations or the ongoing Minneapolis occupation.

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The Call

Every story in today’s news serves the same project. We track them using the fascism syndrome—ten indicators that a democracy is sliding into fascism—so you don’t lose the thread in the daily chaos:

• War on reality: Trump’s name appears 6,000 times in the Epstein files. His response: “Nothing came out about me.” A 700-agent drawdown from a 2,700-agent occupation is sold as a “softer touch.”

• Capture of the state and elimination of accountability: Trump’s DOJ reviewed the Epstein files and found zero grounds for prosecution—then published victims’ nude photos while redacting a dog’s name. The DOJ lawyer who showed humanity was removed from her assignment.

• Erosion of due process: Victims promised protection had their identities and nude photos exposed. A community is told the occupation ends only when they stop protesting.

• Aggression as virtue: Trump smears dead Americans as “not an angel.” Homan promises mass deportations in the same sentence as “softer touch.” Iran talks backed by drone shootdowns and tanker confrontations.

Shield the powerful. Expose the vulnerable. Smear the dead. Punish dissent. That’s not dysfunction. That’s the project. That’s fascism.

But naming the disease is only half the job.

We built this publication to equip you with the tools to fight back—the frameworks, the messaging, the strategies that actually work. See the links below. But we can only keep doing this with your help. If this matters to you, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. You keep the fight alive.

• Fighting Fascism: How We Push Back and Win — The strategic playbook for reclaiming power

• The Trump Regime Messaging Guide — How to talk to people who’ve been captured by the machine

• The Freedom Illusion — How we got here, and the counter-ideology that gets us out

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Article Sources:

1. Zachary B. Wolf, Michael Williams, and Austin Culpepper, “There are many famous names in the Epstein files“, CNN, February 3, 2026.

Comprehensive analysis of the names revealed in the latest Epstein file release, documenting Elon Musk’s 2012 email asking which night would yield the “wildest party” on Epstein’s island, Howard Lutnick receiving boat coordinates to the private island, Steve Bannon’s deep relationship with Epstein including bragging about pulling Trump’s strings on tariff policy, and Bret Ratner photographed with Epstein embracing young women. Provides the direct evidence connecting multiple members of Trump’s current inner circle to the convicted sex trafficker—supporting the article’s argument that the administration’s “move on” posture is not closure but coverup.

2. Anthony Zurcher, “Trump says America should move on from Epstein - it may not be that easy“, BBC, February 4, 2026.

Documents Trump’s White House statement that “nothing came out about me” despite his name appearing more than 6,000 times in the files, the Epstein-to-Maxwell email calling Trump “the dog that hasn’t barked” while a victim “spent hours at my house with him,” and DOJ Deputy AG Todd Blanche’s declaration that no new prosecutions will result from the review. Also covers the temporary disappearance of FBI tips from the DOJ website, Schumer’s demands about withheld documents, and victim Lisa Phillips’s accusation that DOJ is “playing games.” Establishes the full arc from exposure to coverup to victim betrayal.

3. Philip Marcelo, “Epstein files rife with uncensored nudes and victims’ names, despite redaction efforts“, AP, February 4, 2026.

Investigation into DOJ’s catastrophic failure to protect Epstein victims during the file release—publishing uncensored nude photos including of a minor, victims’ names, Social Security numbers, and bank account information, while simultaneously redacting “Joseph” from a nativity scene caption and a dog’s name from an email. Documents victims’ attorney Brittany Henderson calling it “a failure to safeguard human beings who were promised protection by our government” and victim Annie Farmer describing the process as “beyond careless.” Supports the article’s central contrast: the DOJ that found no grounds to prosecute anyone managed to revictimize the people it was supposed to protect.

4. Lisa Lambert, “Trump touts ‘softer touch’ on immigration as federal force is reduced in Minneapolis“, BBC, February 4, 2026.

Covers Trump’s NBC interview where he described learning to use a “softer touch” while calling the two Americans killed by his agents “not an angel,” DOJ lawyer Julie Le’s courtroom breakdown where she begged to be held in contempt for sleep, the WSJ report on cracks in the Trump-Miller relationship, and Governor Walz calling for state-led investigations into the killings. Provides the devastating human detail of a regime lawyer publicly cracking under the weight of the machine she serves.

5. Myah Ward, “Trump administration is pulling 700 agents from Minnesota. Democrats say not good enough.“, Politico, February 4, 2026.

The most comprehensive account of the drawdown’s political dynamics, featuring State Senator Scott Dibble’s characterization of 2,300 remaining agents as “aggressive, brutal, cosplaying soldiers,” State Rep. Aisha Gomez’s math that the remaining force is 3.5 times the Minneapolis police department, Homan’s conditional language tying the drawdown to communities ending protest, and his statement that the president “fully intends to achieve mass deportations.” Also documents community impact: children kept home from school, businesses suffering, and an anonymous DHS official describing Minneapolis as “a battle zone.”

6. Adam Edelman, “Supreme Court allows California to use new congressional map, giving Democrats a boost“, NBC News, February 4, 2026.

Reports the Supreme Court’s one-sentence, no-dissent order allowing California’s Democratic-drawn congressional map—passed by voters via Proposition 50—for the 2026 midterms, potentially netting Democrats up to five House seats. The map was California’s direct response to Trump’s Texas redistricting gambit. Documents Newsom’s declaration that Trump “started this redistricting war” and “lost.” Shows Democrats using the same aggressive tactics Republicans deployed, effectively neutralizing the GOP’s map advantage heading into the midterms.

7. Simon Lewis, “US and Iran agree to Friday talks in Oman but still at odds over agenda“, Reuters, February 4, 2026.

Reports the agreement for US-Iran talks in Oman on Friday, with Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff representing the US, still at fundamental odds over scope—Iran insisting on nuclear-only while the US demands discussion of missiles, proxies, and human rights. Documents escalating military tensions including the US shooting down an Iranian drone near the USS Abraham Lincoln and Iran’s IRGC threatening to seize a US-flagged tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. Provides context for the article’s framing of Trump’s foreign policy as diplomacy conducted under threat of force.

8. RealClearPolitics, “Trump Job Approval“, RealClearPolitics, February 4, 2026.

Aggregated polling average tracking Trump’s job approval rating. Shows approval at 42.6%, disapproval at 54.6%, and net approval at -12.0 as of February 4—a modest 1.2-point improvement in net approval from the -13.2 recorded on January 20 during the shutdown peak. More than half the country continues to disapprove of Trump’s performance, and these numbers predate full public absorption of the Epstein file revelations and the ongoing Minneapolis occupation.