The Nightcap: 'This might be a bridge too far.' Trump struggles to shift the focus as Epstein fallout engulfs administration, GOP

The 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle

MS NOW, Stephanie Ruhle

Politics, Versant, Ms Now, Versant Media, Washington, News, President, Policy, Government, Senate, Congress, Msnbc

4.5 • 3.6K Ratings

🗓️ 26 July 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This Nightcap roundtable discusses Trump’s struggle to shift focus away from Jeffrey Epstein. Then, Trump continues to pressure Powell to lower interest rates following yesterday's tense exchange at the Fed HQ. Plus, comedians and show creators push back against the administration as the FCC approves Skydance’s merger with Paramount. Joel Payne, Matt K. Lewis, Sami Sage, and Pablo Torre join The 11th Hour this Friday.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Good evening once again. I am Stephanie Ruhl and welcome to the nightcap. It is day
0:09.7	187 of the Sank of Trump administration and this very week marked six months since the president
0:16.0	took office. But instead of spending it celebrating his accomplishments or Christmas in July,
0:29.3	he was on defense throwing anything at the wall to try to distract from the growing fallout around his connections to Jeffrey Epstein. From accusing former President Obama of treason to releasing FBI records on Martin Luther King Jr., not Epstein, to even calling on the Washington commanders
0:39.2	to change their name back to the Redskins or he would stop their deal for a new stadium.
0:44.3	But here's the bad news for him.
0:45.9	None of it's working.
0:47.1	In fact, the backlash over the Epstein files even drove the Speaker of the House to send
0:52.0	representatives home early to avoid this issue.
0:55.3	Well, the story is not sitting well among Trump's base.
0:58.5	And as more information keeps coming out, at least for now, it is not going away any time soon.
1:04.6	With that, let's bring in our nightcap and you're in luck.
1:07.4	It's an awesome one.
1:08.6	Democratic strategist Joel Payne is here.
1:10.6	He was a senior aide for Hillary for America and press secretary for former senator Harry Reid.
1:15.6	Matt K. Lewis is here contributing columnist for the LA Times and author of filthy rich politicians,
1:21.0	The Swamp Creatures, Latte liberals, and ruling class elites cashing in on America.
1:26.4	Sammy Sage joins us co-founder of Bech's and author of
1:29.0	Democracy in Retrograde and Pablo Torre, ESPN analyst and host of the Metal Arc Media,
1:34.3	Pablo Torre finds out award-winning podcast. Guys, you know what we're starting with tonight.
1:40.2	Obviously, Epstein. The president's former personal attorney, Todd Blanche, he is now number two at the
1:47.2	Justice Department, headed on down to Florida, met with Galane Maxwell for the second time today.
	...

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