Jen Psaki

Nine people with insight into the FBI's investigation of Epstein know that those materials relating to Trump exist and that they have been omitted from the DOJ's production of documents as required by law.

This report also sheds light on how people inside the administration reacted when they realized the potential implications for the president.

Trump's prominence in the files, quote, surprised White House staff members who told us they were unprepared for the release, end quote.

As one staffer told The Atlantic, quote, that freaked people out.

That freaked out people.

Nobody really knew what was coming.

The report also details how the administration appears to have targeted Republican Congressman Thomas Massey for his campaign to get the files released.

Quote, some of Massey's key staff members were suddenly offered more prestigious jobs in the Trump administration or more lucrative jobs in the private sector.

The idea being that if Massey no longer had a full staff, he couldn't pursue ambitious legislation.

But despite his relentless efforts to undermine this investigation, Trump's interest in keeping the files hidden remains a mystery, even to his closest allies.

The Atlantic reports that Trump, who's not exactly known for his discretion, does not detail even privately what precisely in the files might be so embarrassing to him and those close to him, four administration officials told The Atlantic.

What the president has clearly said, often in a barking tone, is that he wants his aides and allies to make the whole thing go away.

But this issue is not going away.

If anything, the hunt for answers about Jeffrey Epstein is just beginning.

And neither the president nor his allies nor his cabinet secretary should assume that they will not end up in the hot seat.

Starting us off tonight, Sarah Fitzpatrick.

She's a staff writer for The Atlantic behind the remarkable reporting that broke late today.

Sarah, welcome to the show.

Nice to see you again.

I want to start with a piece of reporting that really jumped out at me.