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Interview with Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA): Ghislaine Maxwell to Appear for Deposition Before House Oversight Committee; Ransom Note for Nancy Guthrie Demands $6 Million by 5:00 p.m. Today; Seattle's Defense Pats in 29-13 Super Bowl Win. Aired 8:00-8:30a ET

Aired February 09, 2026 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:00]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: It was something, it was something, I really did, the polar bear got me as well. It's great to see you Peter --

PETER SHANKMAN, BRANDING AND SOCIAL MEDIA CONSULTANT: Always a pleasure.

BOLDUAN: -- as always, thanks for coming in, I really appreciate it.

A new hour of CNN NEWS CENTRAL starts right now.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Today convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell is on Capitol Hill testifying behind closed doors. She may reveal nothing, but lawmakers will see something in the case they've never seen before today, the unredacted version of the Epstein files.

Plus, Nancy Guthrie's family posting a new emotional video over the weekend as another ransom note surfaces. There is a deadline of 5 p.m. today.

And Bad Bunny leans into love and Latin America at the Super Bowl. He brought Puerto Rico to the Bay Area and around the world. Turns out the president, who complained about the NFL's choice for halftime, was watching, even though he did have an alternative.

I'm Sara Sidner with John Berman and Kate Bolduan. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: So this morning we are standing by for convicted Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell to appear before the House Oversight Committee. She will appear virtually. She's serving a 20-year sentence in federal prison for her role in sex trafficking minors -- conspiring to sex traffic minors.

Now I keep saying appear rather than speak or testify because it does not seem like she will actually say anything. Maxwell is expected to assert her Fifth Amendment rights to not answer questions. This deposition comes on the same day that lawmakers will get their first look, the opportunity to go look at the unredacted Epstein files.

They might check to see what they say about Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who appears repeatedly in the documents. Congressman Thomas Massey, a Republican, one of the co-authors of the law that compelled the release of the file, says Lutnick should resign.

With us now is Congressman Stephen Lynch, a Democrat from Massachusetts. Congressman, good morning. I know it was a long night for you, just as it was for me. I want to talk about this testimony from Ghislaine Maxwell today. She's going to appear, but by all accounts, her lawyers say she is going to assert her Fifth Amendment rights. So what's the point?

REP. STEPHEN LYNCH (D-MA), SENIOR MEMBER, OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM COMMITTEE: Well, we want to go through the process and give her the opportunity to cooperate. As you mentioned, John, she did indicate through her attorneys that she'll exercise her Fifth Amendment rights and will not testify. But we said that we would try every method to try to get to the bottom of all this.

And certainly she is the one person who all of this was at Epstein's side. And she could unlock all of this by cooperation, but she has chosen not to do so.

BERMAN: What does it tell you that she did sit down with the Deputy Attorney General, Todd Blanche, for conversations? Spoke to him but is unwilling to speak to you all.

LYNCH: Honestly, I believe all of that was witness tampering on the part of the president and his attorney, Todd Blanche. They spoke and immediately she was taken out of that prison and relocated in a detention center with much more privileges and much more freedom than she had in the first prison she was at. And then thereafter and continuously, she has refused to cooperate.

So what does that tell you?

BERMAN: If she in this imaginary world where she would answer questions before your committee today, what would be the first thing you would ask her?

LYNCH: Well, she knows all the people who are involved in this network. There were approximately a thousand victims over the length of this beginning, I believe, in 2005 or 2008 in Florida. So and that those victims weren't victimized just by Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein.

There are a lot of people involved here, some very powerful people. And that would be my question would be name those names. Let us hold everyone accountable who abused these young girls.

Give them justice.

BERMAN: You do have a chance now to look at the unredacted Epstein files. What is it that you will be looking for when you start to pour over these documents?

LYNCH: Well, we've got three million documents, about half of what the government has said they have. And we have staff right now going through and trying to prioritize.

[08:05:00]

You can imagine three million documents trying to prioritize those documents that will be most helpful to the committee in the first pass. So obviously, they'll be looking at documentation, not only photographs and correspondence, but also financial records. Because there is a there is a direct connection to a number of financial firms that it would seem would have had knowledge of some of the trafficking that was going on, especially internationally, when there were young girls from Eastern Europe being brought to the United States and so forth.

So there's a lot to look at, as you might imagine.

BERMAN: You were one of the Democrats on the Oversight Committee to vote to hold former President Bill Clinton in contempt for not testifying before the committee. Since then, he has agreed, although he's going back and forth with James Comer, the chair over how that will happen exactly. But why did you vote to hold him in contempt at the point when he wasn't willing to testify?

LYNCH: Sure. And this is a distinction between Hillary and Bill. In the documents that we received, several hundred thousand documents, there was zero evidence that there was any connection with Hillary Clinton.

However, there were numerous documents, some photos and other flight records, things like that, that indicated that that Bill Clinton, while none of it indicated there was any wrongdoing on his part, it did indicate that he may have had an opportunity to observe both Ghislaine Maxwell. He was on several flights with her as well as Jeffrey Epstein. So the committee felt that that because he had the opportunity to observe all of this stuff going on, that he might have information that was helpful to the committee.

And that's why we asked him to come in and answer some questions about those instances where we knew we had contact with Ms. Maxwell and also with Epstein.

BERMAN: Do you think the method right now with which he is set to testify, I believe video -- a video deposition behind closed doors? That's what Chairman Comer wants. Is that the right way to do it?

Because President Clinton is calling for a public hearing.

LYNCH: Well, however, we get the information that will work for us. Remember, we have spoken to the victims as well, large group of them, the survivors, excuse me, and they have not indicated that President Clinton was involved in any of, you know, any abusive conduct, anything like that. However, as I said before, he was in a position to see how this whole network was operating.

He was on some flight with Epstein and with Ghislaine Maxwell. So we think that's useful information. He might have seen others.

So the committee is leaving no stone unturned in terms of trying to get as much information as we possibly can. BERMAN: Congressman Stephen Lynch from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Appreciate your time this morning. Thank you -- Kate.

BOLDUAN: The search for Nancy Guthrie now entering a second week. Her children also now saying they will pay the ransom they believe her abductors are demanding. There is also a deadline out there -- lingering out there today.

And the Seattle Seahawks win their first ever Lombardi trophy. The key moments from Super Bowl LX that still must -- demand to be discussed today.

And a customer grabbed a little bit more or a lot more than her order when she went to pick up her food. And why police now trying to track her down?

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: So this morning marks the ninth day since Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her home in Tucson, Arizona. As the desperate search for the mother of NBC's Today show anchor Savannah Guthrie now enters its second week, CNN affiliate KGUN says that it received one of the purported ransom notes sent to a variety of media organizations and are reporting that the possible abductors are demanding $6 million in Bitcoin by 5 p.m. today for her safe return. On Saturday, Savannah Guthrie and her siblings posted another emotional plea, saying that they are willing to pay for their mother's return.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAVANNAH GUTHRIE, NBC TODAY SHOW ANCHOR: We received your message and we understand. We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace.

This is very valuable to us and we will pay.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: The investigation very much still an active one. CNN's Ivan Rodriguez is live in Tucson for us. What's the very latest that you're hearing about that investigation?

IVAN RODRIGUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kate, we can only imagine the amount of stress that the Guthrie family is feeling today with that 5 p.m. looming deadline. And in that video that Savannah Guthrie and her siblings posted over the weekend, you can see the exhaustion and the pain that they're feeling.

[08:15:00]

This morning, there is a sheriff deputy parked outside Nancy Guthrie's home at the request of the family. And they'll continue to be out here guarding the home. We did see yesterday afternoon investigators here on the property

inspecting a septic tank near Nancy Guthrie's home. They were seen on video using a long stick poking inside of the tank and also using a flashlight to get a better look inside of that tank.

We don't have any details exactly as to what they were looking for. But the Pima County Sheriff's Department did say that they were conducting multiple investigations and going back and following up on certain locations. And that's certainly what we've seen over the last several days.

Because on Saturday night, we also saw three unmarked vehicles at Annie Guthrie's home. And we saw them there for several hours that night. And even though the lights were dim inside of Annie's home and those blinds were drawn, we could see bright flashes coming through the windows, which appear to indicate that officials were taking photographs inside of the home.

When they did leave around 10:30 p.m. local time, they left with a bag that was placed into the rear seat of one of their vehicles. A sheriff deputy was also seen wearing blue latex gloves. So, again, we have seen now multiple times investigators going back to follow up on certain locations.

And, Kate, I also want to mention a little bit about the health of Nancy Guthrie. Because last week, the Pima County Sheriff said quote, "She needs to take daily medication, or it could be fatal if she goes without it." We also know that authorities have been contacting local pharmacies, also local hospitals, to see if anyone has been trying to get any sort of medication for her.

And at this point, authorities have no further leads or suspects. And we don't expect at this hour for there to be any sort of new press conferences. Again, looking forward to that 5 p.m. deadline that investigators had previously reported.

Now, we have heard from former law enforcement officials with varying experience. And most of them have the consensus that there appears to not be a direct communication at this point between the Guthrie family and the abductor or, you know, alleged abductors because of the social media posts that we've been seeing. But it's also important to mention, especially today, that if there happens to be that direct communication, that the public really shouldn't expect those real-time updates because the FBI is going to want to protect that process.

BOLDUAN: Ivan Rodriguez, thank you so much.

(BAD BUNNY PERFORMING AT THE SUPER BOWL)

SIDNER: We're all singing it. That's the truth. Coming up, Bad Bunny took us all to Puerto Rico during the Super Bowl halftime show.

It was all about love and Latin culture. President Trump hated it. His comments next.

And the latest we're learning this morning on Olympic legend Lindsey Vonn after her devastating crash that left her hospitalized. Those stories and more ahead.

[08:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: This morning, the Seattle Seahawks waking up as Super Bowl champions, their second title in the franchise 50-year history.

It was all about defense and a lot about the kicker. But it was the Benito Bull that stole the show because the game was -- and I'm just going to say it out loud, boring. Except, of course, if you are a Seahawks fan, player or coach. I said what I said.

CNN's Andy Scholes is live in San Francisco. I know you're laughing because I'm right. Take it away, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I mean, Sara, I said, you know, I graded the Super Bowl LX a D. I said the D was for defense because, I mean, you got to give it to the Seattle Seahawks defense. I mean, they were incredible in this game.

They were the story of Super Bowl LX. But really, the story of this entire season ends up being quarterback Sam Darnold. I mean, he completed one of the greatest comebacks in NFL history, going from being considered a bust to now leading a team to a Super Bowl championship.

Something we really never seen a quarterback do ever. But that Seahawks defense dominated Super Bowl LX. They pitched a shutout through three quarters.

I mean, they sacked Drake Maye six times. And for a while, you mentioned it, Sara. It looked like Seahawks kicker Jason Myers was going to be the only person putting up points. He made a Super Bowl record five field goals in the game.

We had a huge play into the end of the third quarter. Derick Hall sacked Maye, forced a fumble. The Seahawks recovered.

We finally got a touchdown in Super Bowl LX in the fourth quarter. Darnold to AJ Barner for the score. Made it 19-0. Might as well have been 100-0 at that point with the way the Seahawks defense was playing. Uchenna Nwosu putting an exclamation point on that one in the fourth quarter with the interception return for 44 yards for the score.

Seattle ended up winning 29-13. Really wasn't even that close. Running back Kenneth Walker, the game's MVP after rushing for 135 yards.

And we were live on the field right after the game, and we got to catch up with a lot of the Seahawks players as the celebration was on for the team.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCHOLES: One touchdown reception in the game. You got it right here in the corner of this end zone. I mean, how did that feel?

AJ BARNER, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS TIGHT END: When you prepare and your opportunity comes, I think you just make the play, and that's what I did.

JARRAN REED, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS DEFENSIVE TACKLE: It's been a long road for me, man, you know, going from Hargrave, Military Academy, to East Mississippi and Alabama, and 10 years in the league. Man, look, it's something we dreamed about, man.

Look, my family right here, my mom, my brother, yes. Right here, all right, come on.

SCHOLES: How proud are you of dad? How proud?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE CHILD: Very proud. Yes.

CONNOR O'TOOLE, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS LINEBACKER: Well, some victory cigar.

SCHOLES: Yes, do you want to take a photo?

[08:25:00]

I don't know if you're allowed to smoke on the field, but you are if you win the Super Bowl.

O'TOOLE: Man, it feels great. No better feeling than that.

SCHOLES: We've got some scenes for what's going on right now in Seattle. How big do you think the party's going to be there?

GEORGE HOLANI, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS RUNNING BACK: Oh, yes. Shout out to all. You know, we're bringing Lombardi back. It's going to be exciting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCHOLES (on camera): Yes, me and Alex Michelson having a blast there on the field, Sara, celebrating with the Seahawks. They were great with us. And you know what?

The team, it's for sale. And, Sara, if you could find $9 billion to $11 billion or at least pool it together, maybe get Berman and Kate to get in on it. Maybe we can own the Seahawks.

SIDNER: No. No, thank you.

SCHOLES: Not very often that the Super Bowl champ is up for sale after winning.

SIDNER: No. You know, they beat my Rams. I don't want them.

I wouldn't pay a dollar. Not even 50 cents. OK?

Just I want to make that very clear. I want to make that very clear. Andy Scholes, thank you so much. I know you had a good time out there. You looked like you were having a lot of fun. Appreciate it -- John.

BERMAN: All right, his son killed four people in a school shooting this morning. The father is on trial for murder.

And AI is coming for your job, or is it? One industry is proving that robots can't do it all just yet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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