It is March and the lovely #EnigMarch people have challenged puzzle designers to write a puzzle inspired by today's word: "band".
If you search the Epstein files for "band," you'll find messages from Doug Band. Those messages are disturbing, so let's stick with the abstract I lifted from Wikipedia:
Douglas Jay Band… is an American businessman and lawyer… was Deputy Assistant to President Bill Clinton in the White House and later counselor to President Bill Clinton. Band was the "key architect" of the Clinton post-presidency and he created the Clinton Global Initiative. …
In 2002, Band met Jeffrey Epstein as Clinton and Epstein went on a trip together. Band said he disliked Epstein and urged Clinton to cease his relationship with him, which Clinton refused to do. Band has been proven to have lied. He referred to convicted sex trafficker Maxwell as his "boo-boo." …
Silver lining, he signed his emails Doug Band, with first and last names the same length. Thus, I could make this word ladder: change DOUG into BAND, changing one letter at each step. (There's no secret message/single answer word to extract from this puzzle; just filling in rungs on a word ladder.)
| D O U G : First name |
| _ _ _ _ : 😒 |
| _ _ _ _ : 🍋-like |
| _ _ _ _ : _-chef, second-in-command |
| _ _ _ _ : _ and daughters |
| _ _ _ _ : Music with lyrics |
| _ _ _ _ : Doug Band lives in New York, a city near _ Island |
| _ _ _ _ : Director Fritz who made an early robot movie |
| _ _ _ _ : ♫ "This _ is Your _ " ♫ |
| B A N D : Last name |
Solution, rot13'd:
qbht / Svefg anzr qbhe / 😒 fbhe / yvxr 🍋 fbhf / _-purs, frpbaq-va-pbzznaq fbaf / _ naq qnhtugref fbat / Zhfvp jvgu ylevpf ybat / Qbht Onaq yvirf va Arj Lbex, n pvgl arne _ Vfynaq ynat / Qverpgbe Sevgm jub znqr na rneyl ebobg zbivr ynaq / ♫ "Guvf _ vf Lbhe _ … gb gur Arj Lbex vfynaq" ♫ onaq / Ynfg anzr
