Donald Trump’s attempts to move on from the Jeffrey Epstein case continue to sputter.
The US leader is not only facing backlash from his own voters over the complete U-turn on his administration’s promises to release more information publicly, but also from the US House of Representatives.
The paedophile financier was found dead in his Manhattan cell in August 2019, shortly after he was arrested on sex trafficking charges.
Rumours have long circulated over Epstein’s death, who he may have supplied underage girls to, and who visited his private island.
Some of those rumours quickly spiralled into conspiracy theories, which Mr Trump fanned the flames of during his campaign for a second term.
His Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement accused the Biden administration of suppressing the extent of Epstein’s paedophilia, predatory behaviour and his so-called “client list” – thought to contain names of the rich and famous who conspired with him in a child sex trafficking operation.
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Trump: Epstein case is ‘a boring story’
Here’s what you need to know about every aspect of the Trump-Epstein saga; from their past relations to the president’s dramatic shift on the case against him.
What was Trump and Epstein’s relationship?
Mr Trump was pictured with Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell on several occasions in the 1990s and early 2000s and they were thought to have been friends. But Mr Trump has played down his relationship with Epstein in recent years, suggesting they simply moved in the same circles in Florida and New York.
In 2019, after Epstein was arrested for a second time, Mr Trump told reporters he “knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him”, but added: “I had a falling out with him. I haven’t spoken to him in 15 years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you.”
Asked why the pair fell out, Mr Trump said: “The reason doesn’t make any difference, frankly,” and added that he had “no idea” Epstein had molested women.
His comments about their relationship were in contrast to a 2002 interview with New York magazine, when Mr Trump was quoted saying: “I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy.
“He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it – Jeffrey enjoys his social life.”
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Trump says he would declassify Epstein files if elected
In June 2024, Mr Trump was asked during a Fox interview whether he would declassify the files if elected that November.
He replied: “Yeah, yeah, I would. I guess I would. I think that less so, because you don’t know – You don’t want to affect people’s lives if there’s phony stuff in there, because there’s a lot of phony stuff in that whole world.”
Asked again during a podcast with Lex Fridman in September 2024, Trump said he would “have no problem with it.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks at news conference, with Kash Patel behind her (left). Pic: AP
Conspiracies on the right were further stoked after Mr Trump was elected, when his Attorney General Pam Bondi told Fox News that the alleged Epstein client list was “sitting on my desk right now to review” in February.
She then released what she called the “first phase” of files relating to Epstein, which mainly contained flight logs that had already been leaked to the public but had not been officially released by the government.
The justice department said it had around 200 documents relating to Epstein and that the FBI had thousands more.
Ms Bondi later claimed the Biden administration “sat on these documents” and didn’t do “anything with them” as they “don’t believe in transparency”.
Jeffrey Epstein. File pic: New York State Sex Offender Registry via AP
Trump named in Epstein files
Mr Trump has been named in previously released documents relating to Epstein and Maxwell.
Flight logs released in the trial of Maxwell show Mr Trump flew on Epstein’s private plane multiple times between 1993 and 1997.
One Epstein accuser in 2016 also said she spent several hours with the disgraced financier at a Trump casino, but she did not say if she met Mr Trump.
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The moment Epstein court documents were released in 2024
Being mentioned in the records is not a sign of wrongdoing, and Mr Trump has not been accused of anything.
In a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article on 24 July, the newspaper claimed Mr Trump was told in May that his name was included in the files, along with many other high-profile figures.
The report claimed officials told the president the files contained what they felt was unverified hearsay about many people, including himself.
The White House initially described the report as “fake news”, but Reuters news agency said an official told them the administration isn’t denying Mr Trump’s name is there.
The $10bn lawsuit
In a separate article, the WSJ claimed it has seen a letter written by Mr Trump as part of a collection of letters addressed to Epstein that his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell planned to give him as a 50th birthday present in 2003.
According to documents seen by the WSJ, Mr Trump’s letter featured several lines of typewritten text framed by what appeared to be a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman.
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Musk after fallout with president: ‘Trump is in Epstein files’
The paper said the letter concludes “Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret”, and featured the signature “Donald”, allegedly drawn across the woman’s waist, meant to mimic the appearance of pubic hair.
The president initially called the letter “fake” and said he would sue the “ass off” Rupert Murdoch, who owns the WSJ.
A day later, he filed a lawsuit in which he accuses Mr Murdoch, two Wall Street Journal reporters and the publication’s owner, News Corp, of defamation, claiming they acted with malicious intent and caused him overwhelming financial and reputational harm.
The lawsuit seeks at least $10bn (£7.5bn) in damages.
House committee investigation after U-turn
Just before Congress broke for recess, three Republicans joined Democrats to vote to subpoena (order to court) the justice department (DOJ), compelling the release of files tied to Epstein.
The subpoena will be served to Mr Trump’s attorney general Ms Bondi by the House Oversight Committee, led by chairman and Republican James Comer.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer. Pic: Reuters
He said that Republicans on the oversight committee would “move to be more aggressive in trying to get transparency with the Epstein files” adding: “I think that’s what the American people want.”
The committee also initiated a motion to subpoena a host of other people, including former president Bill Clinton, former senator Hillary Clinton and former attorney general’s dating back to Alberto Gonzales, who served under George W Bush.
It comes after many in the MAGA movement were enraged when the justice department released a memo on 8 July saying that there was no Epstein client list, and that no “further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted”.
It claimed much of the material was placed under seal by a court to protect victims and “only a fraction” of it “would have been aired publicly had Epstein gone to trial”.
Read more:
Ghislaine Maxwell could challenge imprisonment
The huge impact of Musk’s row with Trump
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Trump blasts reporter for Epstein question
It said it contained images of Epstein, “images and videos of victims who are either minors or appear to be minors,” and more than 10,000 “downloaded videos and images of illegal child sex abuse material and other pornography”.
Maxwell questioned by DOJ
As part of Mr Trump’s attempt to calm the storm over interest in Epstein, his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell has been answering questions by deputy attorney general Todd Blanche.
Maxwell answered questions “about 100 different people” during one-and-a-half days of questioning in the federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, her attorney David Oscar Markus said on 26 July.
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Why is Maxwell meeting with the US government?
Mr Blanche said that Maxwell would be interviewed because of Mr Trump’s directive to gather and release any credible evidence about others who may have committed crimes.
Maxwell is currently appealing against her conviction, based on the government’s pledge years ago that any potential Epstein co-conspirators would not be charged, Mr Markus said.
Epstein struck a deal with federal prosecutors in 2008 that shifted his case to Florida state court, where he pleaded guilty to soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution.
Epstein in 2019 and Maxwell in 2020 were charged in federal court in New York.
