What we know about new Epstein emails that mention Trump
US lawmakers have released more than 20,000 pages of documents from the estate of the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including some that mention President Donald Trump.
Early on Wednesday, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee published three email exchanges, including correspondence between Epstein, who died in 2019 in prison, and his long-time associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking.
They also released emails between Epstein and the author Michael Wolff, who has written numerous books about Trump.
Within hours, House Republicans released a massive tranche of documents to counter what they said was a Democratic effort to 'cherry-pick' documents. They also said it was an attempt to 'create a fake narrative to slander President Trump'.
The emails were obtained by the committee after it subpoenaed Epstein's estate as part of its own probe into the federal investigation of Epstein.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the emails were 'selectively leaked' by House Democrats to 'liberal media to create a fake narrative to smear President Trump'.
'The fact remains that President Trump kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of his club decades ago for being a creep to his female employees, including Giuffre,' she said.
Trump was a friend of Epstein's for years, but the president has said they fell out in the early 2000s, two years before Epstein was first arrested. Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.
What the Epstein-Maxwell email says
The first email released by Democrats is from 2011 and is between Epstein and Maxwell. In it, Epstein writes to Maxwell: 'I want you to realize that that dog that hasn't barked is Trump.. [VICTIM] spent hours at my house with him'. Epstein goes on to write that Trump 'has never once been mentioned', including by a 'police chief'.
Maxwell responded: 'I have been thinking about that...'
The victim's name was redacted in the email the Democrats released, although the unredacted version is in the tranche released by the committee. That shows the name 'Virginia'.
The White House said it refers to the late Virginia Giuffre, a prominent Epstein accuser who died by suicide earlier this year. In a statement, the White House said Giuffre 'repeatedly said President Trump was not involved in any wrongdoing whatsoever and "couldn't have been friendlier" to her in their limited interactions'.
What the Epstein-Wolff emails say
In exchanges with Wolff, the author, Epstein discusses his connection to Trump, who was campaigning for the presidency ahead of his first term in office. In a second email exchange released by Democrats, Wolff writes to Epstein in 2015 to notify him that CNN is planning to ask Trump about their relationship. Epstein responds: 'If we were able to craft an answer for him, what do you think it should be?'
Wolff writes: 'I think you should let him hang himself. If he says he hasn't been on the plane or to the house, then that gives you a valuable PR and political currency. You can hang him in a way that potentially generates a positive benefit for you, or, if it really looks like he could win, you could save him, generating a debt.'
Implications of the New Documents
Alongside Trump, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, is also mentioned in the released documents. In 2011, he responded to an email forwarded by Ghislaine Maxwell, denying knowledge of any rumored sexual misconduct.
Responses from Survivors
Annie Farmer, one of Epstein's accusers, called for the release of more documents, stating: 'The more information that comes out about Jeffrey Epstein, the more questions we're left with. Survivors deserve more than a trickle of information.'
