Epstein emails say Trump 'spent hours' with one of Epstein's victims
Bondi and Durbin go back and forth over Epstein files
Sen. Dick Durbin questioned Attorney General Pam Bondi on Tuesday about an alleged ?client list? of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein accuse President Donald Trump of spending "hours" at Epstein’s house with one of his sex trafficking victims.
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released three emails Wednesday from the thousands of pages of Epstein documents the panel is reviewing.
Epstein’s Trump emails
What they're saying:
In a 2011 email to his partner Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein called Trump a "dog that hasn’t barked" and said one of his victims "spent hours" with Trump at Epstein’s house.
"He has never once been mentioned," Epstein wrote.
"Of course he knew about the girls," Epstein wrote in another email to Maxwell.
The third email chain released by the committee is between Epstein and author Michael Wolff, who wrote a book about the Trump White House in 2018.
FILE - From left, American real estate developer Donald Trump and his girlfriend (and future wife), former model Melania Knauss, financier (and future convicted sex offender) Jeffrey Epstein, and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell pose together at t
In the email, Wolff told Epstein he heard CNN was planning to ask Trump about his relationship with the disgraced financier.
"If we were able to craft an answer for him, what do you think it should be?" Epstein asked.
"I think you should let him hang himself," Wolff wrote. "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."
Rep. Robert Garcia, a ranking Democrat on the committee, accused the president of being dishonest about his relationship with Epstein.
"The more Donald Trump tries to cover-up the Epstein files, the more we uncover," Garcia said in a statement. "These latest emails and correspondence raise glaring questions about what else the White House is hiding and the nature of the relationship between Epstein and the President."
Trump calls Epstein saga a ‘hoax’
The other side:
The White House has not commented on the latest emails linking Trump to Epstein.
Trump, who campaigned on a promise of transparency with the Epstein files, has repeatedly denied knowing about Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, despite their once-close relationship.
The Trump administration has for months tried to quell a storm among Trump supporters who believe there was a conspiracy to protect Epstein’s clients, conceal videos of crimes being committed and other evidence.
GOP leaders on Epstein files
House speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. James Comer say the crimes of Jefferey Epstein are still being investigated depsite the government being shutdown.
Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly told President Trump in May that his name was mentioned multiple times in the "truckload" of documents from the Epstein case. On July 7, the Justice Department posted an unsigned memo on its website saying there was no list of Epstein’s clients and no evidence that compelled them to reopen the case.
He has since called the Epstein saga "a hoax."
Trump said in July that his relationship with Epstein ended because Epstein "stole" young women who had worked at the Mar-a-Lago spa.
The backstory:
Epstein, a wealthy financier and convicted sex offender, died in a New York jail cell in 2019. Epstein’s partner Ghislaine Maxwell is serving a lengthy prison sentence for her role in luring young girls to Epstein’s home.
The Epstein case has attracted attention because of Epstein and Maxwell’s links to famous people, including royals, presidents and billionaires. It also led to some of the biggest conspiracy theories animating Trump’s base.
Epstein files latest
Grijalva to be sworn in, new focus on Epstein files
We are now hearing that there is a renewed sense of optimism that the government will be funded soon and with that, a renewed sense of curiosity about whether the House will force a vote related to the release of more Epstein files. Kaelan Deese is a Justice Department reporter for the Washington Examiner and joins LiveNOW’s Austin Westfall this evening as Republican Representative Thomas Massie continues to push for the release for more files.
What's next:
The Epstein saga will be revived in Congress this week when House Speaker Mike Johnson swears in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona.
Grijalva would be the final necessary signature on legislation that would require the Justice Department to release all unclassified documents and communications related to Epstein and his sex trafficking operation.
The Source: This report includes information from House Oversight Democrats, Rep. Robert Garcia, The Associated Press and previous LiveNow from FOX reporting.