Trump knew about Epstein’s conduct, House Democrats reveal
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House Democrats and Republicans clash over newly released Epstein files as pressure mounts for full public disclosure.
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Protesters rally at a news conference calling for Congress to release all of the Jeffery Epstein files, outside the US Capitol, Wednesday, September 3, 2025, in Washington. (AP)
Damning new emails released by the House Oversight Committee suggest that US President Donald Trump was aware of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s activities, including the trafficking of underage girls.
Among the messages, one from Epstein stated that “of course [Trump] knew about the girls” procured for his sex-trafficking ring. Another said that Trump “spent hours” with one of the victims at Epstein’s home.
When the #Epstein files came knocking, #US President Donald Trump brought out memes, polls, and Coca-Cola.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) July 24, 2025
The New York Times tracked it all; swipe to see Scandal Dodging 101: The #Trump way.#TrumpEpstein pic.twitter.com/aPvfvOJIio
The release of these communications by Democrats on the committee has intensified calls for full disclosure of the so-called “Epstein Files", a collection of documents said to detail the scandal that continues to shadow Trump’s presidency.
Partisan clash over the ‘Epstein Files’
Republicans swiftly countered by publishing their own trove of 23,000 documents, accusing Democrats of “cherry-picking” emails “to generate clickbait.”
Trump, in a Truth Social post, dismissed the revelations as political deflection. He wrote: “Democrats are trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they’ll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the Shutdown, and so many other subjects.”
using the reopening of the government as a smokescreen, Trump said, “There should be no deflections to Epstein or anything else, and any Republicans involved should be focused only on opening up our Country.”
Inside Epstein’s messages
In one email from April 2011, Epstein wrote to Ghislaine Maxwell: “That dog that hasn’t barked is trump.. [victim’s name redacted] spent hours at my house with him, he has never once been mentioned.”
Maxwell replied, “I have been thinking about that.”
Another message to author Michael Wolff in 2019 claimed Trump had asked Epstein to resign from Mar-a-Lago, adding, “of course he knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop.”
A third message from 2015 showed Epstein soliciting Wolff’s advice on crafting a media response for Trump: “If we were able to craft an answer for him, what do you think it should be?”
Wolff replied, “I think you should let him hang himself.”
White House calls emails ‘a manufactured hoax’
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt rejected the revelations as “a manufactured hoax by the Democratic Party” meant to distract from the government shutdown debate.
Leavitt identified the unnamed victim in one redacted email as the late Virginia Giuffre, who had publicly accused Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell but never Trump.
“Ms. Giuffre, and God rest her soul, maintained that there was nothing inappropriate she ever witnessed, that President Trump was always extremely professional and friendly to her,” Leavitt said.
She added, “These emails proved absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong.”
Democrats demand transparency
Democrats accused the White House of concealing Trump’s involvement. Representative Robert Garcia, the committee’s ranking member, said, “The more Donald Trump tries to cover up the Epstein files, the more we uncover. These latest emails and correspondence raise glaring questions about what else the White House is hiding.”
California Congressman Ro Khanna echoed the call for transparency, saying it was “exactly why” he was working with Republican Thomas Massie to force a vote on releasing the Epstein files. Senator Amy Klobuchar added on X: “Americans deserve the full truth.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson has faced accusations from Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of delaying the swearing-in of a new member to block a vote.
“Republicans are running a pedophile protection program,” Jeffries said.
Republicans’ counter-release: Epstein’s interest in Trump
Republican members of the committee also released roughly 20,000 pages of correspondence indicating Epstein’s continued interest in Trump’s movements long after their friendship ended.
Epstein’s pilot, Larry Visoski, regularly updated him on Trump’s travel schedules from 2016 to 2018, often noting overlapping flight times and airport closures due to Secret Service activity.
In one 2018 exchange with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, Epstein wrote, “Trump – borderline insane. dersh, a few feet further from the border but not by much.”
Summers replied, “Will Trump crack into insanity?”
Epstein responded, “He feels alone, and is nuts !!! … evil beyond belief mad, and most thought I was speaking metaphorically.”
A White House spokesperson, Abigail Jackson, downplayed the relevance of the emails, saying, “These emails prove literally nothing.”
Lingering questions
Epstein’s communications show he remained fixated on Trump’s activities even years after distancing himself from him, tracking his travels and forwarding news reports about his controversies.
Democrats argue the pattern underscores a deeper connection that warrants full public disclosure of the Epstein files. Republicans, however, insist the emails are being weaponized to discredit Trump.
For now, the controversy shows no sign of fading, as both parties trade accusations, the shadow of Epstein continues to loom over Washington.
