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President Trump on Friday demanded that the Justice Department open criminal investigations into several high-profile Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and Democratic megadonor and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, accusing them of maintaining close ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
In a lengthy social-media post, Trump blasted Democrats for “using the Epstein Hoax” as a political weapon during the shutdown fight and said federal law enforcement would examine what he suggested were long-standing connections to Epstein’s underage sex-trafficking network.
“This is another Russia, Russia, Russia Scam, with all arrows pointing to the Democrats,” Trump wrote.
He added, “Records show that these men, and many others, spent large portions of their life with Epstein, and on his ‘Island.’ Stay tuned!!!”
Trump said he had directed Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Justice Department “together with our great patriots at the FBI” to investigate the “involvement and relationship” between Epstein and top Democratic figures.
Hours later, Bondi confirmed she had already assigned a prosecutor to oversee the probe.
“Thank you, Mr. President. SDNY U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton is one of the most capable and trusted prosecutors in the country, and I’ve asked him to take the lead,” she wrote on X.
“As with all matters, the Department will pursue this with urgency and integrity to deliver answers to the American people,” Bondi added.
Trump also said investigators should examine “J.P. Morgan, Chase, and many other people and institutions” in connection with Epstein’s network.
The president’s announcement followed a new batch of unverified emails released earlier in the week by House Democrats, which they claimed showed that Trump’s knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activity was deeper than previously known.
On Wednesday, Democrats published messages in which Epstein claimed Trump had “spent hours at my house” with one of his victims and “knew about the girls.”
Epstein added in another message, “Of course he knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop,” referring to Ghislaine Maxwell, who was later convicted of conspiring in Epstein’s crimes.
Republicans responded by releasing their own collection of emails from Epstein’s estate, some of which also referenced Trump, intensifying the partisan clash and reviving demands for the full release of all government-held Epstein records.
The competing document dumps have renewed national debate over Epstein’s extensive social circle and longstanding ties to prominent public figures.
The White House has repeatedly said Trump played no role in Epstein’s trafficking operation and severed ties with him nearly two decades ago.
“These emails prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday.
She added, “And what President Trump has always said is that he was from Palm Beach and so was Jeffrey Epstein. Jeffrey Epstein was a member at Mar-a-Lago until President Trump kicked him out because Jeffrey Epstein was a pedophile and he was a creep.”
The House of Representatives is preparing for an expedited vote to release all Justice Department records related to the late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, and Speaker Mike Johnson has offered new details on the timeline. With the necessary support secured following the end of the 43-day government shutdown, Johnson said Wednesday that he plans to bring a bipartisan bill requiring the release of the files to the House floor in the coming days, Newsweek reported.
“We’re going to put that on the floor for a full vote when we get back next week,” Johnson told reporters, adding that the House Oversight Committee had “been working around the clock” on its own probe of Epstein.
