The U.S. Department of Justice has confirmed it will examine alleged ties between deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein, major banks, and prominent Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton.
President Donald Trump stated Friday that he would request Attorney General Pam Bondi and the FBI to investigate Epstein’s “involvement and relationship” with Clinton and others “to determine what was going on with them, and him.”
Subsequently, Bondi announced on social media that she had asked U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton to lead an investigation, adding the department “will pursue this with urgency and integrity to deliver answers to the American people.”
Clinton has vehemently denied any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activities.
Renewed interest in Epstein’s associations arose this week following the release of over 20,000 pages of documents from his estate by U.S. lawmakers, some of which mention Trump.
In addition to Clinton, Trump indicated he asked the Department of Justice (DoJ) to investigate banks JP Morgan and Chase, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, a notable Democratic donor.
“Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrat’s problem, not the Republican’s problem!” he wrote on social media.
“They all know about him, don’t waste your time with Trump. I have a Country to run!”
A spokesperson for JPMorgan Chase expressed regret for “any association” with Epstein, adding that the firm “did not help him commit his heinous acts.”
It remains unclear whether Trump issued a formal request or directive to the Justice Department, or if Bondi was responding to his post on his Truth Social platform.
Trump’s request precedes the House of Representatives’ vote next week on whether the Justice Department should release all files related to the investigation into Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.
Democrat Adelita Grijalva’s swearing-in to the chamber on Wednesday triggered the move, after she immediately signed a discharge petition calling for the release of the files.
Her signature marked the 218th, the final signature needed to trigger a floor vote. Four Republicans joined Democrats in calling for the vote.
Documents released by the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday appeared to show correspondence between Epstein and former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers from October 2017.
In one email, Summers provides Epstein with his assessment of Trump early in his presidency, writing: “DJT is world s luckiest guy in terms of opposition, economy etc. still think his world will collapse.”
A representative for Summers told the Wall Street Journal in 2023 that the former treasury official and past president of Harvard University “deeply regrets being in contact with Epstein after his conviction.”
The documents also included email exchanges between Epstein and his long-time associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking.
In one email, sent in 2011, 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.”
Trump and Epstein were friends for years, but the president has stated they had a falling out in the early 2000s, two years before Epstein’s initial arrest. Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein. While he was discussed in some of the released messages this week, he neither sent nor received them.
Traditionally, presidents refrain from directing the Justice Department to investigate individuals and companies, often appointing special counsels – independent attorneys from outside the administration – to conduct investigations.
It is also uncommon for an administration to seek an investigation of a predecessor. However, the Biden administration initiated investigations related to allegations that Trump attempted to interfere with the 2020 election, which were subsequently referred to a special counsel. The cases were dropped upon Trump’s return to the White House.
Representative Robert Garcia, the leading Democrat on the US House Oversight Committee, accused Trump of posting about possible investigations to “deflect from serious new questions we have about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.”
On Friday, Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene stated it would be a “huge miscalculation” for Trump to oppose the release of material related to Epstein.
Greene was among the four other House Republicans – Nancy Mace, Lauren Boebert, Thomas Massie – who joined Democrats in signing a discharge petition calling for the release of the files.
“I truly just stand with the women, and I think they deserve to be the ones that we’re fighting for,” she told the BBC’s U.S. partner, CBS News.
In a letter addressed to Congress, Epstein survivors and the family of Virginia Giuffre – a prominent accuser of his – called for U.S. lawmakers to vote in favor of releasing the files.
“As you gather with your family this season, remember that your primary duty is to your constituents. Look into the eyes of your children, your sisters, your mothers, and your aunts,” the letter reads.
“Imagine if they had been preyed upon. Imagine if you yourself were a survivor. What would you want for them? What would you want for yourself? When you vote, we will remember your decision at the ballot box.”
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As US lawmakers debate a wider release of the so-called Epstein files, the BBC asked people in Washington DC if the ongoing saga matters to them.
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