President Donald Trump has called on the Department of Justice to launch an investigation into former President Bill Clinton’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
The request comes just as newly released emails have revived questions about Trump’s own past interactions with the late financier.
In a series of social media posts on Friday, Trump dismissed the email release as a political distraction. He compared it to the investigations surrounding Russian interference in the 2016 election, labeling the entire matter a fabricated scandal aimed at damaging him.
According to Trump, Democrats are using Epstein to divert negative attention away from themselves, insisting that Epstein’s strongest connections were with Democratic figures and major financial institutions.
Trump wrote that he plans to ask Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate Clinton, along with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, venture capitalist Reid Hoffman and banking giant JPMorgan Chase.
Bondi responded soon after on the platform X, thanking Trump and announcing that she had assigned US Attorney Jay Clayton to lead the inquiry. She stressed that the department would pursue answers quickly and transparently.
Epstein Remains a Political Problem for Trump’s Second Term
Epstein has remained a persistent challenge for the Trump administration, as lawmakers from both parties continue to demand full disclosure of the case files and clarity on Trump’s own involvement.
Epstein, a wealthy financier, spent years networking with powerful individuals, including Trump, Clinton and Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, the former member of the British royal family who recently lost his titles.
His long list of high profile associates has fueled speculation about who may have protected him and why.
Hundreds of women have accused Epstein of sexual abuse and trafficking. In 2008, he was convicted in Florida on charges involving a minor, although critics argued his plea deal was unusually lenient.
Epstein died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting federal trafficking charges. The circumstances surrounding his death sparked conspiracy theories and fueled suspicions of a cover up.
Newly Released Emails Directly Mention Trump
Tensions rose again on Wednesday when Democrats on the House Oversight Committee published excerpts of emails involving Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and writer Michael Wolff.
Several of the messages referenced Trump, with one email claiming that a victim spent hours at Epstein’s residence while Trump was present.
Another message implied that Trump asked Maxwell to stop certain behavior.
A third email suggested Trump had visited Epstein’s home and traveled on his plane, and discussed how he might respond to questions about those visits in a CNN interview.
White House Responds With Claims of Partisan Manipulation
The Trump administration reacted swiftly. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the emails were selectively edited and part of a Democratic smear effort.
However, Republican leaders on the Oversight Committee soon released twenty thousand additional Epstein related emails, including more exchanges that referenced Trump.
One email from 2017 showed Epstein telling Summers that he had met many unpleasant people and that none were as bad as Trump, adding that he believed Trump had no integrity.
Trump Claims Democrats Are Using Epstein to Distract From the Government Shutdown
In further posts, Trump argued that Democrats were trying to reignite the Epstein issue to pull attention away from the prolonged government shutdown and their failure to negotiate health care subsidy protections.
He also criticized several Republicans who supported releasing more Epstein files, accusing them of siding with Democrats.
Confusion and Controversy Over the So Called Client List
Earlier this year, Attorney General Bondi said on Fox News that she had a client list connected to Epstein sitting on her desk.
She later said she misspoke.
The Department of Justice and the FBI issued a joint memo in July stating that no official client list exists, which caused backlash among some Trump supporters.
Media reports later claimed that Bondi briefed Trump that his name appeared in the unreleased files.
Trump responded publicly by saying he cut ties with Epstein years ago for trying to recruit young female employees from his Mar a Lago resort.
Pressure Builds to Release All Epstein Documents
As the House reconvened after the historic shutdown, a newly sworn in Democratic representative provided the crucial two hundred eighteenth signature needed to force a vote on releasing the full set of Epstein files.
The measure has bipartisan sponsorship, led by Republican Thomas Massie and Democrat Ro Khanna.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said he plans to bring the vote forward, although its prospects in the Senate remain uncertain. Johnson downplayed the significance of the effort but acknowledged that the required number of signatures had already been reached.