 "Bill Clinton in a pool, little on Trump: What the latest release of Epstein files reveals")
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has released a large cache of the much-anticipated Epstein files, albeit heavily redacted. Thousands of documents from its investigations into the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were published on Friday (December 19).
The document dump prominently features former US President Bill Clinton. It also gives a glimpse into Epstein’s social circle, which included noted figures like former British Prince Andrew and singers Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson.
Let’s look more closely at the newly released Epstein files.
Bill Clinton, but not much Trump
The records released by the US DOJ contain a heavy dose of former Democratic President Bill Clinton.
There are several pictures of Clinton, including one in a swimming pool. The never-before-released picture of the ex-president shows him in a pool with Epstein’s accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, and an unidentified person.
Another photo shows Clinton lying on his back with his hands behind his head in a hot tub with a person whose identity has been redacted. A Justice Department spokesperson said that the redacted person in this image is “a victim” of Epstein’s sexual abuse.
There is a third picture of Clinton posing with a young woman, sitting on the armrest of his seat, who has her arm wrapped around his shoulders.
Another photo shows Clinton with his former top adviser Doug Band and actor Kevin Spacey inside the Cabinet Room of the Churchill War Rooms in London. There is also a picture of a painting of Clinton in a blue dress hanging in Epstein’s New York home.
Quick Reads
View AllWhile these images are not dated, Clinton was spotted with Epstein many times over the 1990s and early 2000s, before the disgraced financier was first arrested. The former US president has not been accused of wrongdoing by survivors of Epstein’s abuse.
In 2019, Clinton’s spokesperson said he “knows nothing about the terrible crimes” Epstein pleaded guilty to.
After the release on Friday, a spokesperson for Clinton said that the Donald Trump administration was “shielding themselves from what comes next.”
The statement added that the former president was not aware of Epstein’s crimes and “cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light”.
“There are two types of people here,” Angel Ureña, Clinton’s spokesperson, said. “The first group knew nothing and cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light. The second group continued relationships with him after. We’re in the first.”
The notable takeaway from the cache of documents linked to disgraced financier Epstein is that there is not much of US President Donald Trump.
The duo were friends and socialised frequently in the 1990s and early 2000s. However, Trump claims they had a falling out in the mid-2000s, before Epstein was first convicted in 2008 for soliciting a minor for prostitution.
The US president, for months, tried to block the release of documents linked to the investigation of Epstein, who died by “suicide” in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Trump finally bowed to the pressure, including from within his own party, and signed a law last month that mandated the release of Epstein files.
The few photos of Trump released by the DOJ have been in the public domain for years.
Trump’s name was mentioned in Epstein’s phone and message books and on flight manifests.
The court documents released by the department show that Epstein allegedly introduced a 14-year-old girl to Trump at Mar-a-Lago, BBC reported.
The incident happened in the 1990s when Epstein nudged Trump and “playfully asked him” about the girl, “This is a good one, right?”, as per the document.
Trump “smiled” and nodded in agreement, the lawsuit filed against Epstein’s estate and Ghislaine Maxwell in 2020 said.
The document added that “they both chuckled” and the teen felt uncomfortable, but “at the time, was too young to understand why”.
The victim alleged she was groomed and abused by Epstein over many years. In the court filing, she did not make any accusations against Trump, reported BBC.
Other powerful people linked to Epstein
There are images of other rich and powerful people in the newly released records related to Epstein, including those of pop icon Michael Jackson.
In one image, Jackson is photographed with Bill Clinton and singer Diana Ross on a plane with a person whose face is redacted. In another picture, Jackson is seen standing beside Epstein in front of a painting of what appears to be a naked woman.
In a photo dated 2007, Epstein is sitting across a table from CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite. The famed newsman’s name had appeared on flight logs earlier this year, suggesting he travelled to Epstein’s private island in St. Thomas.
Jackson and Cronkite died in 2009.
The former Prince Andrew appears in a photo wearing a tuxedo and lying on the laps of several women who are dressed in formalwear. Ghislaine Maxwell is seen in the photo standing behind them.
Earlier this year, Andrew was stripped of his title and royal home by his brother, King Charles, over his links to Epstein.
Former UK envoy Peter Mandelson is also seen in an image released in this latest batch.
Mandelson was sacked by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer as ambassador to the US earlier this year over his association with the disgraced sex offender.
In the image, Mandelson and Epstein have been clicked with a large birthday cake. The date when the picture was taken remains unknown.
Magician David Copperfield is also in pictures released by the DOJ. He can be seen hugging Maxwell from behind in one photo and posing goofily with her in another.
Epstein’s demand for underage girls
One of the most disgusting revelations from the documents released by the DOJ is the detailed demands of people sent by Epstein to procure underage girls for sexual abuse.
A document titled EFTA00004179 includes a formal FBI evidence cover sheet and 13 pages of handwritten investigative notes from an interview on May 2, 2019. The interview subject is redacted, along with some content, reported The Guardian.
“Friends of [redacted] friends. Big Brazilian group. Desperate time,” the witness said, as per the notes. “Running out of girls.” The notes refer to Epstein by his initials “JE”.
A “dark-skinned Dominican” was brought in during this “desperate time” but “JE didn’t want Spanish or dark girl”, the notes read. The initials of the person who procured underage girls for Epstein are redacted.
This person told Epstein that they had been “bringing young girls” to Epstein, but the financier complained that “yea but not dark”.
The witness said she did not know whether Epstein had paid the procurer for the “service”, but that he had paid the girl.
The notes also mention a bathroom and “boobs and vaginas near bathtub … he got in shower and told her can’t just bring girls he doesn’t like. … told her keep looking for girls”.
“At one point [redacted] witnessed him asking for ID to girl,’” the notes read, “wanted make sure under 18 b/c he wasn’t believing them b/c [redacted] messed up by bringing more older girls.”
The notes included the witness’s descriptions of sexual encounters, such as Epstein making “crazy noises” and touching victims “roughly”.
In the document, there are also photographs of girls, which the notes say were from 14 to 17 years old, around town and in bikinis on the beach.
According to the documents, Epstein survivor Maria Farmer filed a complaint against Epstein related to child pornography in the mid-1990s.
The cache of records also has seven pages containing the names of 254 masseuses that are entirely blacked out, along with the explanation “redacted to protect potential victim information.”
Heavy redactions pose more questions
The DOJ is facing flak for releasing heavily redacted documents that reveal little.
In a letter to Congress, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote that the Justice Department was still reviewing files linked to Epstein and was withholding some documents to protect victims. More disclosures can be made by the end of the year.
There are more than 1,200 victims or their relatives whose names must be redacted from the files, Blanche said.
Survivors, Democrats and even some Republicans have criticised the DOJ over the redacted document dump.
“Just put out the files,” said Marina Lacerda, who survived sexual assault by Epstein. “And stop redacting names that don’t need to be redacted.”
Many records are yet to be released and some of the materials was already public.
Representative Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said the incomplete file release “is absolutely breaking the law.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, condemning the redactions: “Simply releasing a mountain of blacked out pages violates the spirit of transparency and the letter of the law.”
Democrat Representative Ro Khanna, who co-authored the bill that forced the publication of the files by December 19, said the release “does not comply” with the law. “It was an incomplete release with too many redactions.”
Republican Representative Thomas Massie said the release “grossly fails to comply with both the spirit and the letter of the law".
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson, however, defended the release, saying the Trump administration is “the most transparent in history”.
With inputs from agencies
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