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The Justice Department told Donald Trump that his name appears in the government’s files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
The president’s name appears in the files multiple times, according to senior administration officials who spoke to the Journal. Attorney General Pam Bondi informed Trump that his name appeared in the files during a meeting at the White House in May. She told him that several other notable figures appeared in the files, and that the files contained what they believed to be, as the Journal puts it, “unverified hearsay” about people who had socialized with Epstein in the past, including the president. Trump was also told that the Justice Department would not release any additional information on Epstein because the files contain child pornography and the personal information of Epstein’s victims. Trump said he would let the Justice Department handle the matter as they saw fit, the officials told the Journal.
The Journal adds that FBI Director Kash Patel has privately told other government officials that Trump’s name appears in the files.
The Journal’s report comes as the Trump administration struggles to tamp down MAGA outrage over their handling of the case. Earlier this month, the DOJ and FBI released a joint memo announcing they would be closing the administration’s review of Epstein, affirming that the financier killed himself in jail, and declining to release additional material related to the case. The announcement triggered a revolt among the Republican base, which for months — if not years — had been teased with promises of transparency and additional prosecutions of individuals connected to Epstein once Trump returned to power.
Trump has responded to the backlash by repeatedly calling the Epstein files a “hoax,” claiming nonsensically that they were “made up” by Barack Obama and other Democratic figures. He bashed his supporters who still care about the “bullshit” case. The president this week launched an effort to redirect attention to conspiracy theories about the 2016 election, telling reporters on Tuesday that “whether it’s right or wrong, it’s time to go after people,” citing Obama, whom he claimed is guilty of “treason.”
Trump has a long history with Epstein, and the two were friends for many years. Trump has bashed Epstein in recent years, but spoke glowingly of him while they were still on good terms. “I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy,” Trump famously said in 2002. “He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life.”
The Journal reported last week that he wrote the future convicted sex offender a salacious birthday note in the early 2000s, noting that the two have “certain things in common.” Trump denied the report and sued the outlet days later. He’s not likely to take kindly to the Journal now reporting that his name is in the Epstein files.
Amid his ongoing feud with Trump, billionaire Elon Musk, a former Trump White House adviser, posted on X last month that Trump “is in the Epstein files,” adding: “That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!”
ABC News asked Trump last week if Bondi had told him that his name appears in the Epstein files. “No, no,” he said, adding that Bondi had handled the Epstein situation “very well.”
