Wall Street Journal reports Trump is in Epstein files, White House calls story 'fake'
Composite image of Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump.
Photo:
AFP / NEW YORK STATE SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY/HANDOUT
US Attorney General Pam Bondi told President Donald Trump in May that his name appeared in Justice Department files related to financier Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender who died in prison, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing senior administration officials.
Reuters was not able to immediately verify the Journal's report, which the White House characterized as "fake news."
The newspaper's report threatened to expand what has become a major political crisis for Trump, whose
past friendship with Epstein
has drawn renewed scrutiny after his administration said it would not release the files, reversing a campaign promise.
The Justice Department released a memo earlier this month that there was no basis to continue probing the Epstein case, triggering a backlash among Trump's political base who demanded more information about
wealthy and powerful people who had interacted with Epstein
.
Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing related to Epstein and has said their friendship ended before Epstein was first prosecuted.
Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. He had pleaded not guilty and the case was dismissed after his death.
Under political pressure last week, Trump directed the Justice Department to seek the release of sealed grand jury transcripts from the case. A federal judge denied that request earlier on Wednesday.
While the White House immediately dismissed the report as fictitious, Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a statement that did not directly address the newspaper's reporting.
"Nothing in the files warranted further investigation or prosecution, and we have filed a motion in court to unseal the underlying grand jury transcripts," the officials said. "As part of our routine briefing, we made the President aware of the findings."
The Journal reported that Bondi and her deputy told Trump at a White House meeting that his name, as well as those of "many other high-profile figures," appeared in the files.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi
Photo:
MANDEL NGAN / AFP
Last week, the newspaper reported that Trump had sent Epstein a bawdy birthday note in 2003 that ended, "Happy Birthday - and may every day be another wonderful secret."
Reuters has not confirmed the authenticity of the alleged letter.
Trump has sued the Journal and its owners
, including billionaire Rupert Murdoch, asserting that the birthday note was fake.
Since the Justice Department's memo, Trump has faced growing frustration among his base of supporters, after far-right figures spent years promoting conspiracy theories - at times echoed by Trump - about Epstein and alleged ties to prominent Democratic politicians.
Epstein hung himself in prison in 2019, according to the New York City chief medical examiner. But his connections with wealthy and powerful individuals prompted speculation that his death was not a suicide. The Justice Department said in its memo this month that it had concluded Epstein died by his own hand.
In a sign of how the issue has bedeviled Trump and his fellow Republicans, US House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday abruptly said he would send lawmakers home for the summer a day early to avoid a floor fight over a vote on the Epstein files.
His decision temporarily stymied a push by Democrats and some Republicans for a vote on a bipartisan resolution that would require the Justice Department to release all Epstein-related documents.
More than two-thirds of Americans believe the Trump administration is hiding information about Epstein's clients, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted last week.
Wednesday's court motion stemmed from federal investigations into Epstein in 2005 and 2007, according to court documents. US District Judge Robin Rosenberg found that the Justice Department's request in Florida did not fall into any of the exceptions to rules requiring grand jury material be kept secret.
The Justice Department also has pending requests to unseal transcripts in Manhattan federal court related to later indictments brought against Epstein and his former associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence after her conviction for child sex trafficking and other crimes.
-
Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
Ghislaine Maxwell moved from Florida prison to lower-security facility
By Andrew Goudsward and Luc Cohen , Reuters Ghislaine Maxwell pictured in September 2013 in New York City. Photo: AFP / Getty Images Ghislaine Maxwell has been transferred from a Florida prison to a lower-security facility in Texas to continue serving her 20-year sentence for helping the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse underage girls, the US Bureau of Prisons said on Friday. Maxwell's move from FCI Tallahassee, a low-security prison, to the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, comes a week after she met with Deputy US Attorney General Todd Blanche , who said he wanted to speak with her about anyone else who may have been involved in Epstein's crimes. Maxwell's lawyer David Markus confirmed she was moved but said he had no other comment. Spokespeople for the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The BOP classifies prison camps such as Bryan as minimum security institutions, the lowest of five security levels in the federal system. Such facilities have limited or no perimeter fencing. Low security facilities such as FCI Tallahassee have double-fenced perimeters and higher staff-to-inmate ratios than camps, according to the bureau. Asked why Maxwell was transferred, BOP spokesperson Donald Murphy said he could not comment on the specifics of any incarcerated individual's prison assignment, but that the BOP determines where inmates are sent based on factors including "the level of security and supervision the inmate requires." - Reuters
1News
2 hours ago
- 1News
Trump injects new dose of tariffs uncertainty as start date pushed back
For weeks, President Donald Trump was promising the world economy would change with his new tariffs in place. It was an ironclad deadline, administration officials assured the public. But when Trump signed the order Thursday night (local time) imposing new tariffs, the start date of the punishing import taxes was pushed back seven days so the tariff schedule could be updated. The change in tariffs on 66 countries, the European Union, Taiwan and the Falkland Islands was potentially welcome news to countries that had not yet reached a deal with the US. It also injected a new dose of uncertainty for consumers and businesses still wondering what's going to happen and when. Trump told NBC News the tariffs process was going 'very well, very smooth". But even as the Republican president insisted these new rates would stay in place, he added: 'It doesn't mean that somebody doesn't come along in four weeks and say we can make some kind of a deal.' Trump has promised that his tax increases on the nearly US$3 trillion (NZ$5 trillion) in goods imported to the United States will usher in newfound wealth, launch a cavalcade of new factory jobs, reduce the budget deficits and, simply, get other countries to treat America with more respect. The vast tariffs risk jeopardising America's global standing as allies feel forced into unfriendly deals. As taxes on the raw materials used by US factories and basic goods, the tariffs also threaten to create new inflationary pressures and hamper economic growth — concerns the Trump White House has dismissed. ADVERTISEMENT Questions swirl around the tariffs despite Trump's eagerness President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departing on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, July 25, 2025, in Washington. (Source: Associated Press) As the clock ticked toward Trump's self-imposed deadline, few things seemed to be settled other than the president's determination to levy the taxes he had talked about for decades. The very legality of the tariffs remains an open question as a US appeals court on heard arguments on whether Trump had exceeded his authority by declaring an 'emergency' under a 1977 law to charge the tariffs, allowing him to avoid congressional approval. Trump was ebullient as much of the world awaited what he would do. 'Tariffs are making America GREAT & RICH Again,' he said on Truth Social. Others saw a policy carelessly constructed by the US president, one that could impose harms gradually over time that would erode America's power and prosperity. 'The only things we'll know for sure on Friday morning are that growth-sapping US import taxes will be historically high and complex, and that, because these deals are so vague and unfinished, policy uncertainty will remain very elevated,' said Scott Lincicome, a vice president of economics at the Cato Institute. 'The rest is very much TBD.' ADVERTISEMENT The new tariffs build off ones announced in the spring President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen shake hands after reaching a trade deal at the Trump Turnberry golf course in Turnberry, Scotland Sunday, July 27, 2025. (Source: Associated Press) Trump initially imposed the Friday deadline after his previous 'Liberation Day' tariffs in April resulted in a stock market panic. His unusually high tariff rates announced then led to recession fears, prompting Trump to impose a 90-day negotiating period. When he was unable to create enough trade deals with other countries, he extended the timeline and sent out letters to world leaders that simply listed rates, prompting a slew of hasty agreements. Swiss imports will now be taxed at a higher rate, 39%, than the 31% Trump threatened in April, while Liechtenstein saw its rate slashed from 37% to 15%. Countries not listed in the Thursday night order would be charged a baseline 10% tariff. Trump negotiated trade frameworks over the past few weeks with the EU, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and the Philippines — allowing the president to claim victories as other nations sought to limit his threat of charging even higher tariff rates. He said there were agreements with other countries, but he declined to name them. Asked if countries were happy with the rates set by Trump, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said: 'A lot of them are.' Thursday began with a palpable sense of tension ADVERTISEMENT Vehicles for export are parked at a port in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, Thursday, July 31, 2025. (Source: Associated Press) The EU was awaiting a written agreement on its 15% tariff deal. Switzerland and Norway were among the dozens of countries that did not know what their tariff rate would be, while Trump agreed after a phone call to keep Mexico's tariffs at 25% for a 90-day negotiating period. The president separately amended an order to raise certain tariffs on Canada to 35%. European leaders face blowback for seeming to cave to Trump, even as they insist that this is merely the start of talks and stress the importance of maintaining America's support of Ukraine's fight against Russia. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has already indicated that his country can no longer rely on the US as an ally, and Trump declined to talk to him. India, with its 25% tariff announced by Trump, may no longer benefit as much from efforts to pivot manufacturing out of China. While the Trump administration has sought to challenge China's manufacturing dominance, it is separately in extended trade talks with that country, which faces a 30% tariff and is charging a 10% retaliatory rate on the US. Major companies came into the week warning that tariffs would begin to squeeze them financially. Ford Motor Co. said it anticipated a net US$2 billion (NZ$3.4 billion) hit to earnings this year from tariffs. French skincare company Yon-Ka is warning of job freezes, scaled-back investment and rising prices. It's unclear whether Trump's new tariffs will survive a legal challenge President Donald Trump meets with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer at Trump Turnberry golf club on Monday, July 28, 2025 in Turnberry, Scotland. (Source: Associated Press) ADVERTISEMENT Federal judges sounded sceptical about Trump's use of a 1977 law to declare the long-standing US trade deficit a national emergency that justifies tariffs on almost every country. 'You're asking for an unbounded authority,' Judge Todd Hughes of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit told a Justice Department lawyer representing the administration. The judges didn't immediately rule, and the case is expected to reach the Supreme Court eventually. The Trump White House has pointed to the increase in federal revenues as a sign that the tariffs will reduce the budget deficit, with US$127 billion (NZ$216 billion) in customs and duties collected so far this year — about US$70 billion (NZ$119 billion) more than last year. New tariffs threaten to raise inflation rates President Donald Trump talks to the media as he meets with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at Trump Turnberry golf club in Turnberry, Scotland, Monday, July 28, 2025. (Source: Associated Press) There are not yet signs that tariffs will lead to more domestic manufacturing jobs, and Friday's employment report showed the US economy now has 37,000 fewer manufacturing jobs than it did in April. ADVERTISEMENT One crucial measure of inflation, known as the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, showed that prices have climbed 2.6% over the 12 months that ended in June, a sign that inflation may be accelerating as the tariffs flow through the economy. The prospect of higher inflation from the tariffs has caused the Federal Reserve to hold off on additional cuts to its benchmark rates, a point of frustration for Trump, who on Truth Social, called Fed Chair Jerome Powell a 'TOTAL LOSER'. But before Trump's tariffs, Powell seemed to suggest that the tariffs had put the US economy and much of the world into a state of unknowns. 'There are many uncertainties left to resolve,' Powell told reporters Wednesday. 'So, yes, we are learning more and more. It doesn't feel like we're very close to the end of that process. And that's not for us to judge, but it does — it feels like there's much more to come.'
RNZ News
3 hours ago
- RNZ News
Trump moves nuclear submarines after statements by former Russian president
Trump on Tuesday said Russia had "10 days from today" to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or be hit, along with its oil buyers, with tariffs. Photo: AFP / Pool / Christopher Furlong US President Donald Trump says he has ordered two nuclear submarines to be moved to the "appropriate regions" in response to threats from former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. "I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that," Trump said in a social media post that called Medvedev's statements highly provocative. He said he ordered the submarines moved "just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances". Trump and Medvedev, who is deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, traded taunts in recent days after Trump on Tuesday said Russia had "10 days from today" to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or be hit, along with its oil buyers, with tariffs. Moscow, which has set out its own terms for peace in Ukraine, has shown no sign that it will comply with Trump's deadline. Medvedev on Monday accused Trump of engaging in a "game of ultimatums" and reminded him that Russia possessed Soviet-era nuclear strike capabilities of last resort after Trump told Medvedev to "watch his words." Medvedev has emerged as one of the Kremlin's most outspoken anti-Western hawks since Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022. Kremlin critics deride him as an irresponsible loose cannon, though some Western diplomats say his statements illustrate the thinking in senior Kremlin policy-making circles. - Reuters
