Latest news with #EpsteinCase
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Yikes': Critics Claim Trump Let Out Epic 'Freudian Slip' About Jeffrey Epstein
President Donald Trump on Monday denied ever visiting a private island belonging to late sex offender and his former friend Jeffrey Epstein. But Trump's critics are focusing on two unusual words he used when describing a potential trip to the infamous island: 'the privilege.' Trump was asked about why he kicked Epstein out of his private club some two decades ago, after the two had a falling out and before Epstein's first conviction in 2008. The president called it 'such old history' and said Epstein 'did something that was inappropriate.' The 'inappropriate' behavior was hiring some of Trump's staff. 'He stole people that work for me,' Trump said. 'I said, 'Don't ever do that again.' He did it again, and I threw him out of the place. Person non grata. I threw him out, and that was it. I'm glad I did.' But then he added unprompted that he never visited Little Saint James, Epstein's private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands and one alleged scene in his child sex trafficking operation. 'And by the way, I never went to the island,' Trump said, while accusing others of doing so. 'I've, I never had the privilege of going to his island.' The island is just one of the homes owned by Epstein; many of the abuse allegations the late financier was charged with took place in Palm Beach, Florida, as The Miami Herald reported in 2018. 'Authorities suspect that he molested hundreds of girls over a five- or six-year period in Palm Beach alone and possibly operated an international sex-trafficking organization around the world,' Miami Herald reporter Julie K. Brown told NPR. And it was the president's two words about the island that drew criticism on social media, with many shocked he would refer to 'the privilege' of visiting it while denying he had done so: They're calling it the most well handled freudian slip in history — Isaac (@GalaxyPeaBrain) July 28, 2025 'I never had the privilege of going to Epstein Island.' - TrumpYikes man. — Spencer Hakimian (@SpencerHakimian) July 28, 2025 top 3 freudian slip in history? — brandon* (@brndxix) July 28, 2025 Let's get Trump's position on Epstein straight:> Going to the sex-trafficking island would have been a "privilege."> The REAL crime Epstein committed was poaching his man is a monster and a moron. — Adam Mockler🇺🇸🦅 (@adammocklerr) July 28, 2025 I'm so tired, dude. 🙃 If a serial killer Freudian slipped up like this during an FBI interview, they'd call it a confession. He can literally just say whatever he wants, and there will never ever ever ever be consequences. This is fucked up and weird, and nothing will happen. — 🎃☠️ Scarlet Whit🦇🕸 (@WhitneyPuppy) July 28, 2025 This guy sus as hell.. — Rep. Jimmy Gomez (@RepJimmyGomez) July 28, 2025 In this clip, Donald Trump says he 'never had the 'privilege' of going to Epstein Island.'NEVER HAD THE PRIVILEGE?WHAT? — Lucas Sanders 💙🗳️🌊💪🌈🚺🟧 (@LucasSa56947288) July 28, 2025 Today Trump said 'I never had the privilege of going to [Epstein's] island.' So now everyone should be looking into if/when Trump went to the can we all agree that the way Trump said this was beyond disturbing?Don't forget to subscribe: — Scott Dworkin (@funder) July 29, 2025 We live in a world where the sitting president can say 'I never had the PRIVILEGE of going to the evil ass pedophile super rape island' and nobody bats an eye — Wemby Central 👽 (@WembyCentral) July 28, 2025 'I never had the privilege of going to the island' and 'I turned it down' … are in direct conflict. Incredible that these are sentences come one after the not sure I'd call going to an island where crimes against children took place a 'privilege' — Brandon Richards 🐻 (@BrandonRichards) July 28, 2025 Trump on Epstein: I never went to the island. I never had the privilege of going to the island. I turned it — Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) July 28, 2025 The 'privilege'? — B.W. Carlin (@BaileyCarlin) July 28, 2025 "The privilege" is crazy. — The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) July 28, 2025 'Privilege' — Static (@MightBeStatic) July 28, 2025 All the "best" words: In an insane moment, Donald Trump appears to lament with the most bizarre choice of words, saying "I never had the privilege of going to his island."He called a trip to Epstein's Island "a privilege." — Really American 🇺🇸 (@ReallyAmerican1) July 28, 2025
RNZ News
a day ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
Donald Trump says he turned down invitation to Jeffrey Epstein's island
Composite image of Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump. Photo: AFP / NEW YORK STATE SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY/HANDOUT By Andrea Shalal and Nandita Bose , Reuters US President Donald Trump said on Monday he "never had the privilege" of visiting Jeffrey Epstein's island, saying he turned down an invitation from the convicted sex offender in what the president called a moment of good judgment. Trump's remarks were his latest effort to distance himself from the political furor over his administration's handling of files related to Epstein's case and renewed questions over his past relationship with the disgraced financier, who died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019. "I never had the privilege of going to his island, and I did turn it down," Trump told reporters during a trip to Scotland. "In one of my very good moments, I turned it down." Epstein owned a private island in the US Virgin Islands where he entertained prominent people from politics, business and entertainment. Prosecutors have alleged he used the compound to conceal the sex trafficking and abuse of under-age victims. Trump, who socialised with Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s, also offered new insight into why their relationship ended. The president said he cut ties after Epstein attempted to recruit staff who worked for Trump. "He hired help. And I said, 'Don't ever do that again.' He stole people that work for me," Trump said. "He did it again. And I threw him out of the place persona non grata." Last week, White House communications director Steven Cheung said Trump had cut ties with Epstein because he regarded him as a "creep." The White House has been under growing pressure from Trump's supporters and political opponents to release more information about the Justice Department's investigation into Epstein. After Attorney General Pam Bondi earlier this year promised to release additional materials related to possible Epstein clients and the circumstances surrounding his death, the Justice Department reversed course this month and issued a memo concluding there was no basis to continue investigating and no evidence of a client list. Those findings sparked an angry outcry from some of Trump's supporters who have long believed the government was covering up Epstein's ties to the rich and powerful. Trump's efforts to deflect attention from the case have so far faltered. On Monday, the president again called the story "a hoax." "It's a hoax that's been built up way beyond proportion," Trump said, saying Democrats controlled the Epstein files for several years and would have used them against him during the last presidential election if there was anything in them. Trump flew with Epstein aboard his plane at least six times, according to logs for flights spanning from 1991 through 2005. None of those trips were to Epstein's private island. Trump has denied ever being on the plane and has not been accused of any wrongdoing. - Reuters
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump Refuses to Answer Key Question About Ghislaine Maxwell
Pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell is an option that's apparently still on the table. Donald Trump refused Monday to shut down speculation that he might legally forgive the convicted associate and longtime girlfriend of child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, telling reporters at his Scottish golf club that no one had formally 'approached' him yet about the controversial idea. 'Would you completely rule out a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell?' asked a reporter. 'Is that something you would ever consider?' 'Well I'm allowed to give her a pardon,' Trump said. 'But nobody's approached me with it, nobody's asked me about it. It's in the news, about that. That aspect of it. But right now it would be inappropriate to talk about it.' Maxwell was sentenced in 2022 for playing an active role in Epstein's crimes, identifying and grooming vulnerable young women while normalizing their abuse at the hands of her millionaire boyfriend. As president, Trump can dole out pardons for anyone convicted of a federal offense. But why he would choose to extend one to Maxwell prods at a more unsettling possibility. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche—Trump's former personal attorney—met with Maxwell late last week, reportedly peeling 100 names from her in a potential pardon quid pro quo. After her second day with Blanche, Maxwell's team laid their cards on the table: They wanted a pardon from the president. The interview followed weeks of mounting pressure on Trump from his base, who have clamored for the release of more documents from the Epstein files after the Justice Department contradicted Attorney General Pam Bondi on the existence of the pedophile's supposed client list. In a last-ditch effort to quell the bubbling discontent and make the forthcoming Maxwell alliance more palatable, conservatives and Trump allies have attempted to make a martyr out of Maxwell, suggesting that the well-documented sex criminal could have been wrongly convicted and was unduly serving the sentence warranted to a deceased Epstein (Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence for aiding in the victimization of hundreds of girls). 'She deserves to be out,' Alan Dershowitz, Epstein's former lawyer, told Newsmax last week. Meanwhile, Americans are increasingly disturbed by Trump's handling of the entire fiasco. A poll published by Emerson College Polling on Friday found that just 16 percent of Americans approved of the way Trump was managing the Epstein scandal, while more than half of polled Americans—51 percent—disapproved. The spin is particularly humiliating for MAGA Republicans, especially those invested in QAnon. After years of their heralding Trump as a supposed messiah, believing that he would dish the dirt on a secretive, international web of sex traffickers, the administration now seems hell-bent on covering up its own ties to Epstein's island and the crimes committed there.
Fox News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Jonathan Turley: Ghislaine Maxwell 'appears to be untapped as to her account'
A 'Fox News Sunday' legal panel weighs in on the Epstein case as Ghislaine Maxwell sits for an interview with the DOJ, the Russia collusion hoax revelations and the investigation into former President Biden's mental acuity.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Prince Andrew appears pensive as he embarks on his weekly ride through the Windsor estate
Prince Andrew appeared deep in thought as he enjoyed the warmer weather around the Windsor estate on Saturday morning. The Duke of York, 65, typically heads out on his horse to kick off the weekend in Berkshire, and he didn't let the humidity sway him today. The royal wore a short-sleeved burgundy button down shirt for the outing, paired with black leather riding gloves and his typical white-striped riding helmet. He completed his ensemble with a pair of black trousers and thick riding boots. Andrew was accompanied by a groom for his riding session on Saturday, as he typically is. But the pair didn't appear to often be in conversation throughout the trip. Instead, the prince seemed to be lost in thought. It comes as an insider claimed Andrew was personally asked to contribute a message to billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein 's 50th birthday album. The Duke of York, 65, typically heads out on his horse to kick off the weekend in Berkshire, and he didn't let the humidity sway him today The Duke of York was allegedly approached by longtime friend Maxwell to write a personal message for Epstein's milestone birthday in 2003, a project the British socialite is said to have spent over a year orchestrating. He was convicted of sex crimes a few years later, in 2008. Maxwell, now 63 and serving a 20-year sentence in a US prison for trafficking underage girls, is believed to have asked Epstein's circle of powerful and wealthy friends to submit written tributes. According to US investigators, the album - described as 'gold-embossed' and bound in leather - was later recovered by the Department of Justice during a probe into Epstein's sordid network. A US source told the Sunday People: 'Ghislaine was the driving force behind the birthday tributes. 'She wanted it to be a who's who of Epstein's inner circle, and she leaned on a lot of people to write something. It wasn't just casual greetings. Ghislaine wanted messages that were personal, meaningful.' 'Jeffrey… always saw Andrew as the pinnacle of his pals, and Ghislaine made sure he was asked to contribute. 'She framed it as a celebration of Jeffrey's brilliance, his generosity, his supposed unique mind. She made it sound like an honour to be included.' It is not known whether Prince Andrew did ultimately send a message. However, his close relationship with Epstein, a friendship he has faced intense scrutiny over in recent years, was already well established at the time. Andrew was first introduced to Epstein by Maxwell in 1999 and subsequently visited the disgraced financier at his homes in New York, Palm Beach, and the US Virgin Islands. Epstein was also hosted by the Prince at royal residences including Balmoral, Windsor Castle, Sandringham, and Royal Ascot. The Duke has consistently denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes, which became public in 2006.
