Trump threatens Wall Street Journal over Epstein story, AG Pam Bondi moves to make some documents public
WASHINGTON AP The argument over President Donald Trump s handling of records from the Jeffrey Epstein examination entered a new dimension as his administration struggles to make good on its promises to release details on the sex trafficking affair involving a one-time friend of the now-president Trump promised a lawsuit after The Wall Street Journal described a sexually suggestive letter that the newspaper says bore Trump s name and was included in a album for Epstein s th birthday Trump denied writing the letter calling it false malicious and defamatory It came after Trump in latest days has berated as weaklings supporters vying for more records from the Epstein probe after years of courting political aid from those who have stoked states of a coverup in the situation to protect wealthy friends of Epstein who died by suicide in awaiting trial on federal charges of trafficking of underage girls Trump has also shielded his attorney general from being questioned about the situation after she walked back insists of the existence of a client list of elites who participated in Epstein s crimes and has even taken to claiming without evidence that files were doctored by Democrats In an administration that prides itself on changing the narrative on negative storylines the Epstein saga has had remarkable staying power thanks in part to infighting at high levels of executive Trump s blistering criticism of his own base and the head-scratching mystery of why documents his own administration promised to unlock will remain buried seemingly for good Thursday s disclosure coupled with frustration from Trump-allied lawmakers on Capitol Hill pushed Trump to abruptly reverse syllabus and direct Attorney General Pam Bondi to try to make a few of the documents in the scenario citizens Bondi explained she would seek court permission Friday to release grand jury information but it would require a judge s approval and she and Trump were silent on the additional evidence collected by federal law enforcement in the sprawling assessment that Bondi last week released she would not release A newly revealed letter to Epstein The letter revealed by The Wall Street Journal was reportedly collected by disgraced British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell as part of a birthday album for Epstein years before the wealthy financier was first arrested in and subsequently had a falling-out with Trump The letter bearing Trump s name includes text framed by the outline of what appears to be a hand-drawn naked woman and ends with Happy Birthday and may every day be another wonderful secret according to the newspaper The outlet described the contents of the letter but did not publish a photo showing it entirely Maxwell was arrested in and convicted a year later on charges that she helped Epstein lure girls to be sexually abused Trump slammed the story in a lengthy social media post Thursday night saying he spoke to both to the paper s owner Rupert Murdoch and its top editor Emma Tucker and narrated them the letter was fake Trump promised to sue the paper over the story saying These are not my words not the way I talk Also I don t draw pictures Vice President JD Vance explained The Wall Street Journal should be ashamed for publishing it Where is this letter Would you be shocked to learn they never displayed it to us before publishing it Does anyone honestly believe this sounds like Donald Trump he wrote on X Trump tries to move on The Trump administration has been struggling for nearly two weeks to contain the fallout of the Justice Department s announcement that no more Epstein evidence in the governing body s possession would be circulated to the citizens despite promises of transparency from Bondi The Justice Department s reversal on the Epstein files not only angered Trump supporters but touched off a testy exchange at the White House last week between Bondi and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino that neither official has publicly addressed The Justice Department has yet to provide a full accounting of its reversal months after Bondi handed out binders to conservative influencers at the White House that read the Epstein Files Phase and the majority of transparent administration Bondi earlier this week refused to answer questions from reporters about the Epstein files and her relationship with Bongino The White House on Thursday closed the door on calls for a further inquiry into the Epstein examination saying the president would not be recommending the appointment of a special counsel Even though his administration for months had hyped the expected release of more documents Trump slammed his own supporters earlier this week for their furor over the Epstein files saga Trump called it a hoax and tried to place blame on Democrats accusing former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden as well as former FBI Director James Comey without evidence of making up such documents Earlier Thursday the disagreement over the Epstein files had snarled the House s efforts to pass a bill that claws back billion in federal spending as Democrats used procedural moves to force votes on releasing the documents in tandem with the package That frustrated House Republicans who tried to forge a answer that could include a resolution supporting the release of credible files pertaining to Epstein and his programs Trump is no stranger to scrutiny Trump himself has faced years of scrutiny over his own private life Last year for instance he was convicted of felony charges in New York in connection with hush money payments meant to silence an adult film star s sex alleges ahead of the presidential referendum Trump has denied the relationship And Trump s ties to Epstein have been well-documented though the president has not been accused of misconduct in connection with their social relationship Video footage unearthed by NBC News following Epstein s federal indictment in revealed the two chatting at a party at Trump s Mar-a-Lago estate in The video recorded at a time when Trump was newly divorced shows him surrounded by young women whom NBC identified as cheerleaders for the Buffalo Bills It also depicts the two men standing and gesturing at the women on the dance floor I knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him Trump commented when the video emerged He was a fixture in Palm Beach I had a falling-out with him a long time ago I don t think I ve spoken to him for years Previously disclosed files included a deposition in which an accuser recounted spending several hours with Epstein at Trump s Atlantic City casino but didn t say if she authentically met Trump and did not accuse him of any wrongdoing Associated Press reporters Seung Min Kim and Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed to this record
