US Epstein files release highlights Clinton, makes scant reference to Trump
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Former US president Bill Clinton standing with Jeffrey Epstein in this image released by the US Department of Justice in Washington DC, on Dec 19.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON – The US Justice Department released thousands of heavily redacted documents related to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein
The absence of references to Mr Trump was notable given that pictures and documents related to him have trickled out of previous Epstein releases for years.
Mr Trump’s name appeared in flight manifests listing passengers on Epstein’s private plane that were part of a first batch of Epstein material the Justice Department released in February, for instance.
The release also contained other items of note, including a complaint accusing Epstein of involvement in “child pornography” that was filed with the FBI in 1996, long before law enforcement began looking into his misconduct.
Ms Maria Farmer, who filed the complaint, said in a statement that the bureau had failed to follow up on her allegations.
“This is a moment for which I have waited three decades, over half of my life. When I was ignored and hung up on by the FBI in 1996, my world turned upside down, and I felt frozen in time,” Ms Farmer said.
Celebrities who appeared in photos made available as part of Dec 19’s release include the late news anchor Walter Cronkite, singers Mick Jagger, Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, British entrepreneur Richard Branson and the former Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson.
Many of the photos were undated and provided without context, and none of those figures have been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein.
Mr Clinton with Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, in an undated photo redacted and released by the US Department of Justice on Dec 19.
PHOTO: US DEPT OF JUSTICE/NYTIMES
Congress overwhelmingly backed release of all Epstein files
The partial release of the documents on Dec 19 was intended to comply with a law overwhelmingly passed by Congress in November that mandated the disclosure of all Epstein files, despite Mr Trump’s months-long effort to keep them sealed.
The scandal surrounding Epstein has become a self-inflicted political wound for Mr Trump, who for years had promoted conspiracy theories about Epstein to his supporters.
It was not immediately clear how substantive the new materials were, given that many Epstein-related documents have previously been made public since his 2019 death in jail, which was ruled a suicide.
Many of the files were heavily redacted – several documents with 100 pages or more were entirely blacked out – and the Justice Department acknowledged it was still reviewing hundreds of thousands of additional pages for possible release.
The material included evidence from several investigations into Epstein, along with photos of Mr Clinton, long scorned by Republicans. But they appeared to include few if any photos of Mr Trump or documents mentioning him, despite Mr Trump and Epstein’s well-publicised friendship in the 1990s and early 2000s before they had a falling out prior to Epstein’s first conviction in 2008.
Mr Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing and has denied knowing about Epstein’s crimes.
One file with a photo of Mr Trump appeared to have been removed on Dec 20 from the dataset released by the Justice Department. Its absence was noted online by Democrats in the House of Representatives, who demanded an explanation from the administration.
The department did not immediately respond to a query about the missing file.
‘This isn’t about Bill Clinton’
The Justice Department sought to draw attention to Mr Clinton, with two agency spokespeople posting on social media images that they said showed him with Epstein victims.
Mr Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said in a statement that the White House was attempting to “shield themselves” from scrutiny by focusing on the former president.
“They can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn’t about Bill Clinton,” he wrote.
Mr Trump ordered the Justice Department in November to investigate Mr Clinton’s ties to Epstein, in what critics viewed as an effort to shift the focus away from his own relationship with Epstein.
In images released on Dec 19, Mr Clinton can be seen in a swimming pool with Maxwell and another person whose face is blacked out. In another image he can be seen in a hot tub with what appears to be another person whose face is blacked out. Mr Clinton has previously expressed regret for socialising with Epstein and said he was not aware of any criminal activity.
There were more than 1,200 victims or their relatives whose names must be redacted from the files, said Deputy Attorney-General Todd Blanche in a letter to Congress.
In a statement, the White House claimed the release demonstrated its transparency and commitment to justice for Epstein’s victims, criticising previous Democratic administrations for not doing the same.
But the statement ignored that the disclosures occurred only because Congress forced the administration’s hand, after Trump officials declared earlier in 2025 that no more Epstein files would be made public.
Some lawmakers immediately criticised the administration for failing to release all of the files.
Republican US Representative Thomas Massie, a driving force behind the legislation, said on X that Dec 19’s release “grossly fails to comply with both the spirit and the letter of the law.”
The disclosure law required the Justice Department to turn over information about its handling of the Epstein investigation, including internal reports and emails. None of those materials appeared to be in the batch of documents the government released on Dec 19.
The law allowed the Justice Department to withhold personal information about Epstein’s victims as well as material that would jeopardise an active investigation.
A view of drawers and framed photos shown in Jeffrey Epstein's Manhattan home seen in one of the images released by the US Department of Justice.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Trump voters frustrated
Many Trump voters had accused his administration of covering up Epstein’s ties to powerful figures and obscuring details surrounding his death in a Manhattan jail, where he was awaiting trial on charges of trafficking and abusing underage girls.
Just 44 per cent of American adults who identify as Republicans approve of Mr Trump’s handling of the Epstein issue, compared to his 82 per cent overall approval rating among the group, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll.
The issue has damaged Mr Trump’s political standing ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, when control of Congress is at stake.
In November, Democrats in the House released thousands of emails obtained from Epstein’s estate, including one in which Epstein wrote that Mr Trump “knew about the girls”, without clarifying what that meant. Mr Trump, in response, accused Democrats of promoting the “Epstein Hoax” as a distraction.
House Republicans released more emails the same day, including one saying Mr Trump visited Epstein’s house many times but “never got a massage.”
Previous disclosures have revealed that even after his 2008 conviction, Epstein continued corresponding with high-profile figures, including former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, Clinton’s former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, PayPal founder Peter Thiel and Britain’s former Prince Andrew, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of his royal title
Representatives for Mr Bannon, Mr Thiel and Mr Mountbatten-Windsor have not responded to Reuters’ requests for comment about their interactions with Epstein.
JPMorgan paid some of Epstein’s victims US$290 million (S$375 million) in 2023 to settle claims it had overlooked his sex trafficking. The bank kept Epstein as a client for five years after he was convicted of soliciting a minor in 2008. REUTERS
