Donald Trump is privately worrying about his building political crisis over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, complaining: “They’re going to f--- me.”
While the president insists he had nothing to do with the late pedophile’s crimes, Trump was overheard in the Oval Office saying, “They’re going to accuse me of some funny business,” Politico’s Playbook reported, citing an unnamed Republican close to the White House who heard the remarks.
Trump still maintained he had nothing to do with Epstein’s offending, but declared: “They’re going to f--- me anyways,” Playbook added.
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The Epstein saga has haunted Trump for weeks after the Department of Justice and FBI said they won’t be releasing any more files related to Epstein, and denied the existence of a so-called “client list.” This is despite Attorney General Pam Bondi telling Fox News in February that Epstein’s list was “sitting on my desk right now to review.”
The handling of the Epstein files has sparked outrage among the president’s MAGA base, with many of Trump’s supporters having eagerly awaited their disclosure for years.
There was a new twist in the tale Wednesday after the Wall Street Journal reported that Bondi told Trump in May that his name appears multiple times in the Epstein files, including “unverified hearsay” involving the president. The White House dismissed the report, which was later confirmed by other outlets, as “another fake news story.”
The reports contradicted Trump’s claim to reporters earlier this month that Bondi hadn’t informed him he was named in the documents. The Journal also said FBI Director Kash Patel has been privately telling other government officials that Trump’s name is in the Epstein files.
There’s still no indication Trump is criminally implicated in any of Epstein’s crimes. One unnamed source close to the White House told Playbook it’s not shocking the president’s name appears in the Epstein files, given the pair were friends for years.
“Everyone’s already seen pictures of [Trump and Epstein] together,” the source said. “None of this reporting is new.”
It has already been disclosed that Trump’s name appears in Epstein’s “little black book” of contacts, and on flight logs confirming Trump traveled on Epstein’s private plane multiple times.
Despite Trump’s attempts to quell the uproar around his ties to Epstein and his administration’s handling of the Epstein files, new bombshells continue to drop.
Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna on Wednesday said he would subpoena Epstein’s estate for a book compiled for Epstein’s 50th birthday in 2003—the Wall Street Journal reported that the book includes a letter from Trump, featuring a drawing of the outline of a naked woman, in which the future president wrote: “[M]may every day be another wonderful secret.”
Trump denied the report and is suing the Journal and Rupert Murdoch, the founder of the newspaper’s parent company, for defamation.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.
