U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday dismissed as a “scam” a new report linking him to Jeffrey Epstein, calling for the release of grand jury transcripts related to the case and threatening legal action against The Wall Street Journal, News Corp., and Rupert Murdoch.
Trump’s response came after The Wall Street Journal reported that among a set of letters gifted to Epstein for his 50th birthday in 2003 was a note purportedly bearing Trump’s name and featuring a sketch of a naked woman. The report, which cited documents reviewed by the paper, reignited scrutiny over Epstein’s ties to powerful figures. Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
Posting on Truth Social, Trump wrote:
“Based on the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein, I have asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval. This SCAM, perpetuated by the Democrats, should end right now.”
Trump denied writing the letter in question and accused the media of fabricating stories as part of a coordinated political attack.
“The Wall Street Journal, and Rupert Murdoch, personally, were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they printed was a FAKE,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “Mr. Murdoch stated he would take care of it, but clearly could not. Editor Emma Tucker was told by both Karoline Leavitt and me that the letter was fake. They ran with it anyway. I will be suing The Wall Street Journal, News Corp., and Rupert Murdoch shortly.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed the president’s remarks on X (formerly Twitter), writing:
“The Wall Street Journal published a hatchet-job article with a FAKE ‘birthday letter’ from 2003. This is the Steele Dossier 2.0—another coordinated hoax by Democrats and fake news outlets trying to smear President Trump.”
Leavitt also claimed the Journal admitted it no longer had possession of the alleged letter when asked for verification.
“This is a recycled smear campaign built on zero evidence,” she added.
The controversy has once again drawn attention to Epstein’s extensive network and the continued fallout over his associations with politicians, billionaires, and celebrities.
