Scrutiny of the Justice Department’s release of the Epstein files continued on Saturday, with 15 available photos disappearing Friday from the department’s website, and a senior Democratic senator vowing to investigate why all the records were not released at once.
One of the files removed included a photo of a table with framed photos of Epstein with famous people. Below the table top, an open drawer holds two printed photos of President Donald Trump. One photo in the drawer showed Trump standing surrounded by women wearing swimsuits. The other was a well-known photo of Epstein with Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and Ghislaine Maxwell.
Trump has not commented on the release of the files and has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with the Epstein case.
“By releasing thousands of pages of documents, cooperating with the House Oversight Committee’s subpoena, and recently calling on President Trump for further investigations into Epstein’s Democratic friends, the Trump administration has done more for victims than Democrats ever did,” White House press secretary Abigail Jackson said in a statement Friday – in part – in part.
Other images removed from the trove of documents were nude paintings of women at Epstein’s home.
On Saturday, Democrats in the House of Representatives published a photo of the stairs bearing Trump’s picture, accusing Attorney General Pam Bondi of covering up the information.
“We need transparency for the American people,” Democrats said in a statement. Share on X.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the missing files on Saturday.
Lawmakers criticize the Department of Justice
The missing documents come amid some backlash over the Justice Department’s production of the records, which was incomplete despite the Epstein Files Transparency Act’s mandate that – with limited exceptions – turn over unclassified documents. Produced by Friday.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Friday that the release was hundreds of thousands of pages short of “all” the files, and said it would take “a couple of weeks” to release the rest. On Saturday, the Justice Department released three additional tranches of documents.
Sen. Dick Durbin, the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, vowed Saturday to investigate the release of the files, calling the Justice Department’s failure to release all the files by Friday a “violation of the law.”
“Yesterday could have been a victory for survivors, accountability, and transparency with the public,” Durbin said. “But that was not the case. After mishandling the Epstein files all year, the Trump administration is now violating federal law protecting the rich and powerful. It took an act of Congress to force Pam Bondi, Kash Patel, and Dan Bongino to consider providing justice. They had a choice: Survivors or Donald Trump. They chose the latter.”
He added: “Democrats in the Senate Judiciary will investigate this violation of the law and make sure the American people are aware of it.”
Reps. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who sponsored the recall petition that forced a vote on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, expressed their disappointment at the Justice Department on Friday.
“The document released by the Department of Justice this afternoon does not comply with Thomas Massie and the Epstein Transparency Act,” Khanna said in a video. Published to X. He also criticized the extensive redaction of documents, and added that he and Massey were “exploring all options,” including potentially removing those responsible or taking those responsible to court to release all the files.
Massey agreed with Khanna and criticized Bundy and Blanche, Write on X on Friday that the release “flagrantly fails to comply with the spirit and letter of the law providing for it.” [Trump] “It was signed only 30 days ago.”
Controlled substance
An NBC News analysis found that nearly 700 pages of documents dropped on Friday had been completely redacted. A preliminary search of the documents released Saturday revealed no mention of “Trump,” “Donald Trump,” “Clinton,” or “Bill Clinton” — but the documents contain redacted portions that cannot be searched.
Clinton has not been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with the Epstein case.
Angel Urena, Clinton’s spokesman, on Friday issued a statement saying: “This is not about Bill Clinton. It never was, and it never will be.”
“The White House didn’t hide these files for months only to get rid of them late Friday to protect Bill Clinton. This is about protecting themselves from what comes next, or from what they will try to hide forever.” Unemployment.
The documents released Friday included a number of materials that had already been made public through other means, including lawsuits, court filings and previous publications from the House Oversight Committee.
One new piece of information was the 1996 complaint Maria Farmer filed with the FBI alleging that Epstein stole and sold nude photos of her 12- and 16-year-old sisters. Farmer sued the government in May this year, accusing it of failing to protect her and other victims of Epstein.
The status of the case is pending, and the government has not yet responded to the allegations other than a request to transfer the case from Washington, D.C., to the Southern District of Florida.
Clinton was photographed with Epstein in several photos and was also photographed in a hot tub with someone whose face was obscured. He was also photographed swimming in a pool with Maxwell and with other women whose faces were obscured. The context and history of the images are unclear. Clinton traveled on Epstein’s plane four times, according to A.J Statement 2019 From his spokesman.
There were a few references to Trump in the release. Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wells, told Vanity Fair that Trump appears in the files.
The files included photos of other celebrities, including photos with Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger, actor Kevin Spacey, and the late pop star Michael Jackson.
There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing against Jagger, Spacey or Jackson. The Ministry of Justice did not mention anything in the files that would require investigation into any third party.
The dates of the photos were not clear, and representatives for Jagger and Spacey did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the photos.