Donald Trump lashed out at a reporter who asked about Jeffrey Epstein, as MAGA Republicans continue to grapple with newly released official findings about the disgraced sex trafficker.
The U.S. president was at a cabinet meeting when a New York Post reporter asked Attorney General Pam Bondi about an FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ) memo released this week.
Highlights
- Donald Trump angrily shut down a reporter's question about Jeffrey Epstein during a cabinet meeting, calling the topic over-discussed.
- Newly released FBI and DOJ findings confirm Epstein died by suicide in 2019, with no evidence of a client list or blackmail.
- Attorney General Pam Bondi clarified that the missing minute in Epstein's prison footage was a routine nightly reset, not suspicious.
- MAGA figures like Alex Jones and Laura Loomer claim a government cover-up, demanding investigations and Pam Bondi's firing.
- Elon Musk criticized Trump for not releasing the Epstein files and alleged that Steve Bannon is connected to them.
It found that Epstein died by suicide in prison in 2019 and had no client list. It also found no evidence that Epstein had blackmailed prominent individuals.
Donald Trump lashed out at a reporter for asking about Jeffrey Epstein
Image credits: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
With senior Trump officials previously suggesting the Epstein files would be explosive when released, several Republicans and conspiracy theorists have alleged a cover-up.
The reporter’s question focused on whether Epstein ever worked for an American or foreign intelligence agency and why there was a minute missing from the prison footage released.
But before Bondi had a chance to answer, Trump interjected to berate the reporter.
“Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy’s been talked about for years,” he said.
“We have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things, and are people still talking about this guy, this creep? That is unbelievable.”
Trump then turned to Bondi and asked if she wanted “to waste the time” and if she felt like answering.
“I don’t mind answering,” she replied.
“I can’t believe you are asking a question about Epstein, at a time when we are having some of the greatest success and also tragedy with what happened in Texas. It just seems like a desecration,” Trump added.
Image credits: The White House
Bondi then addressed an interview she did on Fox News back in February, which has been circulating online after the memo’s release.
In the interview, she was asked about Epstein’s client list, and she responded that it was sitting on her desk “right now” to review.
Bondi said she meant that the files relating to Epstein were waiting for her review, not a client list, alongside the JFK assassination files.
The missing minute in the nearly 11-hour prison footage of Epstein’s cell on the night he died was a routine reset of the security footage that happened every night.
Epstein died by suicide in his prison cell in 2019, newly released findings show
Image credits: Davidoff Studios/Getty Images
“We released the video showing definitively, the video was not conclusive, but the evidence prior to it was showing he committed suicide,” Bondi said.
“There was a minute that was off the counter and what we learned from Bureau of Prisons was that every night they re-do that video – it’s old from like 1999 – so every night the video is reset and every night should have the same minute missing.
“So we are looking for that video to release that as well, showing that a minute is missing every night.”
Bondi also said that she had “no knowledge” of Epstein working for U.S. or foreign intelligence.
Image credits: Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
With the DOJ and FBI saying “no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted” with regard to the Epstein files, several MAGA figures have slammed the findings.
Alex Jones and Laura Loomer were among those who alleged a government cover-up of the findings, with Loomer even calling for Bondi to be fired.
“Today, Pam Blondi lied and said the US government has ‘no knowledge’ of Jeffrey Epstein being a spy or agent for an intelligence agency,” Loomer posted on X.
“This is a lie. FBI documents from 2008 prove that Epstein PROVIDED INFORMATION FOR THE FBI ‘AS AGREED UPON.’ Epstein had an agreement with the FBI, which is indeed an INTELLIGENCE AGENCY.”
In a further post, she shared comments made by Vice President JD Vance in 2021 that suggested the Biden administration was keeping the Epstein client list a secret.
Loomer claimed Bondi had undermined direct statements made by Trump and Vance on the list, and said she should be investigated and fired.
Musk has been criticizing Trump and his administration over Epstein
Elon Musk was also among those to question the findings and slam the Trump administration.
He posted on X: “How can people be expected to have faith in Trump if he won’t release the Epstein files?”
Musk also claimed that top Trump ally Steve Bannon was implicated in the Epstein files.
“Bannon is in the Epstein files,” he wrote on X.