Photos made public a week before Dept. of Justice faces deadline to release Epstein investigation files
U.S. House Democrats released a selection of photos from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein on Friday, including some of Donald Trump, former U.S. president Bill Clinton and the former prince Andrew.
Democratic lawmakers on the House oversight committee released fewer than 100 photos, a fraction of more than 95,000 they received from the estate of Epstein, who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting sex trafficking charges.
Who’s in the photos?
The photos include images of Epstein with a variety of celebrities. In addition to Trump and Clinton, there are photos of him on a beach with entrepreneur Richard Branson and standing in a room talking to lawyer Alan Dershowitz.
Epstein is also seen in two photos with filmmaker Woody Allen, including one that appears to be on a film set, and in two photos with Trump’s former chief of staff Steve Bannon. Allen is also in a photo with Bannon, and in another on an airplane with former secretary of the treasury Larry Summers.
There are also a pair of photos showing Microsoft founder Bill Gates but neither shows him with Epstein. One of them, which also includes former prince Andrew, has been identified by BBC News as having been taken at a summit in London in 2018, with King Charles cropped out.
Another photo shows Trump with six unidentified women, all wearing leis; the Democrats released the black and white photo with the women’s faces obscured. It does not show Epstein, and it was not immediately clear when or where the photo was taken, or why it was in the Epstein estate’s possession.
What do the photos reveal?
The Democrats released the photos in two batches. The first batch of 19 photos released Friday morning showed mostly prominent individuals, along with two that showed sex toys. The second batch of roughly 70 more released Friday afternoon included images of Epstein with a swollen lip, taking a bath, and posing with a book about his scandal.
The photos demonstrate that Epstein hobnobbed with the rich and famous and powerful — and therefore don’t reveal anything that wasn’t already known.
None of the photos show any clear evidence of criminal activity.
Where do the photos come from?
The photos come from the Epstein estate, but were released by Democrats on the House oversight committee.
The Republican-led committee has been using its powers to demand documents and other material from the Epstein estate. This was the source of the roughly 23,000 Epstein emails made public last month.
“These disturbing images raise even more questions about Epstein and his relationships with some of the most powerful men in the world,” said Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the oversight committee, in a statement.
The Democrats did not explain why they chose these particular photos to release from the 95,000 provided to the committee, nor did they provide details of the dates or locations of the images.
The Republican members of the House oversight committee accused the Democrats of “chasing headlines by releasing a handful of selectively censored and cherry-picked photos.”
Are these photos part of the Epstein Files?
No. The so-called Epstein Files are the records held by the U.S. Department of Justice pertaining to the criminal investigations into Epstein, his sex trafficking activities and his associates.
Under a new law passed by Congress and signed by Trump last month, the DoJ is compelled to release all non-classified investigative files in its possession related to Epstein by next Friday.
What is the political angle here?
The move by the Democrats to release the photos is being seen both as a political tactic to keep Trump’s long-ago friendship with Epstein in the public’s mind and a pressure tactic to make sure the Department of Justice releases all the investigative material required by law next week.
Trump has said his friendship with the financier ended in the early 2000s, before Epstein faced sex trafficking charges.
During last year’s presidential election campaign, Trump supported releasing the Epstein Files, a cause then championed by some prominent Republicans who have since become key figures in the Trump administration, including Attorney General Pam Bondi.
On Friday, the White House accused the Democrats of “trying to create a false narrative” about Trump and Epstein with the release of the photos.
“The Trump administration has done more for Epstein’s victims than Democrats ever have by repeatedly calling for transparency, releasing thousands of pages of documents, and calling for further investigations into Epstein’s Democrat friends,” said White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson.
What people in the photos have said about Epstein
Clinton has acknowledged that he travelled on Epstein’s private jet but has said through a spokesperson that he had no knowledge of the late financier’s crimes. Clinton has also never been accused of misconduct by Epstein’s known victims.
Andrew lost his royal titles and privileges this year amid new revelations of his ties to Epstein, though he has denied wrongdoing.
Summers, who is also a Harvard professor and the university’s former president, announced last month he would step back from public commitments after the release of emails from the Epstein estate showed he kept up a long correspondence with the sex offender.
“I am deeply ashamed of my actions and recognize the pain they have caused. I take full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr. Epstein,” he said in a statement at the time.
