US President Donald Trump criticized the recent release of Jeffrey Epstein files as “a terrible thing.” He defended Bill Clinton and other figures featured in the photos, including Michael Jackson, Sir Mick Jagger, and Lord Mandelson. Trump, who is also mentioned in the files, claimed that most celebrities innocently crossed paths with Epstein. Despite Epstein being a convicted child sex offender, Trump believes the focus on the case is a distraction from Republican Party achievements. He expressed admiration for Clinton, suggesting that innocent encounters with Epstein may have occurred in the past.
According to the Daily Mail, Trump blamed Congressional Democrats for pushing the release of the files but acknowledged Epstein’s widespread connections in the 1990s and 2000s. The data dump followed a statement by US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who cited the need to protect Epstein’s victims as the reason for releasing hundreds of thousands more documents in the upcoming weeks. The US Department of Justice was mandated to disclose all files related to the Epstein investigation by midnight on Friday under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
Epstein, a convicted sex offender, was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking. His death was ruled a suicide, with reports of guards falling asleep on duty and falsifying records. The malfunctioning or broken cameras in the holding area exacerbated the situation.