This undated photo released by the U.S. Department of Justice shows former President Bill Clinton and Jeffrey Epstein. (U.S. Department of Justice Department via AP)
A spokesman for former US president Bill Clinton has accused the Trump White House of trying to shift attention onto Clinton following the partial release of files linked to Jeffrey Epstein.
The Department of Justice published a new batch of documents and images Friday. Many of the files are heavily redacted and contain few references to President Donald Trump, but include several photographs of Clinton.
In a statement posted on social media, Clinton’s spokesman Angel Ureña said the focus on the former president was a deliberate distraction.
“They can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn’t about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be,” Ureña wrote.
‘Not about Bill Clinton’
Ureña said the timing and nature of the release raised questions about what the White House was seeking to avoid.
“The White House hasn’t been hiding these files for months only to dump them late on a Friday to protect Bill Clinton,” he said. “This is about shielding themselves from what comes next, or from what they’ll try and hide forever.”
He added: “Everyone, especially MAGA, expects answers, not scapegoats.”
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Among the images released are photographs showing Clinton swimming in a pool and another appearing to show him lying in a hot tub. The images are undated and provided without context.
This undated, redacted photo released by the U.S. Department of Justice shows former President Bill Clinton in a hot tub with an unknown person. (U.S. Department of Justice via AP)
Clinton was photographed with Epstein several times in the 1990s and early 2000s, before Epstein was first arrested. He has never been accused of wrongdoing by survivors of Epstein’s abuse.
In 2019, a spokesman for Clinton said the former president knew “nothing about the terrible crimes” Epstein later pleaded guilty to.
White House chief of staff cited Ureña also pointed to comments made earlier this week by Susie Wiles, President Trump’s chief of staff, in an interview reported by The Guardian.
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Wiles said there was “no evidence” to support Trump’s repeated claim that Clinton visited Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean, and said the files she had seen did not contain damaging material about Clinton.
“The president was wrong about that,” Wiles said.
Lawmakers challenge release
The release of the files has also drawn criticism from lawmakers involved in drafting the transparency law. California Democratic congressman Ro Khanna said the justice department’s disclosure did not meet the requirements of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which he co-wrote.
The DOJ’s document dump of hundreds of thousands of pages failed to comply with the law authored by @RepThomasMassie and me.
One document, 119 pages of Grand Jury testimony, was completely redacted.
I explain what is missing and what the survivors and their lawyers are still… pic.twitter.com/Wg1xFIM2vE
In a video statement, Khanna said: “It is an incomplete release, with too many redactions.” Khanna and Republican co-author Thomas Massie have said they are considering further action if the justice department fails to fully comply with the law.
The justice department has said more documents will be released in the coming weeks.
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This undated photo released by the U.S. Department of Justice shows former President Bill Clinton and Jeffrey Epstein. (U.S. Department of Justice Department via AP)
