What did the newly released Epstein emails reveal?

House Democrats this week released a batch of Jeffrey Epstein’s emails, including one from 2019 in which Epstein told Wolff that Donald Trump “knew about the girls.” According to AP and Reuters, it is unclear what Epstein meant by the remark, or whether it referred to his criminal activities involving underage girls. The Democrats also shared a 2011 email in which Epstein told his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell that Trump had “spent hours” at Epstein’s home with one of the victims. The name of the victim was removed in the released version.

Who was the victim mentioned in the emails?

Republicans later said the removed name referred to Virginia Giuffre, who for years accused Epstein and Maxwell of sex trafficking but stated under oath that Trump was not involved in any wrongdoing. Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year, wrote in her memoir that Trump “couldn’t have been friendlier”, reported AP, and that she met him only once while working at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

How has Trump reacted?

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “The Democrats are trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they’ll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the Shutdown, and so many other subjects. Only a very bad, or stupid, Republican would fall into that trap.” The president also called on Republicans to avoid talking about Epstein and focus on reopening the federal government. “There should be no deflections to Epstein or anything else, and any Republicans involved should be focused only on opening up our Country, and fixing the massive damage caused by the Democrats!”

How has the White House responded?

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt accused Democrats of “selectively leaking emails” to “create a fake narrative to smear President Trump.” She said the emails “prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong.”

What do other released documents show?

According to Reuters, House Republicans countered the Democratic release by publishing an additional 20,000 pages of Epstein-related documents. These included years of emails in which Epstein commented on Trump’s political rise and occasionally joked about photographs or rumours, though none appeared to show evidence of misconduct. In one message, Epstein mentioned “photos of Donald and girls in bikinis in my kitchen,” but it was not clear whether he was being serious or sarcastic.

How has Ghislaine Maxwell previously described Trump’s conduct?

In a July interview with the US Justice Department, Maxwell said she never saw Trump behave inappropriately. “The President was never inappropriate with anybody,” she said, according to a transcript cited by AP. “In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects.” Maxwell, serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s trafficking operation, also denied witnessing any “massage setting” or sexual misconduct involving Trump, reported AP.

What are Democrats and Republicans in Congress doing next?

The email release coincided with the swearing-in of Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva, which gave House Democrats a narrow majority to push for more transparency. Grijalva said, according to Reuters, that it was “past time for Congress to restore its role as a check and balance on this administration.” Speaker Mike Johnson’s office confirmed that the House will vote next week on releasing all unclassified Epstein-related files.

What has been the political fallout?

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, told AP that the Epstein files could be “devastating” for Trump and expressed concern that the president might try to “distract” from the controversy. “He might take us to war with Venezuela just to get a distraction in the news,” Pritzker said. Meanwhile, Reuters reported that even within Trump’s own party, frustration has grown. A recent poll found only four in ten Republicans approved of his handling of the Epstein files.

With Democrats preparing a vote to release more Epstein-related documents, and Republicans warning of political motives, thousands of pages from Epstein’s estate remain under review. It is unclear what further information about Trump or other high-profile figures those files might contain.

Epstein’s 2019 email said Trump ‘knew about the girls’: 9 things you need to know

The emails came from a batch of 23,000 Epstein estate documents released as lawmakers debate making all unclassified records public.

By: Express Web Desk

November 13, 2025 09:31 AM IST

1 min read

In a July interview with the US Justice Department, Maxwell said she never saw Trump behave inappropriately. (Photo: @LePapillonBlu2/ X)

A 2019 email written by Jeffrey Epstein to American journalist Michael Wolff has resumed scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s past ties to the late financier. In the message, released this week by House Democrats, Epstein claimed that Trump “knew about the girls”.

The emails were part of a batch of 23,000 documents from Epstein’s estate, disclosed as lawmakers continue to debate whether to release all unclassified records related to the sex offender’s activities. The release immediately drew political reactions, with Democrats saying the correspondence raises new questions about Trump’s relationship with Epstein, and Republicans accusing Democrats of using selective leaks to smear the president.

Here’s a breakdown of what the emails reveal, what remains unclear, and how Washington is responding.

01
What did the newly released Epstein emails reveal?
House Democrats this week released a batch of Jeffrey Epstein’s emails, including one from 2019 in which Epstein told Wolff that Donald Trump “knew about the girls.” According to AP and Reuters, it is unclear what Epstein meant by the remark, or whether it referred to his criminal activities involving underage girls.

The Democrats also shared a 2011 email in which Epstein told his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell that Trump had “spent hours” at Epstein’s home with one of the victims. The name of the victim was removed in the released version.
02
Who was the victim mentioned in the emails?
Republicans later said the removed name referred to Virginia Giuffre, who for years accused Epstein and Maxwell of sex trafficking but stated under oath that Trump was not involved in any wrongdoing.

Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year, wrote in her memoir that Trump “couldn’t have been friendlier”, reported AP, and that she met him only once while working at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.
03
How has Trump reacted?
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote, “The Democrats are trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they’ll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the Shutdown, and so many other subjects. Only a very bad, or stupid, Republican would fall into that trap.”

The president also called on Republicans to avoid talking about Epstein and focus on reopening the federal government. “There should be no deflections to Epstein or anything else, and any Republicans involved should be focused only on opening up our Country, and fixing the massive damage caused by the Democrats!”
04
How has the White House responded?
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt accused Democrats of “selectively leaking emails” to “create a fake narrative to smear President Trump.” She said the emails “prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong.”
05
What do other released documents show?
According to Reuters, House Republicans countered the Democratic release by publishing an additional 20,000 pages of Epstein-related documents. These included years of emails in which Epstein commented on Trump’s political rise and occasionally joked about photographs or rumours, though none appeared to show evidence of misconduct.

In one message, Epstein mentioned “photos of Donald and girls in bikinis in my kitchen,” but it was not clear whether he was being serious or sarcastic.
06
How has Ghislaine Maxwell previously described Trump’s conduct?
In a July interview with the US Justice Department, Maxwell said she never saw Trump behave inappropriately. “The President was never inappropriate with anybody,” she said, according to a transcript cited by AP. “In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects.”

Maxwell, serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s trafficking operation, also denied witnessing any “massage setting” or sexual misconduct involving Trump, reported AP.
07
What are Democrats and Republicans in Congress doing next?
The email release coincided with the swearing-in of Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva, which gave House Democrats a narrow majority to push for more transparency. Grijalva said, according to Reuters, that it was “past time for Congress to restore its role as a check and balance on this administration.”

Speaker Mike Johnson’s office confirmed that the House will vote next week on releasing all unclassified Epstein-related files.
08
What has been the political fallout?
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, told AP that the Epstein files could be “devastating” for Trump and expressed concern that the president might try to “distract” from the controversy. “He might take us to war with Venezuela just to get a distraction in the news,” Pritzker said.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that even within Trump’s own party, frustration has grown. A recent poll found only four in ten Republicans approved of his handling of the Epstein files.
09
What’s next?
With Democrats preparing a vote to release more Epstein-related documents, and Republicans warning of political motives, thousands of pages from Epstein’s estate remain under review. It is unclear what further information about Trump or other high-profile figures those files might contain.