WASHINGTON — Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee are calling for the appointment of an independent special counsel to investigate evidence of President Donald Trump’s alleged criminal ties to Jeffrey Epstein, according to a new report released Monday.
“Ultimately,” they write in the report, “there is more than sufficient evidence to launch a criminal investigation. »
They acknowledged that Trump’s Justice Department was unlikely to appoint a special counsel, such as Robert Mueller who led the Russia investigation or Jack Smith, who led the investigation into Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat in the lead-up to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The president has repeatedly denied any knowledge of or involvement in Epstein’s criminal activities and said he severed ties long before allegations of sex trafficking by the financier became public.
“None of these allegations are true. This ‘report’ is nothing more than a desperate attempt by crazed Democrats to distract Americans from the Republican momentum generated by President Trump’s historic accomplishments,” White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said. “The president kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of his Mar-a-Lago club because he was a bad guy.”
The report comes on the eve of the midterm elections, when Democrats hope to take control of Congress as the president’s approval ratings plummet on the economy, affordability and the war with Iran. The report points to one avenue that lawmakers should focus on in January if Democrats win a chamber in Congress.
A bipartisan law signed by Congress last November ordered the release of millions of documents related to the case against Epstein, who killed himself in prison while awaiting federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges. Many rich and powerful Americans appear in these files, including Trump, who is mentioned thousands of times.
But only one person was convicted, Epstein’s accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell. No one else has been charged in the United States.
Currently, Democrats’ oversight efforts are limited because they are in the minority in Congress, unable to compel witnesses to testify or seek documents by subpoena without help from Republicans. Even though the Republican-led House Oversight Committee has subpoenaed several Epstein associates and Republicans helped pass the Epstein Transparency Act, they have been largely reluctant to delve further into Trump’s ties to the late sex offender.
Democrats’ power would change dramatically if the party regains a majority in either chamber. They could issue subpoenas with or without Republican help. In addition to the Epstein investigation, Democratic leaders have promised in-depth investigations into allegations of corruption and wrongdoing within the Trump administration and his family’s businesses.
In their report released Monday, Democrats accuse the Justice Department of obstructing investigations into Epstein’s potential co-conspirators, including, they say, Trump. The report alleges that the DOJ worked to conceal the president’s ties to Epstein and said an independent special counsel was needed because Attorney General Todd Blanche, who was once Trump’s personal attorney, was compromised.
“The women who survived Epstein deserve to be heard, Congress must have the complete records required by law, and an independent special counsel must investigate Epstein’s co-conspirators and the Justice Department’s cover-up and ensure that state and foreign prosecutors have the evidence they need to achieve justice,” Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the panel’s top Democrat, said in a statement.
A Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement Monday that the report was “nothing more than a last-ditch effort by House Judiciary Democrats to mislead the public.”
The department complied with Congressional law, “by making public nearly 3 million investigative documents that met the law. The department also offered members of Congress free access to unredacted records. All of these records were part of decades-long FBI investigations and these allegations were investigated by agents at the time.”
The Justice Department spokesperson said the DOJ could not speak to whether there were any ongoing investigations, but noted that the only administration to bring federal charges against Epstein was Trump’s.
Democrats have vowed to continue investigating themselves.
“Given that the Justice Department and the FBI have renounced their law enforcement functions and prosecutorial ethics, there is little reason to believe that this administration will take even this minimal step,” according to the report. “Accordingly, Congress must continue to use its legislative and oversight powers to achieve justice for survivors and end the Trump administration’s shameful, bureaucratic, and political cover-up. »
Trump was at one time friends with Epstein. “I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Great guy,” Trump told New York magazine in 2002, before public allegations of wrongdoing by the financier emerged. “He’s a lot of fun being around,” Trump said then. “They even say he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are younger.”
Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 in Florida state court to misdemeanor counts of soliciting prostitution and recruiting minors for prostitution, in a widely criticized plea deal. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison, although he served about a year before being released.
He was arrested in 2019 on one federal charge of sex trafficking conspiracy and one count of sex trafficking of minor females.
After Epstein’s arrest, then-president Trump distanced himself from the disgraced financier. “I wasn’t a fan,” he told reporters at a press conference in July 2019. “I fell out with him a long time ago.”
The staff report on Epstein released Monday draws on interviews the staff conducted with witnesses, as well as records released by the Justice Department regarding its investigation of Epstein.
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