This is the first time Trump has commented on the matter since the Justice Department began releasing related files on the 19th. He also stated that the controversy surrounding Epstein has blurred the focus on the Republican Party’s achievements.
Speaking to the media at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, Trump said, “This whole Epstein affair is an attempt to distract attention from the great successes of the Republican Party.”
Former President Bill Clinton appeared multiple times in the first batch of Epstein files released by the Justice Department, and reporters asked Trump for his opinion on this.
Trump responded, “I like Clinton, I’ve always gotten along well with him. I don’t want to see his pictures released.”
Trump also pointed out, “I’m in the pictures too. Everyone associated with this guy (Epstein) at the time.”
Trump said he didn’t like the release of photos of Clinton and others, describing it as a “terrible thing.”
He continued, “Clinton is a mature person, he can handle it.”
Trump said, however, the problem is that other people who simply met Epstein years ago might be exposed, “including respected bankers, lawyers, and others.”
The Republican president said many people are very angry about the release of the photos because the people in the photos “actually have nothing to do with Epstein.”
Trump said, “But just because he was at a party, you ruin someone’s reputation.”
Epstein died in 2019 in a New York prison cell while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges; the official ruling was suicide.
This article is from Radio France Internationale (RFI) news website.
