Trump Denies Authorship of Purported Letter to Jeffrey Epstein, Calling It Fake

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a letter purportedly written by President Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein, which Trump has denied. The letter was included in a 2003 birthday album for Epstein, who was a wealthy and well-connected financier before killing himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial in 2019.

Trump has claimed he did not write the letter or create the drawing of a curvaceous woman that surrounds it, and his legal team is pursuing litigation over the matter. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement: "As I have said all along, it's very clear President Trump did not draw this picture, and he did not sign it."

White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich posted pictures of Trump's signature over the years, stating: "it's not his signature."

The release of the letter comes as Trump faces increasing pressure to disclose more information about Epstein and his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell. Epstein was accused of paying underage girls hundreds of dollars for massages and then molesting them, while Maxwell was convicted of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by him.

The case puts a spotlight on Trump's former friendship with Epstein, which ended two decades ago after a falling-out. Trump has said he cut ties with Epstein because he "stole" young women who worked at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Trump has denied writing the letter and creating the drawing, calling The Wall Street Journal report on it "false, malicious, and defamatory." He stated: "These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don't draw pictures."

The letter includes text framed by a hand-drawn outline of a curvaceous woman and says: "A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret."

The release of the letter comes amid a bipartisan push in Congress for the release of the so-called Epstein files, amid years of speculation and conspiracy theories.

Calls for the release of the records came from Republicans, including Vice President JD Vance. The Justice Department began turning over records from the Epstein sex trafficking investigation to the House Oversight Committee in August, and lawmakers requested documents from the Epstein estate last month.