U.S. House Democrats Release Photos Showing Trump, Clinton, Gates at Epstein Properties

WASHINGTON — House Democrats unveiled photographs Friday from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate depicting President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton, tech billionaire Bill Gates, and other prominent figures in the orbit of the late sex trafficker, reigniting scrutiny of relationships between powerful men and the disgraced financier.

The 19 images, which Democratic members of the House Oversight Committee said originated from Epstein’s estate, collectively reinforce that the financier maintained connections to a wide array of influential and high-profile individuals whose associations with him now face intense examination.

One photograph shows Trump surrounded by six women wearing leis whose faces were obscured by committee redactions. Another depicts a bowl of novelty condoms bearing a caricature of Trump’s face with text reading “I’m HUUUUGE!” The condoms, displayed with a sign advertising “Trump condom $4.50,” were manufactured by Fishs Eddy, a New York City novelty shop. The National Museum of American History’s online collection describes the item as a “political satire condom.”

Additional images show Steve Bannon and Epstein photographing themselves in a mirror, Clinton with Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and another couple, and Gates with former Prince Andrew. Former Harvard President Larry Summers and attorney Alan Dershowitz also appeared in photographs from the estate.

None of the released images depict sexual misconduct or are believed to show underage girls. The timing, locations and photographers behind the images were not immediately clear.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson dismissed the release as Democrats “selectively releasing cherry-picked photos with random redactions to try and create a false narrative.”

She highlighted Democrats previously linked to Epstein through document releases, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Democratic Del. Stacey Plaskett. Plaskett exchanged text messages with Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing. A Democratic consulting group asked Epstein in March 2013 whether he wanted to participate in a fundraising dinner with Jeffries, though Jeffries has said he has no memory of the message.

“The Democrat hoax against President Trump has been repeatedly debunked and the Trump Administration has done more for Epstein’s victims than Democrats ever have by repeatedly calling for transparency, releasing thousands of pages of documents, and calling for further investigations into Epstein’s Democrat friends,” Jackson said.

The Republican-controlled committee obtained the photographs from Epstein’s estate as part of its ongoing investigation. The panel has released tens of thousands of documents, emails and communications received from the estate that continue opening new investigative avenues.

Lawyers for the estate wrote to the committee Thursday noting that members could review videos and photographs “taken at any property owned, rented, operated, or used by Epstein from January 1, 1990 through August 10, 2019.”

“Like yesterday’s production, it also includes documents that may not be responsive, but that the Estate was unable to confirm whether they were taken at a property owned, rented, operated, or used by Epstein. The Estate has provided minimal redactions to these photographs; the redactions are limited to nudity,” the attorneys wrote.

Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, told reporters the released photographs were “significant” and noted that Democrats on the panel have examined roughly one quarter of the 95,000 images handed over.

“I think anything that we release is significant. I think – clearly, I think people should be able to make judgments on their own as to what they see in these photos. For us, this is about transparency,” Garcia said.

In an earlier statement, Garcia declared it was “time to end this White House cover-up and bring justice to the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and his powerful friends.”

“These disturbing photos raise even more questions about Epstein and his relationships with some of the most powerful men in the world. We will not rest until the American people get the truth. The Department of Justice must release all the files, NOW,” he said.

A committee spokesperson accused Democrats of “cherry-picking photos and making targeted redactions to create a false narrative about President Trump.”

“We received over 95,000 photos and Democrats released just a handful. Democrats’ hoax against President Trump has been completely debunked. Nothing in the documents we’ve received shows any wrongdoing. It is shameful Rep. Garcia and Democrats continue to put politics above justice for the survivors,” the spokesperson said.

CNN has contacted representatives for Bannon, Clinton, Gates, Branson, Summers, Dershowitz and Mountbatten-Windsor seeking comment.

Clinton has never faced accusations by law enforcement of wrongdoing related to Epstein, and a spokesperson has repeatedly stated he severed ties with Epstein before his 2019 arrest on federal charges and didn’t know about his crimes.

A Gates spokesperson has repeatedly denied that Epstein ever worked for him. Gates previously expressed regret about meeting Epstein, telling CNN’s Anderson Cooper in 2021: “It was a huge mistake to spend time with him, to give him the credibility of being there.”

Trump’s connections to Epstein are well documented. The two moved in the same social circles in Manhattan and Palm Beach. However, Trump has not faced accusations of criminal wrongdoing, and he and his team have previously characterized Epstein as a “creep” whom Trump banned from his club.

The images released by Democrats Friday also included photographs of sex toys.

In a recent batch of emails released by the committee, Epstein claimed Trump “spent hours” with one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers, the late Virginia Giuffre. Epstein also wrote in an email that Trump “knew about the girls” — an apparent reference to Trump’s assertion that he expelled Epstein from his Mar-a-Lago club for pursuing young women employed there.

Following those email revelations, Trump and the White House dismissed the issue as a “hoax,” with press secretary Karoline Leavitt stating the emails “prove absolutely nothing, other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong.”

CNN’s examination of thousands of pages of Epstein’s emails reveals that over years, Epstein repeatedly mentioned Trump — sometimes offering analysis of his behavior, sometimes gossiping, and sometimes simply positioning himself as someone with rare insight into the man who had become president.

Others associated with Epstein have faced professional or other consequences for those relationships, despite not being accused of criminal wrongdoing.

Summers took leave from teaching at Harvard and resigned from his position on OpenAI’s board. He has said he is “deeply ashamed” of maintaining ties to Epstein and would work to “rebuild trust and repair relationships with the people closest to me” while stepping back from public roles. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor relinquished use of his royal titles and has denied allegations of misconduct.

Under legislation passed by Congress last month, the Justice Department must release all Epstein files in its possession by December 19.

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who led efforts to circumvent GOP leadership and force the legislation through, warned that DOJ would be committing a crime if it fails to meet next week’s deadline.

“It’s a crime if they don’t. It’s not like they’re in contempt of Congress because they didn’t respond to a subpoena. This is a new law with criminal implications if they don’t follow it,” the Kentucky Republican said.

Massie noted, however, that he was “encouraged” that additional grand jury materials have been released to the DOJ.

Garcia called Friday for the administration to release available materials immediately rather than waiting until the deadline, noting that other photographs are “incredibly disturbing.”

“Right now, our plan is to demand that the president release the files, and we’ll see what he does on the, on the 19th, but I think again, these pictures, some of these photos, are really disturbing. And I know we’ve put some out today. There are many others. And some of the other photos that we did not put out today are incredibly disturbing,” he said.

The photo release occurs amid broader questions about accountability for individuals who associated with Epstein despite mounting evidence of his criminal behavior. While many prominent figures maintained social or business relationships with him after his 2008 conviction on solicitation charges involving a minor, they have offered varying explanations for those continued connections.

The selective nature of the Democratic release—19 photos from a cache of 95,000—inevitably raises questions about what criteria guided the choices. Republicans’ accusation of “cherry-picking” suggests the released images were chosen for maximum political impact rather than representing a comprehensive or random sample.

The redactions applied to faces in some photographs, ostensibly to protect individuals not accused of wrongdoing, create another layer of interpretation challenge. Without knowing who was redacted or why, observers cannot fully assess the significance of social gatherings depicted.

The novelty Trump condoms photograph illustrates the mix of serious criminal investigation and tabloid curiosity that has characterized Epstein coverage. While the item is a commercially available political satire product with no apparent connection to criminal activity, its presence in Epstein’s estate adds to the complex mosaic of his relationships with powerful figures.

The deadline for DOJ file release adds urgency to the controversy. If the department complies with the December 19 mandate, substantially more material about Epstein’s connections and activities will enter the public domain, potentially answering longstanding questions while likely generating new controversies.

For Trump, already facing scrutiny over past associations with Epstein, the photo release creates additional political headaches even as his administration characterizes the matter as a partisan attack. The White House strategy of pivoting to Democratic ties with Epstein reflects attempts to neutralize the issue by emphasizing that connections crossed party lines.

Whether the photo release and impending DOJ document dump ultimately produce new revelations about criminal activity or simply confirm what was already known about Epstein’s social network remains unclear. What is certain is that his victims continue seeking accountability while powerful men who knew him navigate the reputational consequences of those associations.

Source: CNN