President Donald Trump ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate former President Bill Clinton’s long relationship with infamous financier Jeffrey Epstein after Republicans released thousands of pages of Epstein’s emails.
The move came after Trump erupted at what he called weak Republicans who were playing into what he described as the Epstein hoax.
Trump’s order followed the release of 23,000 pages of emails from Epstein.
In those emails, Epstein repeatedly insulted Trump and tried to cast him as part of the scandal.
Trump rejected those accusations and immediately shifted attention back to Clinton and several Democratic donors.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that he directed Bondi and the Department of Justice to investigate Epstein’s involvement with Clinton, Larry Summers, Reid Hoffman and multiple institutions.
Trump said the goal is to find out what was really going on between Epstein and these influential figures.
Trump called the situation another Russia hoax scam and said all arrows point directly to Democrats.
He added that records show many powerful men spent major parts of their lives with Epstein and on his island.
Clinton has been connected to Epstein for decades.
He appeared in Epstein’s contact book, flew multiple times on the plane known as the Lolita Express and hosted Epstein at the White House. Clinton has denied knowing anything about Epstein’s crimes.
The White House released a softer moment amid the political chaos.
Trump appeared with young children in the Oval Office in a clip that quickly spread online. The video showed him smiling, greeting the kids and offering them gifts.
Bondi announced that a top attorney from the Southern District of New York would take control of the Epstein review. She said Jay Clayton is one of the most capable prosecutors in the country and will lead the inquiry with urgency and integrity.
Trump continued to vent his frustration at members of his own party. He said some Republicans are soft and foolish and have fallen into the Democrats’ trap. He argued that Epstein was a Democrat and insisted Democrats should answer for their own ties to him.
Epstein once claimed Virginia Giuffre spent hours alone with Trump. Before she died, Giuffre said Trump did nothing wrong and treated her kindly during their brief interactions, as the Daily Mail reported.
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released their own batch of emails. Those emails included Epstein’s conversations with Ghislaine Maxwell and author Michael Wolff. The selective releases were aimed at tying Trump to the scandal.
Trump introduced himself as Donald in the Oval Office clip that spread across social media. He also handed out gold coins and presidential pens to the kids. The children laughed as Trump passed out the items at the Resolute Desk.
The White House said the kids stopped by to say hello. The video provided a unique perspective on Trump as he faced mounting political attacks.
White House adviser Margo Martin posted the clip on X, where it collected more than 500,000 views. Trump smiled and joked with the kids as he handed out the gifts.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to the Democrats’ releases with a sharp statement. She said the email dump was a smear campaign designed to create a fake narrative. She highlighted Giuffre’s repeated defense of Trump.
Leavitt reminded reporters that Trump expelled Epstein from Mar-a-Lago in 2007 for inappropriate behavior toward female employees. Giuffre had worked at the club as a teenager.
