NPR Removes Exonerating Claims About Trump in Epstein Files Story
In a significant edit to a recent article about the Justice Department's release of Epstein files, NPR removed language that presented President Trump as 'totally exonerated' of wrongdoing. The removed section included a quote from a White House spokeswoman and a statement from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, which claimed that Trump was 'totally exonerated by the release of the Epstein files.' The edited article now focuses on the Justice Department's release of additional files and the investigation into the missing documents. This change is notable because it removes a key point of defense for Trump, and instead allows the article to focus on the ongoing investigation and the controversy surrounding the missing files.
Related Changes
By
Stephen Fowler
,
Saige Miller
An NPR investigation finds the Justice Department has removed or withheld Epstein files related to sexual abuse accusations that mention President Trump. Department of Justice and Getty Images/Collage by Danielle A. Scruggs/NPR hide caption
The Justice Department has published additional Epstein files related to allegations that President Trump sexually abused a minor after an NPR investigation found dozens of pages were withheld.
They include 16 new pages that cover three additional FBI interview summaries with a woman who accused Trump of sexual abuse decades ago when she was a minor. Also included are two pages of an intake form documenting the initial call to the FBI from a friend who relayed the claims.
NPR's investigation previously found 53 pages that appeared to be missing from the public database.
Now that these documents are published, there are still 37 pages of records missing from the public database, including notes from the interviews, a law enforcement report and license records.
Law Justice Department withheld and removed some Epstein files related to Trump The Justice Department has repeatedly told NPR that any documents withheld were "privileged, are duplicates or relate to an ongoing federal investigation."
Last week, after NPR's initial story, the Justice Department said it was determining if records had been mistakenly tagged as duplicates and if any were found, "the Department will of course publish it, consistent with the law."
More detail, but less context
The interview documents are part of more than 1,000 new pages published to the Epstein files public database Thursday that also include what appears to be the complete case file from the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell initiated in 2006.
The new documents go into more detail about the allegations made against both Trump and Epstein when the woman was between 13 to 15 years old.
An FBI email summarizing the claims and a Justice Department PowerPoint slide deck note the woman claimed that around 1983, when she was around 13 years old, Epstein introduced her to Trump, "who subsequently forced her head down to his exposed penis which she subsequently bit. In response, Trump punched her in the head and kicked her out."
In the newly-published documents, the woman's described how Trump allegedly put her head "down to his penis" and she "bit the s*** out of it." She alleged that Trump struck her and said something to the effect of "get this little b**** the hell out of here."
During the final interview the woman had with the FBI in 2019, when asked whether she "felt comfortable detailing her contacts with Trump," she reportedly asked "what the point would be of providing the information at this point in her life when there was a strong possibility nothing could be done about it."
The new files do not shed any more light on how credible federal investigators viewed her claims or how they were resolved. Still unanswered, too, is why the allegations were included in a Justice Department slide presentation last year summarizing the cases against Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein. This week, the committee voted to subpoena Attorney General Pam Bondi to answer questions about the files.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Have information to share about the Epstein files? Reach out to Stephen Fowler through encrypted communications on Signal at stphnfwlr.25. Please use a nonwork device.
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− The White House and Justice Department have warned that the raw files released to the public include "untrue and sensationalist claims," and a White House spokeswoman previously told NPR that the president was "totally exonerated."
"Just as President Trump has said, he's been totally exonerated on anything relating to Epstein," White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told NPR in a statement.
+ The White House and Justice Department have warned that the raw files released to the public include "untrue and sensationalist claims."
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to NPR Friday that Trump has been "totally exonerated by the release of the Epstein files."
"These are completely baseless accusations, backed by zero credible evidence, from a sadly disturbed woman who has an extensive criminal history," Leavitt wrote.
− "And by releasing thousands of pages of documents, cooperating with the House Oversight Committee's subpoena request, signing the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and calling for more investigations into Epstein's Democrat friends, President Trump has done more for Epstein's victims than anyone before him.
+ "The total baselessness of these accusations is also supported by the obvious fact that Joe Biden's department of justice knew about them for four years and did nothing with them — because they knew President Trump did absolutely nothing wrong.
− Meanwhile, Democrats like Hakeem Jeffries and Stacey Plaskett have yet to explain why they were soliciting money and meetings from Epstein after he was a convicted sex offender."
Politics Congressional Republicans will also investigate missing Epstein files related to Trump Democrats and Republicans on the House Oversight Committee have demanded answers from the Justice Department regarding the missing files and the department's handling of the release of Epstein documents.
+ As we have said countless times, President Trump has been totally exonerated by the release of the Epstein Files."
The White House also noted a Justice Department statement posted Thursday on X that said there were 15 documents it discovered were "incorrectly coded as duplicative" and there were five prosecution memos that the Southern District of Florida determined could be published while protecting privileged materials.
Politics Congressional Republicans will also investigate missing Epstein files related to Trump Democrats and Republicans on the House Oversight Committee have demanded answers from the Justice Department regarding the missing files and the department's handling of the release of Epstein documents.