The Justice Department on Friday released the transcript and audio recordings of Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s interview with Jeffrey Epstein's accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
The interview, which took place late in July, covered several details about Epstein’s sex trafficking operation and the individuals suspected of being involved. However, according to Maxwell, there was no real smoking gun revealed in the discussion.
Of particular note were Maxwell’s comments on President Donald Trump. In a revelation that likely disappointed Democrats, Maxwell said she had never seen him engage in improper behavior with young girls.
Maxwell indicated that she met Trump in the 1990s “because my father was friendly with him and liked him very much.”
She explained that she met Trump before she became acquainted with Epstein.
“And as far as I’m concerned, President Trump was always very cordial and very kind to me. And I just want to say that I find — I — I admire his extraordinary achievement in becoming the President now,” Maxwell said. “And I like him, and I’ve always liked him. So that is the sum and substance of my entire relationship with him.”
The socialite said she did not know how Trump and Epstein met. “I don’t know how they met, and I don’t know how they became friends,” she said. “I certainly saw them together and I remember the few times I observed them together, but they were friendly. I mean, they seemed friendly.”
Maxwell further noted, “I believe I only ever saw them in social settings. I don’t recall any private settings.”
Maxwell explained that she “never witnessed the President in any inappropriate setting in any way” and that Trump “was never inappropriate with anybody.”
“In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects,” she added. “I actually never saw the President in any type of massage setting.”
The socialite also addressed the controversy that arose after The Wall Street Journal published a report intimating that Trump wrote a salacious letter to Epstein for his 50th birthday that was included in a book of happy birthday messages from high-profile individuals. “There was nothing from President Trump,” she said.
Maxwell made similar statements about former President Bill Clinton, noting that he was “my friend, not Epstein’s friend.”
When asked whether Clinton had ever received a massage during his time with Epstein, Maxwell replied, “I don’t believe he did.”
Epstein’s sex trafficking operation typically involved young girls giving massages before engaging in sexual activities.
“So they spent time on the plane together, and I don’t believe there was ever a massage on the plane. So that would’ve been the only time that I think that President Clinton could have even received a massage,” Maxwell said. “And he didn’t, because I was there.”
Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s victims, made similar comments in 2011 when she said she “never saw him do anything improper.”
“I mean, there was a dinner, lots of laughing, lots of joking, it was just a dinner and then I didn’t have to do anything with Bill Clinton, he was never sexually involved with me. I’ve never witnessed him sexually involved with anybody else,” she said, also noting that he was “a perfect gentleman” during the trip to Epstein’s private island.
The conversation also focused on other high-profile individuals like Duke of York Prince Andrew, former Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz, and others.
Maxwell claimed she never saw Prince Andrew “in the presence of a minor or anybody in a sexual situation.”
However, Giuffre stated that Epstein forced her to have sex with the prince at the age of 17. She said the abuse occurred on three occasions. He later settled a civil lawsuit filed by Giuffre for £12 million, without admitting guilt.
Maxwell further stated that she never saw Dershowitz “in any sexual situation with anyone” or “with anybody that was underage.”
She added, “I never saw him behave in a way that was inappropriate with anybody.”
So far, there doesn’t appear to be any major revelations about Epstein’s sex trafficking activities. But the biggest takeaway from the interview was that Trump was not involved with the sex trafficking ring, which was obvious to anyone except the most virulent Trump haters.
If there had been any shred of evidence that Trump was part of Epstein’s evil activities, it would have been exposed long ago. Democrats threw everything they could at the president during the 2024 campaign while former President Joe Biden was in office. It would be foolish to assume they never tried to look for any indication whatsoever that Trump was involved in sexual activities with minors — especially since they aggressively sought to use the justice system against him.