WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Bill Clinton’s investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was released in the first batch of documents released Friday by the U.S. Justice Department, as the White House sought to shift focus from President Donald Trump’s highly anticipated documents.
Among the thousands of documents released were several photos of Clinton. Some of the photos show him on a private jet, including one with a woman in the photo sitting on his lap, her face edited. Another photo shows him in a swimming pool with Epstein’s longtime close friend, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, and a person whose face has also been edited.
Another photo showed Clinton in a hot tub with a woman whose face had been edited. The documents did not indicate when the photo was taken or provide any background information.
Clinton’s ties to Epstein and Maxwell in the late 1990s and early 2000s are well-documented, and the images released Friday are just a few of what Deputy Attorney General Todd Branch said were “hundreds of thousands” of documents relevant to the investigation. However, the images could complicate Democratic efforts to tie Trump to the Epstein dossier, an issue that resonates strongly with Trump’s supporters despite the president’s efforts to encourage his supporters to move forward.
After the photos were released, several White House officials, including press secretary Carolyn Leavitt and senior aide Steven Chang, highlighted the photos in social media posts. Trump did not address the issue as he left the White House late Friday for a speech in North Carolina.
Clinton spokesman Angel Urena said in a statement that the Epstein investigation “has nothing to do with Bill Clinton.”
“There are two types of people here,” he said. “The first group knew nothing and severed ties with Epstein before his crimes came to light. The second group continued their relationship after that. We are the first group. No amount of delay by those in the second group is going to change that.”
Clinton has never been accused of wrongdoing by Epstein’s known victims.
Even before the Justice Department released the Jeffrey Epstein case file, which includes several photos of Clinton, Republicans had focused on the former president and his relationship with the wealthy financier.
Republicans on the House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Bill and Hillary Clinton to testify earlier this year, but received a response that the Clintons wanted to provide a written statement describing the “little information” they had about Epstein.
The committee’s Republican chairman, Rep. James Comer, has asked them to testify in person and has threatened to initiate contempt of Congress proceedings if they don’t show up.
Several former presidents have volunteered to testify before Congress, but none have been forced to do so.
Visitor logs show Epstein visited the White House multiple times during Clinton’s presidency. After leaving office, Epstein assisted some of the former president’s philanthropic efforts. Clinton flew on Epstein’s private jet multiple times, including on a 2002 humanitarian trip to Africa with actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker.
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Associated Press writer Stephen Groves in Washington contributed to this report