The president took the Epstein controversy in a new direction, commenting specifically on one of the most prominent victims of Epstein’s sexual abuse.
White House officials were no doubt hoping to see the Epstein scandal start to fade away.
Then Donald Trump decided to comment on Virginia Giuffre — one of the most prominent victims of Epstein’s sexual abuse. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-07-29T20:23:01.213Z
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-jolts-epstein-scandal-new-comments-virginia-giuffre-mar-lago-spa-rcna221827
But, no. The president instead has committed to a wildly different line, in which he ended his friendship with Epstein because the late millionaire sex offender tried to poach members of his staff.
In a Q&A with reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday afternoon, Trump not only doubled down on the line, he also elaborated on a specific name for the first time.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:iu4j537hox5huj4bwnwgub4z/post/3lv4q5ebnkk2l
.....Moments later, the president was asked whether the employees in question were young women. After initially responding that he didn’t want to say, the Republican soon after said, “
The answer is yes.” Trump elaborated:
People who work in the spa — great spa, one of the best spas in the world, at Mar-a-Lago — and people were taken out of the spa, hired by him. In other words, gone. And other people would come and complain, ‘This guy is taking people from the spa.’ I didn’t know that. And then when I heard about it, I told him, I said, ‘Listen, we don’t want you taking our people, whether it was spa or not spa. I don’t want you taking people.’ And he was fine. And then not too long after that, he did it again, and I said, ‘Outta here.’
It was at that point when a different reporter asked whether Virginia Giuffre — one of the most prominent victims of Epstein’s sexual abuse, who died by suicide a few months ago — was one of the poached employees.....
The on-the-record comments clearly suggested that the president was aware of Giuffre — who was a teenager when she worked in the spa at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago — and she was one of the employees Trump was annoyed to see go after Epstein “stole” her.
If White House officials were hoping to see the story start to fade away, those hopes were dashed aboard Air Force One.
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