Title: Trump Linked to Epstein in Leaked Emails, Democrats Claim

[파이낸셜뉴스] The U.S. Democratic Party released an e-mail containing evidence that U.S. President Donald Trump was involved in a sexual bribery scandal in politics and business. Trump pointed out the temporary shutdown of the federal government, which is currently the longest in history, and accused the Democratic Party of using tricks to divert attention.

According to American media such as the New York Times (NYT), on the 12th (local time), Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Oversight Committee claimed that they had discovered three e-mails mentioning Trump in the Jeffrey Epstein materials received by the Oversight Committee.

Epstein, the president of a famous American investment advisory firm, was arrested on charges of sexual exploitation of minors and prostitution arrangements and committed suicide in prison in 2019. In local politics, there are persistent claims that Epstein led the charge of providing sexual favors to prominent political and business figures, and that there is an investigation record (Epstein file) containing a list of those involved. Over the past few years, local media has consistently raised suspicions that Trump, a former real estate mogul, was involved in Epstein’s crimes.

According to data released by the Democratic Party, in an April 2011 e-mail sent to his girlfriend and accomplice, Gyleine Maxwell, Epstein said that an as-yet-unnamed victim “spent hours at my house with him (Trump)” and that “he was never mentioned once.”

“I want you to realize that that dog that hasn’t barked is Trump,” Epstein wrote. The expression ‘the dog that didn’t bark’ is an idiom that means a person who has not yet been revealed. Maxwell responded, “I was thinking that too.”

Maxwell, who is currently serving a prison sentence, stated in a meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanch in July that Trump was not directly involved in Epstein’s crimes, saying, “I have never witnessed the President in an inappropriate situation.” In relation to this, Democratic lawmakers, citing an anonymous informant, claimed that Maxwell was planning to formally request Trump to commute his sentence.

Epstein also exchanged e-mails about this issue with journalist and author Michael Wolff in 2015, after Trump made his full-fledged debut as a politician. In an e-mail sent to Epstein on December 15, during the Republican presidential primary, Wolf said that in the future, the media would “ask Trump about his relationship with you.” When Epstein asked, “What would you do if you could come up with an answer for him (Trump)?” Wolff responded, “Let him get himself caught.” “If he says he was on (your) plane or never went home, you can attack him later or use it to save him and get him into debt,” he advised.

In an e-mail sent to Wolff in January 2019, months before his arrest, Epstein wrote that Trump, then a first-term president, “knew about those women.” The phrase is presumed to refer to underage women who were victims of sexual exploitation by Epstein.

Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the Democratic ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, said in a statement that the newly released e-mail “raises clear questions about what else the White House may be hiding and about the relationship between Epstein and the president.”

On the 12th, Trump posted on the social media platform TruthSocial, claiming, “The Democrats are bringing up the Epstein hoax again because they are willing to do anything to divert attention from the shutdown and how poorly they have handled so many issues.” “Only a very bad or stupid Republican would fall into that trap,” he added.

“There should be no attempt to divert attention to Epstein or anything else,” Trump said. “The Republicans involved should be solely focused on reopening the country and repairing the enormous damage the Democrats have caused.”

pjw@fnnews.com Reporter Park Jong-won