{"id":17980,"date":"2026-04-07T08:11:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T15:11:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/?p=17980"},"modified":"2026-04-08T09:00:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T16:00:25","slug":"the-epstein-spectrum-the-atlantic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/?p=17980","title":{"rendered":"“THE EPSTEIN SPECTRUM”, The Atlantic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Black-and-white<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Illustration by Paul Spella \/ The Atlantic. Sources: Department of Justice; Rick Friedman \/ Corbis \/ Getty; Mark Mainz \/ Getty; Reuters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to News<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a cease fire, part real in the short term perhaps, part delusion in the long term for certain, began to make a halting beginning today, with the major parties telling completely contradictiory stories in The Middle East War started by the Israeli-American attack on Iran, there are too many questions to fit on the table. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For today, we focus on one of the main purported reasons, perhaps the main reason, for the sudden unexplained attack by Trump in starting the war. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran needed to be taken apart a long time ago, with fundamentalist brutality and nuclear alchemy doig their terrible work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Except that was done in the most important way at the end of the Obabma years in a landmark treat that was provably working on nuclear weapons which Trump ripped up. The rest was written at that point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But departing from this and the many other questions that can’t fit on the table at the moment, which we will return to, we focus in full on the notion that the war was in no small part of misdirection from Epstein.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This seems ludicrous on the face of it. No matter how horrible a pediphile and sexual abuser and trafficker he and his sidekick from hell, ghislaine maxwell, were (and are), how can this measure up to dymanics that could destroy any sense of international order and blow up the world?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even we, who have worked to tear down the curtain of child sex abuse everywhere, the worst crime of the human species, along with other related abuse victimizing half the children on earth–this seemed a bridge too far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until the survivors kept putting it in our faces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until the scope became more and more unimaginable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until the people who abhorred it across the political spectrum made it their issue-the issue they fiercely refused to let go of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until a man ran for President screamed it had to all come out and the perpetrators all had to face the reckoning–until he was found liable for sexual abuse and accused beyond this and once elected tried to run from the Epstein issue as fast as he could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who found allies on the left and right, spoken or unspoken, who would do anything not to be found out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With those betrayed on the left and the right ready to fight for the full truth to come out until the end of time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The American people demanded the reckoning as the movement grew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that the members of Congress would have hell to pay if they didn’t vote with only one not joining to demand that the files be released.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Trump caved by necessisit and signed the bill and acted as if he’d never taken any other position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then the real action began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A full vetting of these files, these milions of words, revealed a convergence of the most powerful and richest men in the world. The first reading was breathtaking. The second came as close as anything could to destroying the capacity to breathe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For now, we end with the incomprehensible experience created by Josh Tyrangiel<\/a> in The Atlantic of this convergence not just from hell, but defiing hell–in all its enabling delusional manifestations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here it is”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Black-and-white
Illustration by Paul Spella \/ The Atlantic. Sources: Department of Justice; Rick Friedman \/ Corbis \/ Getty; Mark Mainz \/ Getty; Reuters.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

IDEAS<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A moral exercise in a moral desert<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0Josh Tyrangiel<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Illustrations by Colin Hunter<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article was featured in the One Story to Read Today newsletter. <\/small><\/em>Sign up for it here.<\/small><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some people in the Epstein files are monstrously gross. Some are moderately gross. Some are situationally, aspirationally, or cosmetically gross. And it is also quite possible that some may be no grosser than you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The files run to nearly 3.5 million pages. I\u2019ve lost hours to the search bar<\/a>, feeding it boldface names and receiving, almost unfailingly, a bright pellet of righteousness in return. Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s correspondents who were most interested in sex were generally careful to be euphemistic about it\u2014they were not waiting with excitement for an \u201cunderage girl\u201d but for \u201cmy surprise\u201d or a \u201cgift.\u201d Most of the others weren\u2019t careful about anything. They preened. They flattered. They abased themselves before a man they must have known wasn\u2019t what he presented himself to be\u2014but whose private jet was very real.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rot is undeniable, and it\u2019s produced a moral backlash that sometimes flattens everyone into the same shade of stain. But the person who looks the other way is not the same as the person who looks for victims. The person who flatters is not the same as the person who abuses. The person who borrowed money from a monster is not necessarily a monster. Every holy text understands that sins are not equal, and neither are sinners. The unholy Epstein files deserve the same clarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reading these exchanges as individual acts rather than a monolith is a useful exercise because you can begin to see how at least some otherwise-decent people\u2014in a weak moment, in the wrong circumstance\u2014behaved the way they did. Katie Couric and the former Prince Andrew are both Epstein correspondents\u2014which turns out to be about as analytically useful as noting that Taylor Swift and Adolf Hitler both visited Warsaw. Couric complimented Epstein\u2019s lasagna. Andrew has been accused of having sex with a teenage victim of Epstein\u2019s trafficking network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s an easy one. But the files get weirder, and more complex. Leon Botstein is the president of Bard College, a renowned \u201cpublic intellectual,\u201d and a guy with acute fundraising needs (Bard ain\u2019t Harvard). While cultivating Epstein as a donor, Botstein was willing to play down to the level of his correspondent\u2014offering favors, promiscuously tossing around the word friendship<\/em>. So far as we know, he never wrote anything repellent\u2014though more communication could always emerge. But he was aware<\/a> of Epstein\u2019s 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor; he also apparently owed Epstein tens of thousands of dollars for the purchase of a rare watch. Botstein, a watch collector, has said that he helped Epstein find the Swiss pocket watch, and \u201cfelt obliged to make the parties whole\u201d after Epstein decided he didn\u2019t want it anymore. I honestly don\u2019t know how to assess that. I\u2019ve also never had to raise money for a classics department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The files remain a deep and largely unexplored cavern of information. Judgment may change with the facts. The following buffet of names is not comprehensive, only representative of the many categories of Epstein correspondents. The exercise isn\u2019t a defense of anyone swept up in the Epstein drift net\u2014many of whom have issued statements of regret for actions they don\u2019t try to defend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What follows is an attempt at proportion and calibration. Not absolution. Not exoneration.\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UNFORTUNATE BYSTANDERS<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In the multigigabyte data set mined from Epstein\u2019s emails, many well-known people are discussed, debated, or merely mentioned\u2014often in articles and messages forwarded among Epstein and his associates. Others appear only as names or phone numbers in Epstein\u2019s black book, sometimes with no evidence that Epstein even knew them. This is where the Epstein files are least sinister\u2014and most absurd. (Disclosure: I was once suggested to Epstein as someone he might contact, post-conviction, if he hoped to be taken more seriously as a thinker. It was terrible advice! And no, I never met or corresponded with Jeffrey Epstein.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LEBRON JAMES<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

THE GOAT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals, even though they had the ball in the final seconds of the game\u2014shooting guard J. R. Smith didn\u2019t know the score and dribbled out the clock. Epstein\u2019s assistant emailed<\/a> her husband about the viral screwup: \u201cLebron pissed.\u201d So, yeah, LeBron James is \u201cin\u201d the Epstein files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SAL KHAN<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

TUTOR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The founder of Khan Academy\u2014one of the purer things on the whole internet\u2014appears in a 2013 automated email<\/a>thanking Epstein for creating a Khan Academy account and encouraging him to explore \u201cphysics, finance, and history.\u201d Epstein had once taught physics at the Dalton School in New York, though he had long since left. What he did with the account is unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JON STEWART<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

COMEDIAN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a midnight email<\/a> in 2015, Epstein asked the producer Barry Josephson (Enchanted<\/em>, Dirty Grandpa<\/em>) for thoughts on a theoretical Woody Allen stand-up special. Josephson suggested that \u201csomebody like Jon Stewart could host\/narrate.\u201d Stewart mocked the mention on his show<\/a>. \u201cExcuse me? I am offended<\/em>. \u2018Somebody like <\/em>Jon Stewart?\u2019 \u2026 Do I have the offer or is this an audition?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BAN KI-MOON<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

FORMER UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February 2013, Epstein brainstormed<\/a> names of people someone called \u201cbill\u201d might like to meet. Among them: Anne Hathaway, the prime minister of Qatar, Victoria\u2019s Secret models, and Ban Ki-moon. A subsequent email<\/a>suggests that \u201cbill\u201d was likely Bill Gates. (I found no evidence that this invitation-by-dartboard gathering ever occurred.) Months later, Jean-Luc Brunel\u2014Epstein\u2019s alleged French scout for trafficking victims (see: \u201cBeyond Gross\u201d below)\u2014emailed Epstein to say he had seen Ban at Cinderella<\/em> on Broadway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHOOPI GOLDBERG<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

TELEVISION PERSONALITY<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2013, a person whose name has been redacted asked<\/a>Epstein if he\u2019d be willing to rent out his private jet to the White Feather Foundation so it could fly Goldberg to Monaco for a charity ball. The person offered to pay for fuel, but gently reminded Epstein that any money the nonprofit saved would be donated to water conservation. Plus, they noted, it happened to be the International Year of Water Cooperation. \u201cno thnaks,\u201d Epstein replied. Goldberg should thnak her lucky stars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

J. K. ROWLING<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

AUTHOR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She Who Must Not Be Named was named\u2014in a promotional invitation<\/a> to the Broadway debut of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child<\/em>. The publicist Peggy Siegal requested tickets on Epstein\u2019s behalf (see: \u201cBeyond Gross\u201d), but Epstein was never added to the guest list, and he was turned away at the door. Siegal later<\/a> requested<\/a> an apology for the oversight. \u201cNeither I, nor anybody on my team, ever met, communicated with or invited Jeffrey Epstein to anything,\u201d Rowling has said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BRAD PITT<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

MOVIE STAR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One Epstein accuser, Annie Farmer, alleged<\/a> that when she was 16, Epstein caressed her hand and foot during a 1996 screening of Pitt\u2019s film 12 Monkeys<\/em>, and later assaulted her. In 2013, Epstein received tickets<\/a> from what seemed to be a publicist\u2019s email to a screening of Pitt\u2019s zombie thriller, World War Z<\/em>. A person whose name has been redacted attended and later told<\/a> Epstein that \u201cBrad Pitt looked cute.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FUNDRAISING MANIACS<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Intellectuals and other prominent people who treated Epstein as a Medici-style patron of science or ideas. Many appeared oblivious to the implications of accepting support or vacation invitations from a convicted sex offender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LEON BOTSTEIN<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

PRESIDENT, BARD COLLEGE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2011, Bard High School Early College received an unsolicited $75,000 gift from Epstein. Botstein subsequently courted Epstein for additional donations. In 2012 he fell ill while on a boating trip near Epstein\u2019s island; it\u2019s unclear if he stayed on the island or not. In 2015, after a story broke about Prince Andrew\u2019s ties to Epstein, Botstein reached out<\/a> to say he was sorry about the \u201ctabloid publicity\u201d: \u201cTrue friendship, in my view, is among the most honorable and rare of virtues. And I value our friendship, so if there is any way I can be of help, let me know.\u201d The following year, Botstein received $150,000<\/a> in consulting fees from Epstein\u2019s foundation Gratitude America; Botstein says he donated the sum to Bard as part of a $1 million gift. Botstein has said<\/a> he pursued the relationship \u201cin fulfillment of my responsibilities as the chief fundraiser for the College.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

MARTIN NOWAK<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

MATHEMATICIAN, BIOLOGIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the nine years leading up to his conviction, Epstein donated more than $9 million<\/a> to Harvard, $6.5 million of which funded the Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, which Nowak directed. After Harvard\u2019s president banned gifts from Epstein around the time of his 2008 conviction, Nowak continued to bring Epstein to the PED offices (yes, they were actually called that)\u2014likely at least 40 times from 2010 to 2018, according to a Harvard report\u2014providing him with an office and a key card. Nowak was placed on administrative leave<\/a> in 2020, and again in 2026 after newly released documents revealed that Epstein\u2019s assistant had emailed details about a flight for Nowak to Epstein\u2019s island in 2014. Some of their emails are unsettling. In one exchange, Nowak wrote<\/a>, \u201cour spy was captured after completing her mission.\u201d Nowak told The Atlantic<\/em> that \u201cI detest the crimes Epstein has committed\u201d and that he regrets accepting his support. In a blog post titled \u201cConfusion<\/a>,\u201d he wrote that the line about \u201cour spy\u201d comes from a video game, and that it sometimes reoccurs to him \u201cafter having solved a small mathematical problem.\u201d He said he did not understand Epstein\u2019s response, which was: \u201cdid you torture her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DICK CAVETT<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

TALK-SHOW HOST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cavett\u2019s wife, Martha Rogers, sought Epstein\u2019s help in funding a possible PBS documentary about Cavett with a proposed budget of roughly $500,000. The idea collapsed after WNET, the public-media nonprofit, conducted a background check and decided that Epstein should not be involved. Cavett nevertheless continued to correspond warmly with Epstein for years after his conviction. In a 2017 email, Cavett wrote<\/a>: \u201cYour salon lunches are a great pleasure. And the food! My god, how you, with all you do, find time to spend in the kitchen preparing those fine dishes is beyond me. Do you have a favorite apron?\u201d (Rogers told The New York Times<\/em> in 2026 that she and her husband thought Epstein \u201chad paid his dues\u201d and that the \u201csmart, interesting people\u201d in Epstein\u2019s circle couldn\u2019t \u201call be wrong.\u201d But \u201cwe all were.\u201d)\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

EMBARRASSING SOCIAL ENTHUSIASM<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Status seekers who, with varying degrees of intensity, corresponded or spent time with Epstein or Maxwell. Even if they reached out for ostensibly respectable reasons (a few didn\u2019t), the flattering tone in many of these emails reveals a delight at being in Epstein\u2019s orbit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KATIE COURIC<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

JOURNALIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Couric went to a 2010 dinner celebrating then-Prince Andrew at Epstein\u2019s Upper East Side mansion, two years after Epstein\u2019s conviction. Couric emailed<\/a> Epstein to thank him: \u201cthe lasagna was ROCKIN\u2019!\u201d In 2011, after news of this dinner broke, Couric emailed Siegal, \u201cOy, thanks for the Jeffrey Epstein invite…it\u2019s brought me a world of trouble!\u201d In 2023, Couric admitted<\/a> that she \u201cshould have done a little more research,\u201d but claimed that \u201ca lot of the stuff about him hadn\u2019t come out yet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

CASEY WASSERMAN<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

TALENT AGENT, CHAIR OF THE 2028 LOS ANGELES OLYMPICS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wasserman was married in 2003 when he exchanged flirtatious emails with Ghislaine Maxwell. She offered a massage that \u201cwould drive a man wild.\u201d He asked, \u201cWhat do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?\u201d Embarrassing? Yes. Skeevy? Also yes. But there\u2019s no evidence that Wasserman corresponded with Epstein himself. And his last recorded correspondence with Maxwell came five years before Epstein\u2019s first conviction. Wasserman has not responded to calls to step down from the Olympics, and has said, \u201cI deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell, which took place over two decades ago, long before her horrific crimes came to light.\u201d Still, after some clients left his agency in protest, Wasserman bent to Hollywood\u2019s famous zero-tolerance policy for lechery and announced plans to put the company up for sale. The estimated $2 billion valuation<\/a>should ease the sting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"EFTA02332508_20casey_20wasserman_20massage_20email5.png\"\/
Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

CHRIS TUCKER<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

COMEDIAN, ACTOR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2002, the Rush Hour<\/em> star traveled on Epstein\u2019s private jet with Kevin Spacey and Bill Clinton on a trip across Africa to raise awareness about HIV. A woman named Juliette Bryant, who has accused Epstein of sexual abuse and of trafficking her for years, met Epstein on that trip, when she was 20 and living as a student in Cape Town. She says Epstein was described to her as \u201cthe King of America<\/a>\u201d; the fact that his retinue included a president gave credence to that idea, though Bryant does not accuse Clinton or any of the other men on the trip of wrongdoing. When asked about Epstein in a podcast interview last year, Tucker said<\/a>, \u201cWe were going to Africa to save lives,\u201d adding, \u201cYou don\u2019t know people\u2014what they do in their private lives.\u201d But even after Epstein\u2019s 2008 conviction, emails indicate<\/a> that Tucker visited Epstein\u2019s Palm Beach mansion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

ELON MUSK<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

WORLD\u2019S RICHEST MAN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Musk exchanged emails with<\/a> Epstein in 2012 and 2013, hoping to attend parties, including on Epstein\u2019s island, which he planned to visit at least <\/a>twice<\/a>, though the trips fell through because of scheduling conflicts. In one exchange, Epstein warned that \u201cthe ratio on my island might make Talilah uncomfortable,\u201d referring to Musk\u2019s then-partner, Talulah Riley. Musk replied: \u201cRatio is not a problem for Talulah.\u201d In another email, from September 2013, Epstein invited<\/a> Musk to his New York residence, writing that the UN General Assembly was in session, which meant that \u201cmany interesting people\u201d would be over. Musk responded that watching \u201cUN diplomats do nothing would be an unwise use of time.\u201d Epstein shot back: \u201cdo you think i am retarded, . ? just kidding , there is no one over 25 and all very cute.\u201d Musk doesn\u2019t seem to have gone, but he did attend a 2015 dinner with Epstein and other tech executives, including Mark Zuckerberg; Musk can be seen in a photo of the gathering that Epstein emailed to himself. Musk has said<\/a> that he \u201cREFUSED\u201d Epstein\u2019s invitations to his island, has<\/a> \u201cnever been to any Epstein parties ever,\u201d and has repeatedly called \u201cfor the prosecution of those who have committed crimes with Epstein.\u201d He also tweeted, in 2025: \u201c@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

HOWARD LUTNICK<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

COMMERCE SECRETARY<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lutnick visited<\/a> Epstein\u2019s New York residence with his wife in 2005 but claimed that he left mid\u2013house tour and cut ties with Epstein after entering a room with a table surrounded by candles that Epstein said was for getting \u201cthe right kind of massage.\u201d But documents indicate that the men continued emailing for years. Lutnick also admitted in a Senate hearing that he visited Epstein\u2019s island with his family in 2012 for lunch. He told a congressional committee that he was sailing in the area, and that\u2014in case anyone was worried\u2014after the meal \u201cwe left with all of my children with my nannies and my wife.\u201d Lutnick maintains<\/a> that he has \u201cdone absolutely nothing wrong in any possible regard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SOON-YI PREVIN<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

WOODY ALLEN\u2019S WIFE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many of these people were most connected to Epstein early in the decade, and later distanced themselves. Not Previn. In 2017, she thanked Epstein, who had connections with Bard President Leon Botstein (see: \u201cFundraising Maniacs\u201d above), for helping her daughter gain admission to Bard College. (A spokesperson for Botstein has denied<\/a> that Epstein helped her get into Bard.) But much of her correspondence is devoted to shit talking. Regarding the 15-year-old girl involved in Anthony Weiner\u2019s sexting scandal, Previn wrote<\/a>: \u201cShe knew exactly what she was doing and how vulnerable [Weiner] was and she reeled him in like fish to bait.\u201d On the 2018 film<\/a>Beautiful Boy<\/em>, starring Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet: \u201cI\u2019m glad that prick Chalamet\u2019s movie did not get a good review.\u201d A representative for Previn declined to comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PETER ATTIA<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

LIFESTYLE GURU<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attia appears in more than 1,700<\/a> Epstein documents corresponding about science and medicine. (Though some emails may be duplicated in the files.) He will likely always be remembered for a 2016 email<\/a> with the subject line \u201cconfirmed,\u201d in which he wrote: \u201cPussy is, indeed, low carb. Still awaiting results on gluten content, though.\u201d Being gross in private remains a cherished American freedom\u2014just not a very noble one. Attia has apologized for his \u201cembarrassing, tasteless, and indefensible\u201d correspondence with Epstein and said<\/a>, \u201cI was not involved in any criminal activity.\u201d In January 2026 Attia was announced as a contributor to CBS News. He resigned a month later, having never made an on-air contribution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

RICHARD BRANSON<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

AIRLINE BILLIONAIRE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAny time you\u2019re in the area would love to see you. As long as you bring your harem!\u201d Richard Branson wrote<\/a> to Epstein after a visit Epstein made to Branson\u2019s Caribbean island in 2013. A Virgin Group spokesperson later said<\/a>Branson was echoing Epstein\u2019s own description of the three women traveling with him, and added that Branson would not have associated with Epstein\u2014or used the word harem<\/em>\u2014had he known about Epstein\u2019s crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Branson was aware of Epstein\u2019s history. In the email, he offered Epstein informal public-relations advice regarding an incident in which he slept with a \u201c17 \u00bd year old woman\u201d: Epstein may have \u201cslipped up many years ago,\u201d Branson wrote, but he had learned his lesson and done nothing against the law. \u201cYes, as a single man you seem to have a penchant for women,\u201d he added, but \u201cthere\u2019s nothing wrong with that.\u201d The spokesperson has said<\/a> Branson\u2019s contact with Epstein \u201cwas limited to group or business settings\u201d and that Branson considers Epstein\u2019s actions \u201cabhorrent.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NAOMI CAMPBELL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

SUPERMODEL<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to see Jeffrey,\u201d Campbell wrote to Epstein\u2019s assistant Lesley Groff (see: \u201cBeyond Gross\u201d) in 2015\u2014and there\u2019s ample evidence that she saw him plenty. Epstein was invited to Campbell\u2019s 40th birthday party in 2010, described in an email as \u201ca private event for her closest friends<\/a>,\u201d as well as a celebration of her 25 years in fashion. \u201cjeffrey will come plus two\u201e if possible\u201e thanks<\/a>,\u201d was the unsigned reply. Emails from 2016 show that she was trying to arrange a ride on \u201cthe plane.\u201d Epstein reportedly invoked the model\u2019s name when luring young women with his supposed connections in the fashion world. Victims later told the FBI that they had seen<\/a> Campbell at his Manhattan mansion and on his island. (Campbell\u2019s lawyer has said that<\/a> she \u201cknew nothing about his appalling criminal conduct\u201d before he was arrested in 2019.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SARAH FERGUSON<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

AUTHOR, EX-WIFE OF ANDREW MOUNTBATTEN-WINDSOR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andrew was always the Prince of Eye Rolls\u2014the British royal most likely to wander into a mortifying scandal or shoot his own toe off on a fox hunt. Sarah Ferguson married him, which makes her 2009 emails<\/a> praising Epstein as \u201cthe brother I have always wished for\u201d and<\/a> \u201ca legend\u201d feel like a grim continuation of the brand. That same year Ferguson wrote<\/a>, \u201cI urgently need 20,000 pounds for rent today.\u2026 Any brainwaves?\u201d In 2010 she dispensed with subtlety and asked for<\/a> \u201c50 or 100,000 US dollars to help get through the small bills that are pushing me over.\u201d Pressed to condemn Epstein in a March 2011 interview with the Evening Standard<\/em>, Ferguson said<\/a>: \u201cI abhor pedophilia and any sexual abuse of children and know that this was a gigantic error of judgment on my behalf.\u201d She then wrote Epstein an apology<\/a>: \u201cI know you also feel hellaciously let down by me\u201d and \u201cI must humbly apologise to you and your heart.\u201d She reached out<\/a> to Epstein again, before an interview with Oprah Winfrey, \u201cto make sure you are aware of this and seek your advice on how you would like me to answer.\u201d\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ALWAYS A CATEGORY OF ONE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

BILL CLINTON<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

42ND PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Epstein visited the White House several times during Clinton\u2019s presidency, and Clinton traveled on Epstein\u2019s jet in the early 2000s. In 2020, The Daily Mail<\/em> published photographs of Clinton on a stop on the way to Africa in 2002 (see: Chris Tucker), receiving a massage from a young woman. Clinton has said that he did not know the woman was an Epstein victim. An undated photo from the files shows Clinton in a hot tub next to a woman whose image is redacted. In congressional testimony, Clinton said he doesn\u2019t know who the woman is. He maintains that \u201cI saw nothing, and I did nothing wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"EFTA00003170.png\"\/
Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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POSSIBLY DUPED, BUT YIKES<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

No group of Epstein affiliates better underscores the fact that criminal liability is not the only indictment of a person\u2019s character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LESLIE WEXNER<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

RETAIL BILLIONAIRE, FORMER VICTORIA\u2019S SECRET CEO<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the Epstein story has a beginning, it\u2019s the 1980s encounter between Wexner\u2014the merchant prince of lingerie capitalism\u2014and an obscure young man with no credentials but formidable swagger. Within a few years, Epstein held power of attorney over Wexner\u2019s personal fortune. The scale of trust is difficult to overstate; Epstein appears<\/a> to have iced out long-standing advisers, insinuated himself into the daily mechanics of Wexner\u2019s private life, and acquired, through arrangements still not fully understood, the Manhattan mansion and private aircraft that would become stage sets for his infamy. Epstein would go on to tout his influence<\/a> at Victoria\u2019s Secret to ensnare young victims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wexner\u2019s name appears in an FBI document <\/a>as a potential Epstein co-conspirator, though no charges were ever brought and no evidence of criminal involvement has emerged. Wexner says he severed ties in 2007 and has since accused him of having \u201cmisappropriated vast sums of money from me and my family.\u201d What the record ultimately suggests is that Wexner was Epstein\u2019s foundational mark, the dupe whose belief convinced other wealthy people to trust a predator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BILL GATES<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

MICROSOFT CO-FOUNDER, PHILANTHROPIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gates met Epstein in 2011, when Epstein was already a registered sex offender. Epstein apparently did not lead with that credential, instead presenting himself as a well-connected intermediary<\/a> who could help channel large-scale funding into science and global health. There\u2019s little direct correspondence\u2014staff members often served as intermediaries\u2014but, according to The New York Times<\/em>, Gates emailed colleagues after their first meeting: \u201cHis lifestyle is very different and kind of intriguing although it would not work for me.\u201d (A spokesperson told the Times <\/em>that he was referring only to the decor.) The Wall Street Journal<\/em> reported<\/a> that Epstein threatened to expose an extramarital affair Gates had with a Russian bridge player after Gates refused to participate in a charitable fund Epstein had proposed. Gates has called the relationship \u201ca huge mistake\u201d and said he had \u201cno financial dealings with Epstein.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MIROSLAV LAJ\u010c\u00c1K<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

SLOVAK DIPLOMAT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an October 2018 text exchange<\/a> about two women, Epstein wrote: \u201cYou can have them both, I am not possessive.\u201d Laj\u010d\u00e1k replied: \u201cSharing is caring.\u201d At the time, he was Slovakia\u2019s top diplomat. The messages became public in 2026, prompting Laj\u010d\u00e1k to resign as national security adviser. He said he stepped down to spare the prime minister<\/a> political fallout, not because he had done \u201canything criminal or unethical.\u201d He later characterized<\/a> the exchange as \u201cfoolish male egos in action\u2014self-satisfied male banter,\u201d and said<\/a>: \u201cI was never offered sexual services, I never participated in any, I never witnessed any, and I never had any information about them.\u201d\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CREEPY INTELLECTUALS<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Brilliant men at prestigious institutions who used their intellect to justify Epstein\u2019s actions, engaged in a nerd\u2019s awkward fantasy of locker-room talk, sought advice from him, or were otherwise revealed as skeevy horndogs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RICHARD AXEL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

NEUROSCIENTIST, NOBEL PRIZE WINNER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Axel served as a co-director of a neuroscience institute at Columbia University until his correspondence with Epstein became public. The records included an email inviting Axel to Epstein\u2019s island; the neuroscientist got a plane ticket, though a university spokesperson said that he never went. In one undated transcript<\/a>, a person named \u201cRichard\u201d talks with Epstein about olfactory research, Axel\u2019s speciality, and cracks a joke about a 20-year-old prostitute having sex with an old man; Epstein wonders whether \u201csex offender lingere would sell?\u201d Axel later apologized<\/a>: \u201cMy past association with Jeffrey Epstein was a serious error in judgment, which I deeply regret.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LAWRENCE KRAUSS<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

THEORETICAL PHYSICIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2017, after BuzzFeed News<\/em> asked Krauss about allegations against him of sexual misconduct, Krauss reached out to Epstein, as someone experienced in such matters, for advice. Among Epstein\u2019s recommendations<\/a>: \u201cbreak the charges into ludicrous. ogling. jokes.\u201d Krauss also asked an attorney to speak with Epstein<\/a> because he was \u201cfriends with most of the famous people from finance, to business, to Hollywood\u201d who had been \u201cbrought down during #metoo.\u201d In 2018, Krauss announced that he would retire from Arizona State University after a university report<\/a> found that he had propositioned a potential hire and harassed others. In a response, Krauss wrote, \u201cI have never harassed or assaulted anyone.\u201d He later said<\/a> of Epstein that he \u201csought out advice from essentially everyone I knew,\u201d and that they never talked about \u201cthe horrendous crimes he was accused of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NOAM CHOMSKY<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

LINGUIST, PHILOSOPHER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chomsky corresponded with Epstein for years and met him on multiple occasions. In one email, Chomsky\u2019s wife, Valeria, wrote: \u201cThank you for all the gifts.\u201d In 2019, Chomsky advised Epstein on managing his public image after sex-abuse allegations, criticizing<\/a> the \u201chysteria that has developed about abuse of women.\u201d In an undated letter<\/a> of support, Chomsky wrote that he had learned \u201ca great deal\u201d from Epstein about \u201cthe intricacies of the global financial system\u201d and that their relationship was \u201ca most valuable experience.\u201d Chomsky has since had a stroke. In February 2026, Valeria released a statement on both of their behalf acknowledging the \u201cprofound suffering\u201d of Epstein\u2019s victims and Chomsky\u2019s \u201coverly trust[ing] nature.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"e_HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_065656_Clean
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

LARRY SUMMERS<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

TREASURY SECRETARY AND HARVARD MAN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summers is the purest example of this category\u2019s leitmotif: smart people being stupid. Summers\u2014former Treasury secretary, former president of Harvard, former OpenAI board member\u2014maintained a cringeworthy correspondence with Epstein until shortly before Epstein\u2019s death. In one 2019 exchange<\/a>, Summers recounted an awkward attempt to flirt with a woman who was not his wife: \u201cI said what are you up to. She said \u2018I\u2019m busy\u2019. I said awfully coy u are.\u201d Epstein as wingman: \u201cshe\u2019s smart. making you pay for past errors. ignore the daddy i\u2019m going to go out with the motorcycle guy, . you reacted well.\u201d Elsewhere, Summers referred to the same woman\u2014who seems to be a Harvard-educated Chinese macroeconomist and, at the time, a tenured professor<\/a> at the London School of Economics\u2014using racist language. \u201cI\u2019d be happy to have a rational affair w yellow peril,\u201d he wrote. Summers resigned from a number of positions and said that he takes \u201cfull responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr. Epstein.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

ROBERT TRIVERS<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

BIOLOGIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trivers, who died in March 2026, told Reuters in 2015 that Epstein had donated $40,000 for his research, and Epstein called himself a \u201cmajor funder\u201d of Trivers in an email to Chomsky. Trivers, who studied evolutionary biology, defended<\/a> Epstein after his 2008 conviction, saying of his victims: \u201cBy the time they\u2019re 14 or 15, they\u2019re like grown women were 60 years ago, so I don\u2019t see these acts as so heinous.\u201d In July 2019, Trivers called<\/a> this statement \u201cstupid and offensive.\u201d In a 2016 email<\/a>, Trivers referred to \u201ca woman with a dick\u201d as a way to \u201chave your cake and eat it too\u201d and said: \u201cif you as a heterosexual male and have a minor desire to suck a dick then what better organism to do it with than a transsexual? \u2018she\u2019 will smell like a woman, be softer and more hairless like a woman and may, to some degree, actually resemble one morphologically\u2014leaving the dick for you to enjoy in a feminine setting.\u201d\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NORWEGIANS<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Not all of them, but quite a few. Norwegians tend to cluster around strange but noble pasttimes\u2014the biathlon medal podium, Joachim Trier films. Which makes the density of powerful Norwegians in the Epstein files all the more jarring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

METTE-MARIT<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

CROWN PRINCESS<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a 2011 email, she acknowledged that googling Epstein \u201cdidn\u2019t look too good : )\u201d\u2014smiley face included\u2014yet she remained in regular contact with him for several years and spent four nights at his Palm Beach residence in 2013. She has since said<\/a> she \u201cwouldn\u2019t have written a smiley face\u201d if her search had surfaced information that made her realize he was \u201can abuser and sex offender.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THORBJ\u00d8RN JAGLAND<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF NORWAY AND CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jaglund was a frequent guest at Epstein\u2019s properties. A March 2014 email<\/a> from Epstein\u2019s assistant suggests Jagland even used Epstein\u2019s credit card to finance a family vacation in Palm Beach. In 2012 Jagland wrote to Epstein about the \u201cextraordinary girls\u201d he was encountering on a trip through Albania. Epstein later asked the friend he called \u201cmr human rights\u201d to arrange a meeting with Vladimir Putin. \u201cAll this is not easy for me to explain to Putin,\u201d Jagland wrote<\/a> in 2013. \u201cYou have to do it. My job is to get a meeting with him.\u201d No such meeting is known to have taken place. Jagland has since been charged<\/a> with gross corruption in Norway and faces up to 10 years in prison; his lawyers say<\/a> he denies all charges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TERJE R\u00d8D-LARSEN AND MONA JUUL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

DIPLOMATIC POWER COUPLE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

R\u00f8d-Larsen, a central figure in the Oslo Accords, and Juul, a diplomat who would later serve as Norway\u2019s ambassador to Iraq and Jordan, visited<\/a> Epstein\u2019s island with their children. R\u00f8d-Larsen maintained a personal and financial relationship with him for years. Norwegian investigations found that R\u00f8d-Larsen wrote<\/a> visa-support letters for young Russian women described as having \u201cextraordinary abilities.\u201d Some of these women were reportedly later trafficked. Epstein left $10 million to the couple\u2019s children in his will and R\u00f8d-Larsen personally received a $130,000 loan from Epstein in 2013. The couple is under investigation<\/a> by Norway\u2019s financial-crimes squad. R\u00f8d-Larsen\u2019s lawyer said that \u201cthere is no basis for criminal liability.\u201d R\u00f8d-Larsen has said<\/a> that \u201cit was a grave error of judgment on my part to engage in a personal financial relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, and I regret it whole heartedly.\u201d Juul resigned from her ambassadorship in March 2026; according to her lawyer<\/a>, she \u201cdoes not recognise the accusations made against her.\u201d\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SOMEWHAT TO VERY GROSS<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Prominent figures who were friendly with Epstein. Some asked him to connect them with women; some rushed to help him despite his treatment of girls and women; some allegedly harassed or preyed on women themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

STEVE TISCH<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

PRODUCER OF FORREST GUMP, CO-OWNER OF THE NEW YORK GIANTS<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stop scrolling for a second. It\u2019s time to reach for the hand sanitizer. In a series<\/a> of<\/a> 2013<\/a> emails, Epstein offered Tisch introductions to women he described in crudely transactional terms, including a \u201cfake tit\u201d woman with \u201ca 10 ass.\u201d Tisch replied that he would contact her, but asked whether she was a \u201cpro or civilian.\u201d In other exchanges, Tisch asked if a woman was a \u201cworking girl\u201d and whether he should \u201cexpect \u2018trouble\u2019\u201d when he and Epstein hung out. Tisch has acknowledged<\/a> \u201ca brief association where we exchanged emails about adult women,\u201d adding that he deeply regrets associating with such a \u201cterrible person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PETER MANDELSON<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

BRITISH POLITICIAN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a note for a book that Maxwell assembled for Epstein\u2019s 50th birthday, in 2003, Mandelson described the financier as \u201cmy best pal.\u201d Unlike many other Epstein correspondents, the sentiment appears to have been genuine. After Epstein was charged with soliciting a minor, Mandelson\u2014an architect of New Labour, and later Britain\u2019s ambassador to the United States\u2014wrote: \u201cyour friends stay with you and love you.\u201d He offered Epstein both emotional support and apparently privileged financial information. In 2009, Mandelson forwarded an internal email in which the prime minister was urged to consider \u201creleasing value from the very substantial asset base which the Government holds.\u201d Epstein responded: \u201cwhat salable assets?\u201d The next year, Mandelson appeared to give Epstein advance notice<\/a> of a \u20ac500 billion bailout from the European Union to shore up the euro.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another difference between Mandelson and much of this list is that he has faced consequences. He was stripped of his ambassadorship last year, and forced to resign from the House of Lords. In February, Mandelson was arrested<\/a> on suspicion of misconduct in public office, and released on bail pending further investigation. (The BBC reported<\/a> that his \u201cposition is that he has not acted in any way criminally.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TOM PRITZKER<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

HOTELIER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFlexible principles! It\u2019s what I love about lawyers and politicians.\u201d That\u2019s a solid private joke between two pals. Less so when it becomes public, and the recipient is an infamous sex offender. Still, Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotels fortune, thought enough of his relationship with Epstein to keep the banter going well after Epstein\u2019s 2008 conviction should have made such exchanges unthinkable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a 2018 email, Epstein enlisted Pritzker as a kind of concierge for his girlfriend\u2019s trip to Asia. Pritzker asked the woman, Karyna Shuliak, what she planned to do there: \u201cGoing to try to find a new girlfriend for Jeffrey.\u201d Pritzker replied with a smiley-face emoji and \u201cMay the Force be with you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a deposition, Virginia Giuffre, an early and vocal Epstein accuser who killed herself in 2025, testified that Pritzker was one of the men she was trafficked to; a spokesperson told Reuters that Pritzker \u201ccontinues to vehemently deny\u201d it. No criminal charges have been brought. In a February letter to the Hyatt board announcing his immediate retirement as executive chairman, Pritzker acknowledged \u201cterrible judgment\u201d in maintaining contact with Epstein. \u201cThere is no excuse for failing to distance myself sooner.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

STEVE BANNON<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF STRATEGIST, PODCASTER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDude!!!!! Is this real Tell me this is real \u2026 Epic epic epic.\u201d This was how Bannon congratulated<\/a> Epstein after learning in 2008 that he might have been freed from further federal prosecution on sex-abuse charges in Florida. The \u201cepic\u201d event, however, didn\u2019t prevent prosecutors in the Southern District of New York from charging Epstein in 2019. In the months before his arrest, Epstein and Bannon were in very frequent communication. Texts show<\/a> that Epstein encouraged Bannon to look after his health and offered him use of the jet. At the time that Epstein died by hanging in a prison cell, Bannon had been reportedly working on a sympathetic documentary about him. (Bannon has denied that it was sympathetic and said that he was a filmmaker in the business of gaining access to \u201ccontroversial figures,\u201d and \u201cthat\u2019s the only lens through which these private communications should be viewed.\u201d A spokesperson said that he didn\u2019t go on the jet or sleep at his house.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KATHRYN RUEMMLER<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

FORMER WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In emails, the former White House counsel to Barack Obama referred to Epstein as \u201cUncle Jeffrey,\u201d \u201csweetie,\u201d and \u201colder brother<\/a>.\u201d She accepted<\/a> thousands of dollars\u2019 worth of gifts from him, including wine, designer handbags<\/a>, flowers, a massage, and chicken soup when she was ill. At one point Epstein asked her for legal suggestions about how to set a \u201cprrjury trap\u201d for one of his accusers. (For all his riches, Epstein could not afford spell-check.) She replied with advice, and wrote that she wished she were working on the case: \u201cI so wish I were doing it.\u201d Ruemmler told CNN that she had \u201cno knowledge of any new or ongoing unlawful activity\u201d since his 2008 conviction. After the emails became public, she announced that she would resign from Goldman Sachs, where she is chief legal officer and general counsel, in June 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

DONALD TRUMP<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most conspicuous name in the Epstein files\u2014and the most conspicuous name redacted<\/a> from them. In 2002, Trump told<\/a> New York<\/em> magazine that he had known Epstein for 15 years and that he was \u201ca lot of fun to be with.\u201d He added: \u201cIt is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.\u201d Epstein\u2019s black book contained more than a dozen phone numbers for Trump and those around him. Virginia Giuffre wrote in her posthumous memoir that she met Ghislaine Maxwell at Trump\u2019s Mar-a-Lago club, where she had been hired as a towel girl in the spa. In March 2026, the Justice Department released<\/a> summaries and notes from 2019 FBI interviews with a woman who alleged that she had been sexually assaulted by Trump in the 1980s, when she was between the ages of 13 and 15. In response to the allegations, the White House press secretary said: \u201cThese are completely baseless accusations, backed by zero credible evidence, from a sadly disturbed woman who has an extensive criminal history.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, The Wall Street Journal<\/em> reported that Trump\u2019s signature was on a drawing of a nude woman in Epstein\u2019s 50th birthday book, in 2003. The text reads, in part:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Donald: We have certain things in common, Jeffrey.
Jeffrey: Yes, we do, come to think of it.
Donald: Enigmas never age, have you noticed that?
Jeffrey: As a matter of fact, it was clear to me the last time I saw you.
Donald: A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy Birthday\u2014and may every day be another wonderful secret.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Trump has said he cut off the relationship before Epstein was indicted. Regarding the birthday card, he said: \u201cI never wrote a picture in my life. I don\u2019t draw pictures of women. It\u2019s not my language. It\u2019s not my words.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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BEYOND GROSS<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

People whose actions\u2014doing work or favors for Epstein, inviting him to parties, lending him the sheen of someone who chummed around with royalty\u2014supported a lifestyle that made it easier for Epstein to pursue his criminal activities and evade the consequences. Also, David Copperfield.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DAVID COPPERFIELD<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

ILLUSIONIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the late 1980s to 2014, 16 women accused<\/a>Copperfield of sexual assault or inappropriate conduct, some alleging they had been drugged and some saying they were minors at the time. In 2007, the FBI wanted to investigate whether Copperfield and Epstein had referred \u201cpossible victims\u201d to each other, and in 2008 a prosecutor wondered if Epstein might cooperate against Copperfield. Copperfield has denied wrongdoing, and no charges have been filed. Copperfield\u2019s lawyers have said that he and Epstein were not friends, but an FBI memo cites<\/a> evidence that Copperfield frequently gave Epstein tickets to his shows, and in one email, Epstein writes that he tipped Copperfield off about a private Bahamas archipelago<\/a> (now available for rent) that he ended up buying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Copperfield
Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

PEGGY SIEGAL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

PUBLICIST<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every social ecosystem needs a pollinator. In New York, for decades, it was Peggy Siegal, a publicist who used her celebrity Rolodex to dole out access to countless movie premieres and dinner parties. Epstein introduced himself to Siegal via the gift of a Cartier clock and made her his emissary to fame. Siegal appears regularly in the files, doing what she always did: inviting people to things. (Siegal to Epstein about a party for the film Love & Other Drugs<\/em>: \u201cAnn [sic<\/em>] Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal in it and here. Valentino hosting. All young girls. All dressed by VaVa.. Want to come?\u201d) In a New York<\/em> profile in March 2026, she said she had not known the extent of Epstein\u2019s crimes, and described how hurt she had been by the fallout. \u201cOne last thing,\u201d she said at the end of an interview. \u201cI have said nothing about the girls. At the end of the day, I have felt so victimized myself that I have neglected to say that the real victims were the girls.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot
Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

LESLEY GROFF<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Groff appears about 160,000 times in the Epstein files. As Epstein\u2019s longtime executive assistant, she managed his schedule and coordinated his travel. Multiple women who accused Epstein of assault alleged that Groff helped arrange their visits to see him, sometimes to ostensibly give him massages, and facilitated payments to them. Groff has denied<\/a> wrongdoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"EFTA00000166.png\"\/
Department of Justice \/ Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"2025-12-19T224652Z_502820797_RC2TJIA26VB2_RTRMADP_3_USA-TRUMP-EPSTEIN-FILES.JPG\"\/
Department of Justice \/ Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

ANDREW MOUNTBATTEN-WINDSOR<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

FORMER PRINCE OF THE UNITED KINGDOM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Giuffre, Epstein sex trafficked her to Andrew on three occasions. In her memoir, Giuffre recalls that, when prompted by Maxwell to guess her age, Andrew correctly said 17, adding: \u201cMy daughters are just a little younger than you.\u201d Andrew\u2019s attempt to explain his connection to Epstein in a catastrophically tone-deaf televised interview only reinforced the impression of a man less troubled by the underlying conduct than by the inconvenience of being asked about it. He was briefly taken into custody in February, likely in connection with his time as a trade envoy, when he allegedly shared confidential documents with Epstein. (He has denied any wrongdoing, and reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre in 2022.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"EFTA01648170-91.png\"\/
Department of Justice \/ ReutersAndrew with an unidentified woman<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

DANIEL SIAD<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

MODELING SCOUT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Siad is a latecomer to the Epstein files: Most of his nearly 2,000 appearances in the cache of documents were declassified<\/a> in January 2026. In one 2016 email, Stan Pottinger, a lawyer for several Epstein victims, writes that Jean-Luc Brunel (see below) referred to Siad as a \u201c\u2018scout\u2019 or recruiter of girls and\/or women for J. Epstein.\u201d Many of Siad\u2019s communications to Epstein refer to young women he encountered in his travels. In one email, seemingly in response to some modeling profiles, Epstein wrote<\/a> that \u201cmost of these girls would have been good 5 years ago. you need to find new.\u201d Siad\u2019s attorney, M\u00e9nya Arab-Tigrine, has said<\/a>: \u201cThere is no evidence of any crime. He was working as a modelling scout and sending details to Epstein of the women.\u201d She also said that \u201cthe worst thing about these files is that he and Epstein talk in language that we as women don\u2019t like.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

JEAN-LUC BRUNEL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

MODELING AGENT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brunel has been accused of rape, sexual assault, and trafficking minors to Epstein, and an FBI document identified him as a co-conspirator of Epstein\u2019s. Beginning as early as 2016, Brunel secretly entered negotiations<\/a> with lawyers representing Epstein\u2019s victims, offering to turn on him and provide details about his operation. Epstein learned about the talks, and negotiations collapsed. Brunel, who insisted on his innocence, died in a French prison in 2022 while awaiting trial for the rape of minors. Authorities ruled the death a suicide by hanging\u2014the same cause officially given for Epstein\u2019s death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Screenshot
Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CONVICTED<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There are thousands of names in the files. To date, only one person\u2014besides Jeffrey Epstein himself\u2014has been convicted of a crime in connection with his years of abuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GHISLAINE MAXWELL<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

CRIMINAL<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"EFTA00003276-8.jpg\"\/
Department of Justice<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Maxwell was convicted<\/a> of sex-trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking a minor, among other crimes. From Judge Alison Nathan\u2019s June 28, 2022, order sentencing her to 20 years in prison:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

The evidence at trial established that Ms. Maxwell directly and repeatedly and over the course of many years participated in a horrific scheme to entice, transport, and traffic underage girls, some as young as 14, for sexual abuse by and with Jeffrey Epstein. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I will pause on those words for a moment, \u201cby and with Epstein.\u201d It is important at the outset to emphasize that although Epstein was, of course, central to this criminal scheme, Ms. Maxwell is not being punished in place of Epstein or as a proxy for Epstein. Like every other participant in a multi-defendant case, Ms. Maxwell is being punished for the role that she played in the criminal conduct.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Maxwell recruited and groomed children for Epstein to abuse, and sometimes participated in the abuse herself. She was the social choreographer who coaxed victims from massage rooms to private jets to bedrooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And yet we still know remarkably little about the true nature of Maxwell\u2019s relationship with Epstein. Maxwell did not testify at her trial\u2014a spokesperson for her family said she was \u201ctoo fragile.\u201d Which means that she may be one of the last people alive who knows how the enterprise really worked: who paid, who visited, who asked for what. For now, those secrets sit with her in a federal prison. If she ever decides to speak, others may find themselves joining her in this category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amogh Dimri contributed reporting.<\/small><\/em>View Discussion<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Josh Tyrangiel<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Josh Tyrangiel<\/a> is a staff writer at The Atlantic<\/em>. He was previously the editor of Bloomberg Businessweek<\/em> and chief content officer for Bloomberg Media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explore More Topics<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jeffrey Epstein<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Illustration by Paul Spella \/ The Atlantic. Sources: Department of Justice; Rick Friedman \/ Corbis \/ Getty; Mark Mainz \/ Getty; Reuters. Back to News As a cease fire, part real in the short term perhaps, part delusion in the long term for certain, began to make a halting beginning today, with the major parties […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1001004,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55,54],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17980"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1001004"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17980"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17980\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17981,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17980\/revisions\/17981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}