Justice Department to meet Epstein accomplice Maxwell Thursday, US media reports.
Ghislaine Maxwell Interview Aims to Ease Trump’s Epstein Tension
The Department of Justice is set to meet Ghislaine Maxwell, the former British socialite convicted in 2021 for trafficking minors on Jeffrey Epstein’s behalf. The interview, scheduled for Thursday in Tallahassee, Florida, is part of President Donald Trump’s effort to calm growing outrage among his supporters over the handling of Epstein’s case.
Maxwell’s 20‑Year Sentence
- Maxwell is serving a 20‑year term after her 2021 conviction for sex trafficking minors.
- Jeffrey Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for his own pedophile trafficking case, was Maxwell’s imprisoned accomplice.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s Role
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who served as former President Trump’s personal lawyer for his 2024 hush‑money trial, is expected to meet Maxwell. Blanche stated on Tuesday:
“If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say.”
Trump’s Push for Transparency
Trump’s administration is attempting to defuse escalating anger among Republican supporters who view the Epstein case as a cover‑up involving high‑level connections. A Wall Street Journal report on Wednesday claimed that Trump’s name appeared among hundreds found during a review of DOJ documents on Epstein. The White House has denied this claim.
Controversial Claims and Legal Fallout
The same paper, last week, alleged that Trump wrote a sexually suggestive birthday letter to Epstein in 2003. Trump has sued for at least $10 billion over the story. Many core supporters demand more transparency on the Epstein case; Trump, who has historically promoted conspiracy theories, promised to deliver that upon retaking the White House in January, but he has since dismissed the controversy as a “hoax.” The DOJ and FBI released a heavily‑criticized memo this month asserting that the so‑called Epstein files did not contain evidence justifying further investigation.
White House Efforts to Shift Public Attention
The White House has promoted unfounded claims that former President Barack Obama led a “years‑long coup” against Trump following his 2016 victory. The extraordinary narrative claims that Obama ordered intelligence assessments to be manipulated to accuse Russia of election interference to help Trump. However, four separate criminal, counterintelligence, and watchdog probes between 2019 and 2023 concluded that Russia did interfere and, in various ways, helped Trump.
