It’s been one week since The Wall Street Journal reported that Jeffrey Epstein possessed a bawdy birthday letter from Donald Trump inside an album Ghislaine Maxwell compiled for Epstein to mark his 50th birthday in 2003. Though the Journal has described the letter in detail and reported what it said, as well details about other letters in the birthday book, it did not publish any images of them or identify who had provided them. Some of Trump’s defenders, including Vice-President J.D. Vance, quickly attempted to discredit the report by asking where the letter was. Seven days later, it’s clear that there are multiple digital copies of the book, and that the physical birthday book itself is a part of Epstein’s estate, but no images of the letter or birthday book have yet emerged. Here’s what we do and don’t know.
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Does The Wall Street Journal have a copy of the letter?
From its two reports on the birthday book, it certainly seems as though the Journal has seen a digital copy of the book and the Trump letter:
[Ghislaine] Maxwell collected letters from Trump and dozens of Epstein’s other associates for a 2003 birthday album, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Pages from the leather-bound album—assembled before Epstein was first arrested in 2006—are among the documents examined by Justice Department officials who investigated Epstein and Maxwell years ago, according to people who have reviewed the pages. …
The letter bearing Trump’s name, which was reviewed by the Journal, is bawdy—like others in the album. …
The album had poems, photos and greetings from businesspeople, academics, Epstein’s former girlfriends and childhood pals, according to the documents reviewed by the Journal and people familiar with them.
In a follow-up report, the Journal said:
Several digital copies of the album have been created. Pages have been reviewed by Justice Department officials who investigated Jeffrey Epstein and Maxwell years ago, according to people familiar with the matter. The album is part of Epstein’s estate.
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Does the Justice Department have the letter? Is it in the Epstein files?
We don’t know for sure, but from what the Journal reported, DOJ officials had reviewed the contents of the album as part of their original investigation into Epstein’s crimes. That means it’s very likely, at least, that there is a mention, description, and/or digital copy of the book and letter in the Justice Department’s records about the case. The Journal also reports that “It’s unclear if any of the pages of the album are part of the Trump administration’s recent review of the Epstein case files.” We do know, according to additional reporting from the Journal and the New York Times, that Attorney General Pam Bondi told Trump in May that his name appeared multiple times in the Epstein files, and, according to Senator Dick Durbin, that FBI personnel who reviewed the files were instructed to flag any mentions of Trump they found.
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The Epstein estate has the birthday book.
Bradley Edwards, a lawyer who represents hundreds of Epstein victims, told MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell on Wednesday night that Epstein’s estate has the original birthday book that includes Trump’s letter.
Edwards appeared on the show to highlight how the coverage and commentary of the Epstein files scandal has erased the victims and the trauma they experienced from the story.
He also commented on the birthday book, noting that according to his clients, “the existence of the book is an absolute fact”:
I have numerous clients who know of the authenticity and the existence of the birthday book. … Jeffrey Epstein is dead. He has an estate. Everybody who knows anything about the story knows that the estate exists. And it’s being governed by the two executors. … I know the executors are in possession of this book.
Those two executors are Epstein’s longtime personal attorney, Darren Indyke, and his longtime accountant, Richard Kahn, who are both based in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Edwards called for federal authorities to subpoena the book, redact the victims’ names, and release it so everybody can see for themselves what’s inside:
[The executors] would turn the book over immediately. Nobody would have to guess. You would immediately have the answers. You could flip to the page. Is there a letter? Is there not a letter? It’s over. The victims then get to move on. But that’s not what’s happening. Real people are being hurt here. The truth matters, transparency actually matters. Get this over with and get it behind us.
The latest Journal report confirms that the album “is part of Epstein’s estate.”
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Representative Ro Khanna says he’ll ask the Epstein estate for the book.
Here’s what the California Democrat told our own Matt Stieb in an interview:
We are working right now on a bipartisan letter to the attorneys of the Epstein estate to get that book and evidence. That is an easier ask than getting things from the DOJ. The private attorneys and private sector are much more likely to comply with a congressional request. That will give us insight into who else was caught up with this sex-trafficking scheme. Also, it can confirm or deny the reporting of The Wall Street Journal and the veracity of that letter.
The subpoena power remains active while the House is in recess. But we’re going to start with a bipartisan letter to request the book. You may not even need subpoena. You only do a subpoena when you think that the other side is not cooperating.
Read the rest of the interview here.
This post has been updated.
More on the scandal
- Who Other Than Trump Is in Jeffrey Epstein’s Birthday Book?
- Is Trump in the Epstein Files? All About Their Friendship.
- The Problem With Ghislaine Maxwell As a Witness
