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White House Fumes Over Epstein Birthday Book Said to Include Notes by Trump, Clinton and Other Big Names

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The White House slammed the release of President Trump’s alleged birthday note to Jeffrey Epstein as “FAKE NEWS” — as other prominent names were revealed in the book celebrating the dead pedophile’s 50th birthday in 2003.

The full book, provided to Congress by Epstein’s estate, was released publicly by the Republican-led House Oversight Committee on Monday evening after Democrats on the panel released only the Trump page.

Trump, 79, told NBC News Tuesday morning that “I don’t comment on something that’s a dead issue … I gave all comments to the staff. It’s a dead issue.” . . .

Trump’s top spokespeople said the signature did not appear to be the president’s, though the Journal assessed it to be consistent with some of Trump’s prior autographs.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday at a press briefing that “the Democrats are using [Epstein] victims as political pawns to try to smear and to push a hoax against the president of the United States.”Leavitt maintained that the note attributed to Trump was not created by him.

“The president has one of the most famous signatures in the world, and he has for many, many years… long before he assumed this office when he was a businessman in New York,” she said. “The president did not write that letter. He did not sign those documents. He maintains that position, and that position will be argued in court by his lawyers. The president is very confident he’s going to win this case.” (Read more from “White House Fumes Over Epstein Birthday Book Said to Include Notes by Trump, Clinton and Other Big Names” HERE)

Epstein Birthday Scrapbook Photo Suggests Trump Was Involved in $22,500 “Purchase” of Woman

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A newly released photo from Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday scrapbook has sparked fresh outrage and intensified scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s past relationship with the disgraced financier. The image, released Monday by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, shows Epstein holding a novelty check for $22,500, allegedly signed by Trump, with a note implying that a woman was “sold” to him in the 1990s.

The caption, attributed to Joel Pashcow — a longtime Mar-a-Lago member and Palm Beach socialite — reads:

“Jeffrey showing early talents with money + women! Sells ‘fully depreciated’ [redacted] to Donald Trump for $22,500.”
It continues:

“Epstein showed early ‘people skills’ too. Even though I handled the deal I didn’t get any of the money on the girl!”

The woman’s face is redacted in the image, and her identity remains officially undisclosed. The Wall Street Journal reported that the woman was someone whom both Epstein and Trump “socialized with” during the 1990s. However, her attorney has publicly denied any romantic relationship with either man, saying she was unaware of the photo, never knew Pashcow, and described the suggestion as a “disgusting and deeply disturbing hoax.”

The novelty check appears to be signed “DJ Trump” — a stylized version of Trump’s signature, though notably different from his more formal autograph during that period. The implications of the photo are now under examination by congressional investigators, particularly as it appears to connect Trump and Epstein in a more personal and troubling way.

Attempts to contact Joel Pashcow, who appears in the photo alongside Epstein, have not been successful. His name appears in Epstein’s flight logs, and he is known to reside in Palm Beach, Florida — near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Public records list him as managing member of Nassau Capital, an investment firm, and a past board member of the Palm Beach Police and Fire Foundation. In a 2020 Mother Jones interview, Pashcow reportedly dismissed questions about Epstein by saying, “You’re really pathetic, you know that?”

The image is one of several explosive details revealed as House Oversight Committee Democrats continue to release excerpts from Epstein’s so-called “birthday book” — a professionally bound scrapbook created for his 50th birthday in 2003. The book, believed to have been assembled by Epstein’s close associate Ghislaine Maxwell (now serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking), includes letters, notes, and photos from a who’s who of Epstein’s associates, including Trump, Bill Clinton, and others.

The scrapbook is part of an ongoing investigation into Epstein’s network and the individuals who socialized and potentially collaborated with him.

“They Won’t Be Doing It Again”: Trump Cites Venezuelan Drug Boat Strike as a Deterrent

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President Donald Trump defended a powerful U.S. military strike against an alleged Venezuelan drug-smuggling vessel, asserting the lethal operation will serve as a stark warning to cartels.

In remarks while hosting Polish President Karol Nawrocki at the White House, Trump defended the fatal action, which reportedly killed 11 individuals aboard the vessel, branding it a necessary move to stem drug trafficking into the United States.

“There was massive amounts of drugs coming into our country to kill a lot of people, and everybody fully understands that,” Trump said. “Obviously, they won’t be doing it again. And I think a lot of other people won’t be doing it again. When they watch that tape, they’re going to say, ‘Let’s not do this.’”

The strike broke with conventional U.S. drug interdiction methods, which typically emphasize arrests and seizures, not lethal force. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio supported the escalation, with Rubio warning that such operations “will happen again.” Hegseth added that officials “knew exactly who was in that boat” and how it was being used.

The U.S. Navy strike, carried out in international waters, marks a shift toward treating drug trafficking operations with counter-terrorism tactics—a direction facilitated by a Trump-era designation of cartels as “foreign terrorist organizations.” The target, an alleged vessel operated by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, was described as “narco‑terrorists” by administration officials.

This strike comes amid a heightened U.S. military presence near Venezuela, including warship deployments and increased navy and Marine activity.

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Trump Maintains Epstein Birthday Letter Is “Fake” as Alleged Note Surfaces in Records Turned Over to Congress

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Lawyers for Jeffrey Epstein’s estate have submitted a copy of Epstein’s infamous 50th birthday book to Congress — including a controversial letter bearing Donald Trump’s signature that he has repeatedly claimed does not exist.

On Monday, members of the House Oversight Committee confirmed receipt of the book and the letter, which was originally reported by The Wall Street Journal in July. The book, professionally bound in 2003, includes messages from dozens of Epstein’s associates — among them, Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, and billionaire Leon Black. Some notes were harmless birthday wishes, while others reportedly featured sexual references, drawings, or provocative imagery.

The letter attributed to Trump is among the more graphic. According to WSJ reporting, it featured typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked woman, ending with the message: “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.” The letter was signed “Donald” in a stylized, squiggly manner positioned under the woman’s waistline to mimic pubic hair.

Trump has denied any connection to the letter, calling it “a fake thing.” He has since filed a defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal, its parent company News Corp, and several of its reporters, arguing the letter is fabricated and defamatory. In response, a Dow Jones spokesperson stated, “We have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of our reporting.”

Now, with the birthday book delivered under subpoena by House Oversight Chair Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the contents are expected to receive further congressional review. The subpoena followed a July 25 letter from Democratic Reps. Robert Garcia and Ro Khanna urging Epstein’s estate to release the book “to assist in bringing transparency and accountability.”

Rep. Garcia, the committee’s Democratic ranking member, issued a strong statement Monday:

“President Trump called the Epstein investigation a hoax and claimed that his birthday note didn’t exist. Now we know that Donald Trump was lying and is doing everything he can to cover up the truth. Enough of the games and lies — release the full files now.”

The book was compiled by Epstein’s close associate Ghislaine Maxwell in 2003, prior to Epstein’s first arrest in 2006. Maxwell has since acknowledged to Justice Department officials that she helped assemble the book, though she claimed she could not recall who contributed what.

Trump, Clinton, and roughly 20 others were listed in the book under the “Friends” section, according to WSJ. Trump and Epstein were known to socialize in Palm Beach, Florida, during the 1990s. Flight logs show Trump flew on Epstein’s private jet, and the financier was photographed at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate multiple times.

Trump has claimed he cut ties with Epstein years before his 2019 arrest, citing a personal falling-out after Epstein allegedly recruited staff away from the Mar-a-Lago club. However, WSJ reported that Trump’s name appears multiple times in government files related to Epstein — a fact the Justice Department reportedly informed him of in May. The department emphasized that being named in such files does not indicate criminal wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, efforts to release more Epstein-related materials remain stalled. The Justice Department stated in July that no “client list” exists and declined to release further records — a decision that sparked backlash from some of Trump’s political allies, who had previously demanded transparency.

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Appeals Court Upholds $83.3 Million Defamation Verdict Against Donald Trump in E. Jean Carroll Case

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A federal appeals court has upheld an $83.3 million civil defamation verdict against former President Donald Trump, rejecting his efforts to overturn the jury’s decision in favor of writer E. Jean Carroll.

The ruling, issued Monday by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, affirms a Manhattan jury’s finding that Trump must pay the substantial sum for a series of defamatory social media posts targeting Carroll after she publicly accused him of sexually assaulting her in the mid-1990s.

Trump, who has repeatedly denied the allegations and claimed Carroll fabricated the story to promote her book, argued that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision expanding presidential immunity should shield him from the financial judgment. His legal team also sought a new trial.

However, the appeals court firmly rejected those arguments. “Trump has failed to identify any grounds that would warrant reconsidering our prior holding on presidential immunity,” the court wrote. “We also conclude that the district court did not err in any of the challenged rulings and that the jury’s damages awards are fair and reasonable.”

The $83.3 million award was handed down in 2024 after a trial focusing on Trump’s repeated online attacks against Carroll, including accusations that she lied about the alleged 1996 assault in a Manhattan department store. Although Carroll’s claims lacked direct physical evidence, the jury determined Trump’s comments were defamatory and damaging to her reputation.

This case followed an earlier, separate civil trial in which Trump was found liable for sexually abusing Carroll. That case resulted in a $5 million judgment, which was also upheld by an appeals court in December 2023.

Trump’s legal team has not yet indicated whether they will attempt to bring the case before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

White House Warns GOP: Backing Epstein File Release Is ‘Hostile Act’ Against Trump

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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said she got “a lot” of pushback from the White House over supporting a discharge petition aiming to force the administration to release all of the documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

“Oh, I got a lot of pushback. I got phone call after phone call last night. They didn’t want me to sign the discharge petition. They want to focus on the Oversight [Committee] investigation. They hate Thomas Massie more than they can hate any Democrat, which makes no sense to me. And they don’t want to work with Democrats at all,” Greene, an ally of President Trump, said during her Wednesday appearance on Real America’s Voice “Bolling!” . . .

Greene said Wednesday, “It’s not a hoax, because Jeffrey Epstein is a convicted pedophile. That takes away the whole hoax things. It’s not a hoax. It’s not a lie.” . . .

House GOP leadership is urging members not to sign on to the petition, which currently has the support of four Republican lawmakers, and to back the investigation done by the Oversight Committee. The panel released a large batch of files it received from the Justice Department after issuing a subpoena for materials related to Epstein. Democrats on the panel said most of the files have already been made public.

“Helping Thomas Massie and Liberal Democrats with their attention-seeking, while the DOJ is fully supporting a more comprehensive file release effort from the Oversight Committee, would be viewed as a very hostile act to the administration,” a White House official told multiple news outlets this week. (Read more from “White House Warns GOP: Backing Epstein File Release Is ‘Hostile Act’ Against Trump” HERE)

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Trump Ties to Epstein Resurface: Survivor Calls Him Epstein’s “Biggest Brag” as GOP Rep Caught Saying He’s in the Files

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Pressure continues to mount on Congress and the White House to release the full contents of the Jeffrey Epstein case files, as survivors, lawmakers, and even members of Donald Trump’s own party demand transparency about who was involved in the disgraced financier’s network.

At an emotional press conference on Capitol Hill, survivors of Epstein’s abuse — joined by family members of other victims and a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers — urged immediate passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which would compel the Department of Justice to make all Epstein-related records public.

One of the most striking moments came from Chauntae Davies, an Epstein survivor, who spoke directly about the late financier’s ties to prominent political figures — specifically naming President Donald Trump.

“Epstein had a free pass. He bragged about his powerful friends, including our current president, Donald Trump,” Davies said. “It was his biggest brag, actually.”

Davies went on to describe a framed photo of Epstein with Trump that reportedly sat on Epstein’s desk during her first visit to his Palm Beach estate. She added that both Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell often boasted about their connections to influential men.

While Democrats are expected to unanimously support the transparency bill — introduced by Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) — at least two more Republican signatures are still needed to force a vote through a discharge petition. So far, four Republicans, including Massie and Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Nancy Mace, and Lauren Boebert, have signed on.

But resistance from the White House and the Department of Justice has raised alarms. Despite prior commitments to transparency, the Biden-appointed DOJ has reportedly slow-walked the release of key documents, citing legal hurdles, and recently stated that no further information would be released — contradicting past statements by Attorney General Pam Bondi, who previously claimed the so-called “client list” was “on my desk.”

Survivors and lawmakers say this stonewalling is unacceptable.

“The American people deserve to know the full extent of Epstein’s network,” Massie said. “Sunlight is the best disinfectant — and we should not be shielding abusers or their enablers, no matter how powerful.”

The push for transparency has been complicated by the frequent invocation of Trump’s name — both by survivors and members of Congress. At a recent Muscogee County GOP meeting in Georgia, Rep. Mike Collins was caught on a hot mic suggesting that Trump may indeed appear in the files.

“He’s in there,” Collins said, later clarifying that he believes Trump was referenced because he had previously cooperated with the FBI and had banned Epstein from Mar-a-Lago.

Collins, who is also a candidate for the U.S. Senate, doubled down on his support for full disclosure:

“We need to release it. I have no problem releasing it.”

Trump Shuts Down Health Rumors, Declares “Never Felt Better” in Fiery Truth Social Post

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President Donald Trump pushed back Sunday against a wave of online speculation about his health, declaring on Truth Social that he has “never felt better” — and using the moment to highlight plummeting crime rates in the nation’s capital under his leadership.

“NEVER FELT BETTER IN MY LIFE. Also, DC IS A CRIME FREE ZONE!” Trump posted, breaking his uncharacteristically quiet weekend after spending time golfing at his Virginia resort.

The post comes after several days of public absence and a blank presidential schedule released Friday, which fueled bizarre online theories about the president’s wellbeing. The hashtag #TrumpIsDead even trended on X (formerly Twitter), as critics and online sleuths speculated about everything from illness to secrecy inside the White House.

Those rumors were abruptly silenced when Trump was spotted Saturday leaving for a golf outing in Sterling, Virginia, accompanied by his granddaughter Kai Trump. The outing marked his first public appearance in days and appeared to quash concerns about his health.

While Trump remained largely out of the spotlight, his administration continued to push forward on a high-profile crackdown on crime in Washington, D.C. — a key talking point for the president. Recent statistics show violent crime in the capital has dropped 45% compared to the same period last year, with overall crime down 15%.

The drop comes after Trump assumed control of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department earlier this year, citing the city’s struggles with rising violence.

Even Democratic D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser acknowledged the impact of the federal intervention.

“We greatly appreciate the surge of officers that enhance what MPD has been able to do in this city,” Bowser said at a press conference last week.

Trump followed up his health update with early Labor Day messages on Truth Social, touting what he described as a “roaring” U.S. economy and praising his administration’s efforts to “restore American strength at home and abroad.”

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Trump Vows Executive Order Requiring Voter ID for All Ballots, Limits on Mail-In Voting

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President Donald Trump announced Saturday that he plans to issue an executive order mandating voter identification for every ballot cast in U.S. elections — a move that could intensify legal and political battles ahead of the 2026 midterms.

“Voter I.D. Must Be Part of Every Single Vote. NO EXCEPTIONS! I Will Be Doing An Executive Order To That End!!!” Trump declared on Truth Social. He added, “Also, No Mail-In Voting, Except For Those That Are Very Ill, And The Far Away Military.”

The statement marks the latest escalation in Trump’s long-standing campaign to overhaul U.S. election practices.

In his latest push, Trump is renewing calls not only for universal voter ID but also for a near-total ban on mail-in ballots and the elimination of electronic voting machines in favor of paper ballots and hand counts.

Trump’s message signals that election security will be a central theme in his messaging ahead of the 2026 elections — the first national vote since his return to office.

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Trump Names Giuliani First Medal of Freedom Recipient of Second Term

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President Donald Trump announced Monday that former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. The announcement marks the first Medal of Freedom that Trump has awarded during his second term.

President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that Rudy Giuliani will be the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

“As President of the United States of America, I am pleased to announce that Rudy Giuliani, the greatest Mayor in the history of New York City, and an equally great American Patriot, will receive THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF FREEDOM, our Country’s highest civilian honor. Details as to time and place to follow. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is given at the discretion of the president to individuals who have made “especially meritorious” contributions to the security or national interests of the country, world peace, cultural endeavors, or other significant public or private achievements.

Trump’s announcement comes one day after Giuliani was hospitalized following a vehicle accident in New Hampshire. According to a statement from Michael Ragusa, Giuliani’s head of security, the former mayor had stopped to assist a domestic violence victim and called 911 before his car was “struck from behind at high speed” while traveling on the highway. Giuliani was diagnosed with a fractured thoracic vertebrae, multiple lacerations and contusions, and injuries to his left arm and lower leg. Ragusa noted that Giuliani was “in good spirits and recovering tremendously.” (Read more from “Trump Names Giuliani First Medal of Freedom Recipient of Second Term” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr