11 h. ago Bill Clinton sent 'warm and gushing' letter for Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday

The former US president (pictured, with Epstein) was one of hundreds who contributed to a heavy leather-bound, gold-embossed album of letters compiled by Epstein's ex-lover Ghislaine Maxwell.

Events

16 h. ago Trump requests release of Epstein court documents but says ‘nothing will be enough for the troublemakers’ – as it happened

This liveblog is now closedAs Donald Trump tries to claim he was “not a fan” of Jeffrey Epstein, photos, videos and anecdotes paint a picture of their relationship, writes Adam Gabbatt:Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, has called for Barack Obama and former senior US national security officials to be prosecuted after accusing them of a “treasonous conspiracy” intended to show that Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election win was due to Russian interference. Continue reading...

Events

18 h. ago Trump requests release of Epstein court documents but says ‘nothing will be enough for the troublemakers’ – US politics live

Move seeks to quell controversy that has engulfed the administration since it said it would not release more files from Epstein’s sex trafficking caseAs Donald Trump tries to claim he was “not a fan” of Jeffrey Epstein, photos, videos and anecdotes paint a picture of their relationship, writes Adam Gabbatt:Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, has called for Barack Obama and former senior US national security officials to be prosecuted after accusing them of a “treasonous conspiracy” intended to show that Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election win was due to Russian interference. Continue reading...

Politics

20 h. ago Trump live: Democrats reiterate calls for release of Epstein files after Trump promises ‘pertinent’ documents

A new Wall Street Journal report claims Donald Trump penned a lewd letter to Jeffrey Epstein on his 50th birthday, and now the president is suing the publication

Politics

25 h. ago Trump cannot dispel the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein | Sidney Blumenthal

Trump’s grooming of his followers is impossible to undo. Now he is bedeviled by a conspiracy theory gapSome enchanted evening, Donald Trump saw a stranger across a crowded room.It is likely that there is hardly anyone living who knows exactly under what glowing lights Donald Trump met Jeffrey Epstein, except perhaps Trump himself and Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend who is serving a 20-year prison term for helping to procure minors for sexual abuse. Trump said in an interview in 2002, when his Epstein relationship was still tight, that it had been a 15-year mutual admiration society. Epstein was “a terrific guy” and “a lot of fun to be with,” and “likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side”. Epstein described himself as “Donald’s closest friend for 10 years”. Continue reading...

Politics

31 h. ago Donald Trump 'wished Jeffrey Epstein happy birthday with wonderful secret message'

There were calls last night for the US President to resign as more details of his friendship with the late Wall Street financier continue to emerge.

Politics

34 h. ago Trump's fury over claim he sent 'bawdy' message to Jeffrey Epstein on his 50th birthday

The US President has been accused of sending Jeffrey Epstein a 'bawdy' message on his 50th birthday containing 'several lines of typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked woman'.

Politics

36 h. ago Trump asks court to unseal Epstein grand jury testimony but still won’t release files at center of uproar: Live updates

President Donald Trump allegedly penned a lewd letter to Jeffrey Epstein on his 50th birthday, a new report claims

Politics

37 h. ago Justice Department asks court to unseal Jeffrey Epstein grand jury records

The Justice Department has asked a federal court to unseal grand jury transcripts in Jeffrey Epstein’s case amid a firestorm over the Trump administration’s handling of records related to the wealthy financier

Events

38 h. ago Trump administration dumps huge tranche of Obama documents while world waits for Epstein files: Live updates

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard declassified hundreds of Russia hoax documents on Friday as the world is watching for the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

Politics

38 h. ago Democrats say ‘public deserves to know’ if Stephen Colbert cancellation linked to Trump

Democrats are questioning timing of CBS cancellation of The Late Show days after Colbert criticized parent company Paramount for settling with TrumpTrump launches fresh defense of inaction in Epstein case following report he sent birthday letterIt was a friendship that spanned three different decades. To Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein was a “terrific guy”. Epstein believed himself to be Trump’s “closest friend”, and praised the future president as “charming”.The relationship would eventually break down, the men falling out over a bidding war on a property in Florida. And after Epstein was convicted of child sex offences in 2008, Trump distanced himself from the financier, claiming he was “not a fan” and wondering, in recent days, why his supporters would “waste time and energy” on demanding that FBI and Department of Justice files on Epstein be released. Continue reading...

Politics

38 h. ago Trump worked to kill a story about his friendship with Epstein. Now we know why | Margaret Sullivan

The president is reportedly ‘on a warpath’ over a story in the Wall Street Journal – controlled by Trump’s top media allyFor days before the Wall Street Journal published its story about Donald Trump’s salacious friendship with Jeffrey Epstein on Thursday, the president was frantically working the phones.He reportedly put pressure on the paper’s top editor, Emma Tucker, and even Rupert Murdoch, who controls the paper’s business side, claiming that the alleged facts behind the story were nothing but a hoax, and threatening to sue the paper if it forged ahead.Margaret Sullivan is a Guardian US columnist writing on media, politics and culture Continue reading...

Events

40 h. ago Trump’s name was red flag for FBI in review of Epstein files ordered by Pam Bondi, top Democrat reveals: Live updates

President Donald Trump allegedly penned a lewd letter to Jeffrey Epstein on his 50th birthday, a new report claims

Politics

42 h. ago The Guardian view on Maga and Jeffrey Epstein: the truth about Donald Trump and conspiracy theories | Editorial

The US president is struggling to close down speculation about the case that those close to him have promotedDonald Trump has thrived on conspiracy theories – “birtherist” lies that Barack Obama was born outside the US; the lunacies of the Q-Anon movement; false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him. All centred on the idea that the “deep state” was lying to, and thus cheating, ordinary people. Mr Trump was their tribune.It’s hard not to feel schadenfreude now that he’s at the sharp end of a theory that he at times encouraged and allies eagerly pushed: claims that the prison death of the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein might not be suicide after all, and that wealthy and well-connected associates were trying to hush up connections to the financier. Mr Trump’s attorney general, Pam Bondi, promised that “truckloads” of documents would help reveal the truth and claimed that a client list was “sitting on my desk right now”.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this ...

Politics

43 h. ago What Trump's 'birthday card' to Epstein said as he threatens to sue WSJ and Rupert Murdoch: Live updates

Donald Trump has furiously denied allegations published in The Wall Street Journal that he wrote a raunchy birthday card to Jeffrey Epstein.

Politics

43 h. ago Trump again tries to brush off Epstein crisis as ‘nothing’, blaming Democrats for controversy – US politics live

President’s latest effort to contain fallout comes after he directs Pam Bondi to request release of grand jury transcripts and threatens to sue Wall Street JournalTrump requests release of Epstein grand jury transcripts amid report of ‘bawdy’ birthday noteIt was a friendship that spanned three different decades. To Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein was a “terrific guy”. Epstein believed himself to be Trump’s “closest friend”, and praised the future president as “charming”.The relationship would eventually break down, the men falling out over a bidding war on a property in Florida. And after Epstein was convicted of child sex offences in 2008, Trump distanced himself from the financier, claiming he was “not a fan” and wondering, in recent days, why his supporters would “waste time and energy” on demanding that FBI and Department of Justice files on Epstein be released. Continue reading...

Politics

45 h. ago House Republicans pass Trump’s proposed aid and public broadcasting cuts

Proposal heads to president’s desk to be signed after party-line vote was delayed by Jeffrey Epstein controversyHouse Republicans passed Donald Trump’s funding cut proposal just after midnight on Friday – clawing back $9bn in federal dollars.The vote was split on party lines, 216-213, with two Republicans, Mike Turner of Ohio and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, opposing the package alongside all Democrats. The proposal will now go to the president’s desk to be signed and codified. Continue reading...

Politics

45 h. ago Trump says there’s no ‘smoking gun’ linking him to Epstein files as Bondi seeks document release: Live updates

President Donald Trump allegedly penned a lewd letter to Jeffrey Epstein on his 50th birthday, a new report claims

Politics

46 h. ago The Latest: House approves Trump’s $9 billion cut to public broadcasting and foreign aid

Republican majorities in both houses of Congress have now approved President Donald Trump’s clawback of about $9 billion for public broadcasting and foreign aid that lawmakers had appropriated

Politics

47 h. ago ‘He’s a lot of fun to be with’: Trump and Epstein were close friends for 15 years

As Trump tries to claim he was ‘not a fan’ of Epstein, photos, videos and anecdotes paint a picture of a their relationshipIt was a friendship that spanned three different decades. To Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein was a “terrific guy”. Epstein believed himself to be Trump’s “closest friend”, and praised the future president as “charming”.The relationship would eventually break down, the men falling out over a bidding war on a property in Florida. And after Epstein was convicted of child sex offences in 2008, Trump distanced himself from the financier, claiming he was “not a fan” and wondering, in recent days, why his supporters would “waste time and energy” on demanding that FBI and Department of Justice files on Epstein be released. Continue reading...

Politics