Ro Khanna
and Robert Garcia seek ‘complete and unredacted copy’ of book from Epstein
estate lawyers
Lauren
Gambino
Sat 26 Jul
2025 02.43 BST
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/25/democrats-epstein-birthday-book
House
Democrats on Friday sent a letter to the attorneys representing the estate of
Jeffrey Epstein requesting a copy of the so-called “birthday book” that
reportedly contains a crude poem and doodle from Donald Trump in celebration of
the late sex offender’s 50th birthday.
In the
letter, California congressmen Ro Khanna and Robert Garcia say the contents of
the book may be “essential” to congressional oversight of the Trump
administration’s handling of the Epstein controversy. In the letter, they ask
for a “complete and unredacted” copy of the book by 10 August.
“The public
deserves to know the truth and the survivors and their families deserve
justice,” said Khanna, who criticized Congress for leaving Washington early
without voting on his bipartisan bill to release the Epstein files.
The birthday
book is a leather-bound album compiled by Epstein’s longtime associate
Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for conspiring with
Epstein to sexually traffic minors. It is reportedly filled with birthday
greetings from dozens of Epstein’s friends and associates, including, according
to the Wall Street Journal, messages from Trump, Bill Clinton and Alan
Dershowitz, among other wealthy and powerful men.
On Thursday,
the New York Times published an image of Maxwell’s dedication in the book.
Trump is
suing the Journal over its initial report that he contributed a page with an
imagined dialogue between “Donald” and “Jeffrey” and a sketch of a naked woman.
In his federal lawsuit, Trump called the letter attributed to him “fake and
nonexistent”.
Khanna and
Garcia sent the letter after a lawyer representing hundreds of Epstein’s
victims said the estate was in possession of the birthday book. The lawyer,
Brad Edwards, said in an interview with the MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell that
he believed the estate would turn over the book upon request.
“I know the
executors are in possession of this book,” Edwards said in the interview.
Lawyers for
the estate did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“The
American people deserve to know who was involved in Epstein’s trafficking
network and if they are in positions of power in our government,” Garcia, the
top Democrat on the House oversight committee, said.
The Epstein
files are at the center of an extraordinary rift between Trump and his Maga
base, who have long-demanded the release of documents related to the child sex
offender. The White House has failed to quell growing demands from his base for
more transparency, while Democrats, out of power in Congress, press the issue
to their advantage.
Trump and
Epstein’s friendship in the 1990s and early 2000s was well-known and well
documented. The president has said that he cut ties with Epstein in 2004, and
he has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with the Epstein matter.
Earlier this
week, the Journal first reported that Pam Bondi, the US attorney general,
briefed Trump in May that his name appeared multiple times in the files related
to the investigation.
In an
attempt to confront the matter, Trump had instructed Bondi to seek the release
of grand jury transcripts from an investigation into Epstein. In a setback, a
judge in Florida rejected the Trump administration’s request, though a similar
case is still pending in New York.
In the
letter to the Epstein’s estate, the Democrats write that the book is “relevant
for ongoing congressional oversight of the Department of Justice’s handling of
the Epstein investigation and prosecution, as well as the Trump
administration’s decision to declassify and release only a handful of documents
from the Epstein files while withholding others from the public”.
Trump’s
former criminal defense lawyer, Todd Blanche, who is now the deputy attorney
general, met with Maxwell in federal prison on Friday and plans to meet her
again on Saturday. Maxwell is attempting to have her conviction overturned.
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