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In an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche addressed the challenges federal investigators face in pursuing various tips received by the FBI concerning President Trump’s alleged connections with the late Jeffrey Epstein. Blanche explained to host Dana Bash that many of these tips were either anonymous or based on hearsay, rendering them difficult to substantiate and investigate effectively.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently made public nearly 3.5 million documents related to Epstein, a convicted sex offender, which included allegations involving Trump. These allegations reached the FBI through tips submitted to its National Threat Operations Center.
Internal DOJ communications reveal that in August, these tips were categorized under “Trump accusers.” The documents further indicate that while the FBI reached out to numerous initial tipsters, it was unable to contact all of them, as some individuals did not leave their contact information.
As of Sunday morning, the specific list of tips concerning President Trump was no longer accessible on the DOJ’s publicly available database. The Hill has reached out to the DOJ for further clarification on this matter.
But, as of Sunday morning, the list of tips regarding the president was no longer available on the DOJ’s publicly available database. The Hill has reached out to the DOJ for comment.
Blanche said Sunday that the index of tips also included allegations regarding other politicians and famous individuals. A search of the DOJ’s database for Trump results in more than 1,800 results, with some references to the president in articles that Epstein sent or received.
“There are all kinds of people that are mentioned in the quote ‘Epstein files’ that we had to look at,” Blanche noted.
The DOJ, meanwhile, said Friday there was no validity to the tips regarding Trump.
“This production may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents or videos, as everything that was sent to the FBI by the public was included in the production that is responsive to the [Epstein Files Transparency] Act. Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election. To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false,” a DOJ spokesperson said in a statement.