House Speaker Mike Johnson pushed back against a report from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) which suggested that former President Donald Trump had sent a “bawdy” birthday card to the controversial financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The WSJ claimed that Trump had sent Epstein a letter alongside a painting of a naked stick figure lady to commemorate her 50th birthday in 2003. On CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Johnson labeled the report as “fake” and accused the media of trying to smear Trump.
“The president and I talked about that ridiculous allegation this morning. He said it was patently absurd,” Johnson stated. “He’s never painted such a picture, nor has he ever thought about doing so. He questioned, ‘Did you see this fake communication or the language of the cards?’ He said, ‘I don’t talk like that. I don’t think so.’ It’s literally fabricating things,” Johnson added.
Johnson further remarked that Trump “could sue some of the media outlets responsible for this, since they clearly made it up.” He pointed out that Trump is perhaps the most targeted political figure in recent history, but also incredibly resilient.
Trump himself has threatened legal action against the WSJ, News Corp, and Rupert Murdoch for what he characterized as “fake” news. “I’ve never painted in my life. I don’t paint women,” he told the WSJ. “That’s not my language. I’m ready to sue the WSJ just like I’ve sued others.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump indicated that he would pursue a lawsuit against the WSJ and Murdoch if they continued to publish what he labeled “false, malicious, defamatory stories.” Vice President JD Vance also weighed in, calling the article “complete and total nonsense” and questioning the absence of the letter the WSJ cited.
While Trump has acknowledged a past friendship with Epstein, he claimed to have cut ties in 2004 after a fallout between them. This was around the time when Epstein was first arrested on charges relating to soliciting prostitution.
The media scrutiny surrounding Epstein intensified after he died in July 2019, which led to investigations by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI. There were, however, no findings to suggest he had kept a so-called “client list.” Recently, House Democrats, led by Representative Ro Khanna from California, attempted to push for a resolution to compel Attorney General Pam Bondi to release all documents related to Epstein, but their efforts were blocked by Republicans in Congress.
On Thursday, Trump announced via a social media post that he had requested Bondi to release “all related grand jury testimony,” contingent upon court approval. Bondi confirmed that the DOJ is preparing to make the grand jury transcripts available.
