White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump won’t appoint a special counsel to probe potentially releasing more files related to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“The president would not recommend a special counsel in the Epstein case,” Ms. Leavitt said at Thursday’s press briefing.
A number of prominent Trump supporters, including Republicans in Congress, have called for a special counsel to investigate the matter. Right-wing activist Laura Loomer and Rep. Lauren Boebert, Colorado Republican, are among those urging the appointment of the counsel.
The Justice Department and FBI issued a joint memo last week saying Epstein didn’t have a client list and confirmed that he died by suicide.
The findings angered many MAGA supporters, who have for years claimed that Epstein’s 2019 death in a New York City jail cell was murder and that he had a client list that included high-profile people.
Mr. Trump has pushed back against the criticism, dismissing the uproar over the Epstein files as a “hoax” perpetrated by Democrats to diminish his administration and said he no longer wants the support of his backers who have asked for more transparency with the case.
SEE ALSO: Trump says ‘foolish Republicans’ help Democrats by obsessing over Epstein
Ms. Leavitt also lashed out at Democrats who are demanding Mr. Trump release more files related to Epstein. She questioned why they didn’t make a similar push for transparency under the Biden administration.
Ms. Leavitt repeated Mr. Trump’s assertion that the Epstein files are a hoax used by Democrats and others to distract from his feats.
“The hoax part the president is referring to is the fact that Democrats have now seized on this as if they ever wanted transparency when it comes to Jeffrey Epstein, which is an asinine suggestion for any Democrat,” Ms. Leavitt said. “Democrats had control of this building, the White House, for four years and they didn’t do a dang thing when it comes to transparency in regards to Jeffrey Epstein and his heinous crimes.”
