White House stands by Howard Lutnick as Epstein file fallout grows
What's the administration thinking here?
President Donald Trump’s administration is defending Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick against bipartisan calls for the Cabinet secretary to resign due to his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The latest trove of Epstein files released by the Department of Justice showed that Lutnick planned to visit Epstein’s island in the U.S. Virgin Islands in December 2012 after claiming that he and his wife cut ties with the disgraced financier in 2005. Uncovered emails show that Lutnick kept in touch with Epstein after his 2008 conviction in Florida.
Both men signed a document on behalf of limited liability companies to acquire stakes in the advertising technology company Adfin, which would later shutter, in December 2012.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked whether there has been any shift in how the White House is viewing the secretary, who testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday.
“No,” Leavitt said during Tuesday’s press briefing. “Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary.”
Lutnick defended himself during a Tuesday morning testimony to the Senate committee on appropriations.
“To the best of my memory, I met him when he moved next door to me, and I met him two other times in 14 years, none within six years of that first meeting,” Lutnick told Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE). “And then a year and a half later, and none thereafter, and in the presence of my wife. And as [Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)] said, under no circumstances is there a single word that I’ve done anything remotely wrong in any possible regard.”
“I did not have … anything you could call a relationship, anything you call an acquaintance,” he continued. “I literally met him three times over 14 years with wide spread in between. That’s all I can remember. That’s all there is in the documents.”
Lutnick also told Van Hollen that he and his family indeed had lunch on Epstein’s island in the U.S. Virgin Islands while on vacation. “My wife was with me, as were my four children and nannies. I had another couple,” he said. “They were there as well with their children, and we had lunch on the island.”
Leavitt defended Trump’s insistence that he cut ties with Epstein after a 2019 FBI report revealed Trump allegedly called a Palm Beach, Florida, police chief in 2006 to express gratitude for “stopping” Epstein.
“What I will say is that the president has always remained consistent, and that he …
What's the administration thinking here?
President Donald Trump’s administration is defending Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick against bipartisan calls for the Cabinet secretary to resign due to his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The latest trove of Epstein files released by the Department of Justice showed that Lutnick planned to visit Epstein’s island in the U.S. Virgin Islands in December 2012 after claiming that he and his wife cut ties with the disgraced financier in 2005. Uncovered emails show that Lutnick kept in touch with Epstein after his 2008 conviction in Florida.
Both men signed a document on behalf of limited liability companies to acquire stakes in the advertising technology company Adfin, which would later shutter, in December 2012.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked whether there has been any shift in how the White House is viewing the secretary, who testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday.
“No,” Leavitt said during Tuesday’s press briefing. “Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary.”
Lutnick defended himself during a Tuesday morning testimony to the Senate committee on appropriations.
“To the best of my memory, I met him when he moved next door to me, and I met him two other times in 14 years, none within six years of that first meeting,” Lutnick told Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE). “And then a year and a half later, and none thereafter, and in the presence of my wife. And as [Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)] said, under no circumstances is there a single word that I’ve done anything remotely wrong in any possible regard.”
“I did not have … anything you could call a relationship, anything you call an acquaintance,” he continued. “I literally met him three times over 14 years with wide spread in between. That’s all I can remember. That’s all there is in the documents.”
Lutnick also told Van Hollen that he and his family indeed had lunch on Epstein’s island in the U.S. Virgin Islands while on vacation. “My wife was with me, as were my four children and nannies. I had another couple,” he said. “They were there as well with their children, and we had lunch on the island.”
Leavitt defended Trump’s insistence that he cut ties with Epstein after a 2019 FBI report revealed Trump allegedly called a Palm Beach, Florida, police chief in 2006 to express gratitude for “stopping” Epstein.
“What I will say is that the president has always remained consistent, and that he …
White House stands by Howard Lutnick as Epstein file fallout grows
What's the administration thinking here?
President Donald Trump’s administration is defending Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick against bipartisan calls for the Cabinet secretary to resign due to his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The latest trove of Epstein files released by the Department of Justice showed that Lutnick planned to visit Epstein’s island in the U.S. Virgin Islands in December 2012 after claiming that he and his wife cut ties with the disgraced financier in 2005. Uncovered emails show that Lutnick kept in touch with Epstein after his 2008 conviction in Florida.
Both men signed a document on behalf of limited liability companies to acquire stakes in the advertising technology company Adfin, which would later shutter, in December 2012.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked whether there has been any shift in how the White House is viewing the secretary, who testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday.
“No,” Leavitt said during Tuesday’s press briefing. “Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary.”
Lutnick defended himself during a Tuesday morning testimony to the Senate committee on appropriations.
“To the best of my memory, I met him when he moved next door to me, and I met him two other times in 14 years, none within six years of that first meeting,” Lutnick told Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE). “And then a year and a half later, and none thereafter, and in the presence of my wife. And as [Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)] said, under no circumstances is there a single word that I’ve done anything remotely wrong in any possible regard.”
“I did not have … anything you could call a relationship, anything you call an acquaintance,” he continued. “I literally met him three times over 14 years with wide spread in between. That’s all I can remember. That’s all there is in the documents.”
Lutnick also told Van Hollen that he and his family indeed had lunch on Epstein’s island in the U.S. Virgin Islands while on vacation. “My wife was with me, as were my four children and nannies. I had another couple,” he said. “They were there as well with their children, and we had lunch on the island.”
Leavitt defended Trump’s insistence that he cut ties with Epstein after a 2019 FBI report revealed Trump allegedly called a Palm Beach, Florida, police chief in 2006 to express gratitude for “stopping” Epstein.
“What I will say is that the president has always remained consistent, and that he …
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