The Trump administration’s Justice Department literally tried to black out Donald Trump’s face in a photo included in newly released Jeffrey Epstein documents.
Among the roughly three million pages of Epstein-related records released last week is a 2019 text exchange between Epstein and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon that includes a photo of Trump speaking at an event. One problem: Trump’s face is hidden beneath a black redaction box. Just his face. In an otherwise visible photo.
WHAT’S GOING ON: The DOJ dumped millions of pages of Epstein files last week, six weeks past the legal deadline established by the Transparency Act—a law Trump himself signed, only after “considerable resistance.” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche admitted that only about half of the total records the government collected were actually released: three million pages out of six million gathered.
The New York Times found more than 5,300 files with tens of thousands of mentions of Trump, his family, and Mar-a-Lago. But somehow, the administration thought nobody would notice a suspiciously Trump-shaped black box in the middle of a photograph.
THE DETAILS: This isn’t the first time Trump’s appearance in these files has been… awkward. Back in December, the DOJ briefly posted—then yanked—a photo from inside Epstein’s New York mansion showing an image of Trump with several young women tucked inside a drawer. Officials claimed they removed it “to protect victims” before eventually reposting it.
The newly released materials include investigator notes from victim interviews that reference Trump directly. In one set of handwritten notes from September 2019—weeks after Epstein’s death—a victim described being driven to Mar-a-Lago for a meeting with Trump. According to the notes, Epstein introduced her by saying, “This is a good one, huh?” The account doesn’t allege any improper behavior by Trump.
Separately, Juan Alessi, a former Epstein employee, told authorities that Trump was among several prominent figures who visited Epstein’s residence.
OF COURSE: Trump has denied any wrongdoing and hasn’t been charged in connection with Epstein’s crimes. He maintains the two were friendly in the 1990s and early 2000s but that he cut ties well before Epstein’s 2006 arrest. Trump also claims he banned Epstein from Mar-a-Lago in the mid-2000s over Epstein’s conduct toward a young woman—though the specifics have never been fully confirmed.
WHY IT MATTERS: Trump allies promised full disclosure of the Epstein files during the 2024 campaign. Instead, we’re getting half the documents, weeks late, with the president’s face literally blacked out of photos. The administration that campaigned on exposing the truth about Epstein is now the one controlling what truth gets seen—and apparently, they really don’t want you looking too closely at who’s in the pictures.