Karoline Leavitt, who serves as White House press secretary for President Donald Trump, has been labeled by critics as offering statements that feel evasive. She described the Epstein files as a “classic Washington hoax” and made a remark many found dismissive toward the victims.
She also targeted Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, accusing them of leaking redacted material to CNN in a clip from last year that has recently resurfaced and spread widely again.
“If you look at how this Epstein story sort of evolved over the past week, it’s a classic Washington hoax,” Leavitt insisted during a November podcast interview with Miranda Devine.
Video Reemergence
“You have Democrats on the Oversight Committee leaking redacted information to their preferred reporter at CNN, who then publishes the story with those redactions and fails to disclose that an unredacted version exists,” the Trump ally continued, adding, “and the unredacted version shows that the so-called victim in this email is a woman who is now deceased, but who, before her death, repeatedly asserted that the president did nothing wrong.”
Leavitt conveniently omitted how many other accusers have alleged that the president was aware of Jeffrey Epstein’s trafficking of underage girls to some of the world’s most powerful men.
In fact, at least one minor, aged 13 at the time, has accused Trump—who maintained a close friendship with Epstein for decades—of molesting her.
Leavitt also argued, “it’s a deliberate leap to try to manufacture this news cycle to drag the president, and we’ve watched this play out repeatedly. It’s a textbook Democratic tactic using their allies and the fake news to spin a narrative about the president.”
Social Media Reactions
The response across social platforms was immediate and fierce, with critics faulting Leavitt for defending the administration’s handling while placing blame on the victims and those who exposed portions of the files after Congressional action.
“Miss Piggy here is accusing these women who were raped as children of fabricating a hoax for Democratic political gain,” one X user wrote, sharing a photo of Leavitt alongside several Epstein survivors.
“She has no independent thought. She repeats whatever she’s told. It’s repulsive,” another commenter said.
Other comments piled on. “PressSec has become even more foolish, insulting, and tone-deaf. Her children will someday understand the kind of person she is,” and “What a revolting betrayal of women.”
An X user named Helena Glass asked, “why would you lie and protect a pedophile and rapist? How do you reconcile those lies while still calling yourself Christian? Who is your god?”
Another user insisted, “Say it to the victims in person, you poor excuse for a Christian.”
One commenter mused, “The hoax wasn’t real until someone’s name appeared in it…”
JD Vance Exposes the Administration
During the long campaign trail prior to the 2024 presidential race, Trump and his running mate JD Vance pushed theories about Epstein, who died in a Manhattan jail in 2019 in what authorities ruled a suicide.
They vowed to release an Epstein client list and the full set of documents the Department of Justice had gathered over a multi-year probe. Once back in power, Trump and former Attorney General Pam Bondi initially claimed that the DOJ and FBI had closed the case.
When that approach failed, they resisted releasing the materials until Congress passed the Epstein Transparency Act in late November, which required the government to disclose all records by December 19. That deadline was not met, and millions of documents were released in a chaotic fashion, with victims’ names redacted in some cases and the names of the accused released in others.
Millions of documents remain withheld, and opponents argue that some of those files mention Trump thousands of times.
As Leavitt’s video resurfaced, Vance told podcast host Joe Rogan during a nearly three-hour interview that the Trump administration had “screwed up” the communications surrounding the files’ release.
He added that Trump officials should have made the records public much sooner.
“We absolutely messed up the communications on the Epstein files,” Vance acknowledged. “But was the reason for the missteps to hide something? No.”
Rogan pressed about the “tremendous amount of resistance to those files being released.”
Vance Places the Blame on Bondi
Vance accused Bondi of exaggerating how much information the administration possessed, citing the infamous Epstein “client list” that he claimed was “sitting on her desk” and ready for release after she was confirmed in February 2025. He asserted that the documents were already public.
Rogan then asked about the “performative display” surrounding the obstruction of the release.
“I’m not sure what the aim was, but I know the effect was to erode trust in the entire effort,” Vance said, adding that there was no “malicious” motive behind it.
“I think she overstated what we had and what we didn’t, and I think she got roasted for it—publicly, by many people, including me. … I’m one of the original Epstein conspiracy theorists. I’ve probably chased every possible rabbit hole,” he asserted.
Trump dismissed Bondi in April after combative congressional hearings over her handling of the Epstein file release and the ongoing withholding of millions of documents by the DOJ.
Vance also defended Trump, saying he had never found credible evidence tying the president to wrongdoing involving minors.
He acknowledged that millions of documents remain sealed despite the administration’s assertions that the files have been released.
The vice president remarked that there may be more to the story, but he admitted he has no proof and is not concealing evidence.
In a fresh development on Wednesday, July 15, a coalition of House lawmakers introduced the Epstein Files Transparency Act II. The bill would empower state attorneys general, Epstein’s survivors and other co-conspirators’ victims, and members of Congress to sue the DOJ for continuing to withhold roughly three million Epstein-related documents.
