A rumor that circulated online in July 2025 claimed U.S. President Donald Trump once called now-deceased financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a "fun" and "terrific guy," adding, "It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side."
For example, on July 16, an X user, whose feed expressed rhetoric in opposition to Trump's administration, created a post (archived) asking the Grok artificial-intelligence tool for the name of the person who originated the quote. That same user had previously, on numerous occasions, attributed the quote to Trump, meaning they knew the answer and simply sought to request that Grok — an AI tool launched by tech billionaire and former Trump adviser Elon Musk — answer with the truth. That post received more than 7.6 million views.
(@acnewsitics/X)
As Grok noted in its response (archived), Trump genuinely called Epstein a "fun" and "terrific guy." The authentic quote appeared in a New York magazine article headlined "Jeffrey Epstein: International Moneyman of Mystery," on Oct. 28, 2002 — 14 years before Trump claimed victory in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and several years before Epstein registered as a sex offender in 2008.
The relevant portion of the Trump phone interview transcript read:
Epstein likes to tell people that he's a loner, a man who's never touched alcohol or drugs, and one whose nightlife is far from energetic. And yet if you talk to Donald Trump, a different Epstein emerges. "I've known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy," Trump booms from a speakerphone. "He's a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life."
The quote from the 2002 interview circulated at a time of elevated tensions in summer 2025, in the weeks after Musk alleged, without providing proof, that the president appears in damning, undisclosed files associated with Epstein's acts. "That is the real reason why they have not been made public," Musk added, before deleting the post.
In early July 2025, the Department of Justice and FBI announced in a memorandum that no Epstein "client list" existed, despite Attorney General Pam Bondi claiming on Fox News in February 2025 that it was on her desk for review. After the memo's release, Bondi sought to clarify her earlier remarks, claiming "on my desk" simply referenced a general file related to Epstein, and not a "client list."
Trump also called Epstein a "creep" and even slammed some of his own supporters as "stupid" for allegedly falling for an unspecified "hoax" involving Epstein's case that he said was "perpetrated by the Democrats." However, Trump himself said in a June 2024 interview, "I would," to the question of releasing documents related to Epstein's case. Vice President JD Vance, as well as others appointed by Trump, also previously stressed the importance of releasing the Epstein case files.
Trump addressed 2002 quote about Epstein
On July 6, 2019, federal authorities arrested Epstein and then indicted him on charges of the sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors.
Three days later, on July 9, an unidentified reporter asked Trump in the Oval Office, "Do you still think Jeffrey Epstein is a 'terrific guy?'"
In response, Trump said three times that he was not a "fan" of Epstein's:
Well, I knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him. I mean, people in Palm Beach knew him. He was a fixture in Palm Beach. I had a falling out with him a long time ago. I don't think I've spoken to him for 15 years. I wasn't a fan. I was not, yeah, a long time ago, I'd say maybe 15 years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you. I was not a fan of his.
At the time, Politico posted (archived) a video of Trump's full answer:
Weeks later, on Aug. 10, guards found Epstein dead in his jail cell. An autopsy ruled he died of suicide by hanging, setting off a wave of new conspiracy theories.
Trump on Ghislaine Maxwell: 'I wish her well'
In a related remark, in July 2020, an unidentified reporter asked Trump about the case involving Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who, at the time, the U.S. Justice Department had just arrested and charged for conspiring with Epstein to sexually abuse minors. During his answer, Trump said, "I just wish her well, frankly." He then mentioned a second time, "I wish her well."
More than one year later, on Dec. 29, 2021, a jury convicted Maxwell of multiple sex-trafficking charges. A judge then sentenced her to 20 years in prison for what the U.S. Justice Department described as "her role in a scheme to sexually exploit and abuse multiple minor girls with Jeffrey Epstein over the course of a decade."
Days before Maxwell's conviction, the Miami Herald published information about flights that Trump had taken on Epstein's jets. According to the reporting, flight logs showed Trump had flown at least seven times, with all of the flights being between Palm Beach, Florida and New York City airports. Meanwhile, former President Bill Clinton had flown on Epstein's jets at least nine times. In a statement, a spokesperson for Clinton said in 2019 that Clinton knew "nothing" about Epstein's crimes.
For further reading, a previous fact check examined whether a video showed Trump jocularly mouthing the words "It's true" or "That's true" after someone said he's a sexual predator during a 2006 appearance on "The Howard Stern Show."