House releases photos showing Trump, Clinton at Epstein events

On December 12, 2025, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released 19 photos from a trove of approximately 95,000 images that Epstein's estate had turned over via congressional subpoena. The images showed President Donald Trump, former President BCBill Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Trump adviser Steve Bannon, filmmaker Woody Allen, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, British billionaire Richard Branson, and attorney ADAlan Dershowitz at Epstein's properties. None of the images depicted sexual misconduct or were believed to show underage girls.

One photo bore BCBill Clinton's signature alongside Epstein and GMGhislaine Maxwell — suggesting an autographed keepsake, not a candid shot. A separate photo showed a bowl of novelty condoms with a caricature of Trump's face on them, found at Epstein's property. Both images documented social proximity and the contents of Epstein's spaces, not criminal acts.

The White House responded the same day. Spokeswoman AJAbigail Jackson accused Democrats of 'selectively releasing cherry-picked photos with random redactions to try and create a false narrative.' Trump called the photos 'no big deal.' Republicans on the committee echoed that Democrats had chosen 19 of 95,000 images specifically to target the president.

Democrats released the photos without Republican majority approval because House rules do not bar committee members from publicly releasing subpoenaed materials they have access to. Both parties held access to the full 95,000-image set, but only Democrats chose to release a selection — demonstrating that a determined congressional minority can force transparency even when the majority controls the chamber.

One week later, on December 18, Democrats released approximately 68 to 70 more photos. The second batch went beyond social gatherings: it included heavily redacted images of women's foreign passports from Ukraine, Russia, South Africa, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania; images of additional prominent men; and screenshots of text messages discussing recruiting women for Epstein, including one that read 'I will send u girls now. Maybe someone will be good for J?'

The December 18 release came one day before the DOJ's legal deadline under the Epstein Files Transparency Act — a deliberate timing choice that maximized pressure on the agency. When the DOJ delivered over 550 blacked-out pages on December 19, the comparison with Congress's more forthcoming releases was unavoidable.

Democrats released roughly 89 total photos out of 95,000 subpoenaed images — fewer than 0.1 percent of the available set. Both parties accused the other of weaponizing the evidence selectively, and both accusations have merit: protecting victims requires some redaction, but a release controlled by one political party inevitably reflects that party's priorities.

The House Oversight Committee obtained the 95,000 images through a subpoena to Epstein's estate — not from the DOJ. This direct subpoena of a private party bypassed the executive branch entirely, showing how Congress can compel evidence from non-government actors when agencies resist or delay disclosure.