US lawmakers release signed 'birthday book' note from Trump to Epstein

US lawmakers on Monday released a note reportedly signed by US President Donald Trump to the late Jeffrey Epstein which Trump has denied writing.

The letter was part of a 50th birthday album compiled in 2003 for Epstein — a wealthy and well-connected financier who was convicted of sex trafficking young women and girls as young as 14.

The full House committee on Monday night released copies of the entire album, including Epstein's will and personal address book containing names of multiple politicians and celebrities.

The note reportedly from Trump shows a suggestive sketch of a woman's torso and a note depicting a conversation between Trump and Epstein, with Trump's signature allegedly below.

A description of the letter was first reported on by the Wall Street Journal in July. Trump filed a $10 billion (€8,5) lawsuit against the newspaper for publishing the story.

The White House denied that the letter was written by Trump. “As I have said all along, it’s very clear President Trump did not draw this picture, and he did not sign it,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement posted on X.

“President Trump’s legal team will continue to aggressively pursue litigation,” she added.

White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich posted pictures of Trump's signature over the years to show that the pair did not match up.

Other Republicans followed suit, with Representative Byron Donald's claiming the signature was not from Trump. Representative Thomas Massie, who is pushing the US Justice Department to release the so-called Epstein Files in their entirety, said the letter "doesn’t prove anything. Having a birthday card from Trump doesn’t help the survivors and the victims."

Ongoing controversy

The drawing's release come as Trump has faced months of scrutiny over the nuances of his friendship with Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges of solicitation of prostitution.

Epstein was accused of paying underage girls hundreds of dollars in cash for massages and then molesting him, whilst his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell — daughter of the late British media tycoon Robert Maxwell — was accused of luring teenage girls for Epstein.

Trump has claimed that the friendship between the pair ended in two decades ago. Recently, he has said he cut ties with Epstein after he "stole" young female staff — including well known accuser Virginia Giuffre — from his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Much of the controversy surrounds the Epstein files, a collection of documents gathered as evidence in criminal investigations against Epstein in 2008 and 2019. Prominent Republicans, including Vice President JD Vance, have called for the document's release in their entirety.

Trump had suggested during the presidential campaign that he’d seek to open the government’s files into Epstein, but much of what the government has released so far had already been out there.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump himself is named in unreleased documents related to Epstein, although this does not necessarily mean evidence of wrongdoing.

The documents released by the House Oversight Committee on Monday were part of a batch of documents from Epstein's estate.

Trump in July denied writing the letter published in the Wall Street Journal, calling it "false, malicious, and defamatory.”

“These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures,” Trump said.