Jon Stewart has addressed Donald Trump’s appearance in the Jeffrey Epstein emails, claiming: “You know it’s real because his allies are working overtime to distract.”
On Monday’s episode of The Daily Show, the late-night host broached the subject of “the very normal and not shady handling of the Epstein files”, which could be released if a House of Representatives vote is passed on Tuesday, 18 November.
Many of the recently released emails mention Trump, who was friends with the disgraced financier decades ago, including one in which the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein claimed the president “knew about the girls”.
However, Trump, who said he would sign a bill to release the files if passed, told reporters last week that he “knows nothing” about the emails.
Stewart said: “This Epstein thing is no Democrat hoax, and you know it’s real because Trump’s allies are working overtime to distract, or in the case of Fox News, not even a mention.
“When the emails came out, Fox devoted most of their airtime to such urgent matters as: the socialist takeover of Seattle, the Treasury phasing out the penny, the Northern Lights, the growing popularity of Christian music, and, as always, Kamala Harris goes crazy for carbs.”
He added the president is “flailing” when asked about the emails, stating: “If he had nothing to hide, he could have declassified and released these files at any time, and how do I know this? He said so.”
Stewart then presented a clip of Trump saying on Fox News in September 2022: “If you’re the president of the United States, you can declassify just by saying, ‘It's declassified.’”
The host levelled that Trump’s inclusion in the Epstein emails is not evidence of guilt.
The House of Representatives is expected to vote on a bill to force the Justice Department to release files related to Epstein.
Trump confirmed Monday (17 November) that he would sign the bill if it passes the House and Senate – but maintained he had “nothing to do with” Epstein, who died by suicide in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
“We have nothing to do with Epstein,” he said. “The Democrats do. All of his friends were Democrats.”
