From 'Terrific Guy' to 'Democrat Hoax': A Clear Timeline of Trump's Evolving Statements on Jeffrey Epstein (2002–2025)

On November 12, the House Oversight Committee released more than 20,000 pages of correspondence and travel records tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s network — documents that appear to show a closer relationship between Epstein and Donald Trump than the White House has typically acknowledged. Within hours, Trump called the disclosure 'another Democrat hoax' on Truth Social, a political framing that does not align with the chronological record of his public statements.

This timeline compiles every publicly documented, on-the-record statement — and widely cited attributed remarks — that Trump has made about Jeffrey Epstein from 2002 through 2025. Taken together, the entries reveal a repeated pattern: initial warmth, sustained silence, efforts to distance, and eventual partisan deflection as scrutiny intensified.

Donald Trump — Public Statements About Jeffrey Epstein (2002–2025)

October 28, 2002 — 'I’ve known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy. 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.' (New York Magazine, Oct. 28, 2002)

2004 — Reported later: Trump and Epstein are said to have had a falling-out around 2004, with accounts attributing the split to a Palm Beach real-estate auction and/or Epstein’s behavior toward a Mar-a-Lago employee. Trump later said he 'banned Epstein from Mar-a-Lago.' (Washington Post, Jul. 31, 2019)

2005–2008 — During Epstein’s investigation and his 2008 non-prosecution agreement, Trump made few on-the-record comments. Contemporary reporting places him in Epstein’s social circle but records few new direct quotes. (Miami Herald reporting)

2015 — Reported retrospectively: Journalists later summarized Trump as saying he 'was not a fan of Epstein' and that Epstein was 'kicked out of Mar-a-Lago.' (New York Times, Jul. 9, 2019)

July 7, 2019 — After Epstein’s arrest: 'I had a falling-out with him a long time ago. I haven’t spoken to him in fifteen years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you.' (Reuters, Jul. 2019)

July 9, 2019 — 'I wasn’t a big fan of Jeffrey Epstein … I threw him out of my Mar-a-Lago club.' (Yahoo News timeline)

July 21, 2020 — Asked about Ghislaine Maxwell’s arrest: 'I just wish her well, frankly.' (BBC News, Jul. 21, 2020)

July 23, 2020 — Follow-up: Trump reiterated 'I wish her well' and said he had met Maxwell 'numerous times' in Palm Beach. (CNN, Jul. 23, 2020)

August 3–4, 2020 — In the Jonathan Swan interview (Axios on HBO): 'I know nothing about [Epstein]. I know he was from Palm Beach. But I was not — I haven’t spoken to him in fifteen years.' (Axios on HBO transcript, Aug. 2020)

November 2023 — At a rally he called the Epstein story a 'Democrat hoax' and invoked 'Hillary, Comey, Schiff' to frame renewed attention as partisan. (Rolling Stone, Nov. 2023)

May 2024 — 'I knew him, like everybody in Palm Beach knew him. But I kicked him out of Mar-a-Lago. He was a creep, a pedophile, and I wanted nothing to do with him.' (Newsweek, May 2024)

July 15, 2025 — 'He’s been dead for a long time. I don’t understand the fascination. It’s sordid, but it’s boring.' (referring to Epstein) (Yahoo News, Jul. 15, 2025)

July 28–29, 2025 — On Air Force One: 'I never went to his island … He stole people that worked for me — the spa girls. I said, ‘Don’t ever do that again.’ … I threw him out — persona non grata.' (PBS NewsHour, Jul. 2025)

November 12, 2025 — Truth Social response to the House Oversight release of emails: 'The Democrats are trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they’ll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the Shutdown, and so many other subjects.' (The Independent reporting the Truth Social post, Nov. 12, 2025)

Notes

This compilation includes publicly documented, on-the-record statements and widely cited attributed comments from 2002–2025. Items labeled '(reported later)' or '(attributed)' indicate remarks reconstructed by reporters or cited in retrospective accounts rather than contemporaneous direct quotes.

Bottom line: The timeline shows repeated shifts in tone and explanation across two decades. As new documents and reporting emerged, Trump’s public posture moved from familiarity and praise to omission, distancing, and finally to framing renewed scrutiny as partisan political attacks.