Megyn Kelly said on her SiriusXM show that a source close to the Jeffrey Epstein case told her Epstein preferred "barely legal" teens and therefore should not automatically be labeled a pedophile—remarks she called "disgusting" yet defended. Epstein was convicted in 2008 in a case involving an underage victim and was federally charged in 2019 with sex trafficking of minors; he died in 2019. Documents from Epstein's estate—roughly 23,000 pages—include emails that mention Donald Trump and a 2011 note claiming Trump "spent hours" at Epstein's home with a minor; the White House denies wrongdoing and named the alleged victim as Virginia Giuffre. Critics say Kelly's framing risks minimizing the severity of exploitation and note political pressures surrounding the released documents.
Megyn Kelly Sparks Outrage Saying Jeffrey Epstein Was "Not a Pedophile" — Remarks Seen as Protecting Trump
Megyn Kelly said on her SiriusXM show that a source close to the Jeffrey Epstein case told her Epstein preferred "barely legal" teens and therefore should not automatically be labeled a pedophile—remarks she called "disgusting" yet defended. Epstein was convicted in 2008 in a case involving an underage victim and was federally charged in 2019 with sex trafficking of minors; he died in 2019. Documents from Epstein's estate—roughly 23,000 pages—include emails that mention Donald Trump and a 2011 note claiming Trump "spent hours" at Epstein's home with a minor; the White House denies wrongdoing and named the alleged victim as Virginia Giuffre. Critics say Kelly's framing risks minimizing the severity of exploitation and note political pressures surrounding the released documents.
Megyn Kelly Questions "Pedophile" Label for Jeffrey Epstein
Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly stirred controversy on her SiriusXM program when she relayed a source's claim that Jeffrey Epstein should not automatically be called a "pedophile." Kelly said the source—who she described as having direct knowledge of parts of the case—told her Epstein favored "barely legal" teens rather than very young children.
"Jeffrey Epstein, in this person's view, was not a pedophile," Kelly said. She added the source characterized Epstein as preferring the "barely legal type," even saying, "Like, he liked 15-year-old girls."
Kelly acknowledged the remarks were disturbing, saying, "I realize this is disgusting," but she argued for a distinction between different ages of victims while condemning any sexual exploitation as reprehensible.
For context, Epstein was convicted in Florida in 2008 in a case involving procuring a minor for prostitution and later faced a 2019 federal indictment that charged him with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy. He died in 2019 while in federal custody.
Newly Released Documents and Links to Donald Trump
The comments came after Epstein's estate provided roughly 23,000 documents to the House Oversight Committee. Among the materials were a 2011 email from Epstein to Ghislaine Maxwell that said Donald Trump allegedly "spent hours" at Epstein's residence with one of the minors and described Trump as "a dog that hasn't barked." In that note Epstein added, "(Redacted name) spent hours at my house with him, he has never once been mentioned... police chief etc. I'm 75% there." Maxwell replied, "I have been thinking about that."
Other documents quoted Epstein telling writer Michael Wolff that Trump knew about trafficking allegations and had asked Maxwell to "stop," and that Trump forced Epstein to resign from Mar-a-Lago. Those assertions have been disputed by Trump allies and denied by White House officials.
Responses and Political Fallout
The White House strongly denied any wrongdoing by the president and, in the wake of the documents' release, press secretary Karoline Leavitt publicly identified the woman referenced in the exchange as Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most prominent accusers. Leavitt said Giuffre has publicly stated she never saw President Trump engage in Epstein's crimes and described him as polite during their encounters.
Republicans on the House Oversight Committee pushed back against Democrats' handling of the disclosures, questioning why Giuffre's name was redacted in some committee releases when it was not redacted in the estate's submissions. Critics accused Democrats of selectively releasing material to damage the president.
Separately, journalist Michael Wolff has claimed on his podcast that Trump and Epstein once had a close relationship built in part on a shared interest in models. Wolff has alleged he saw photographs and other evidence suggesting familiarity between the men; these claims have been disputed and remain contested.
Kelly's attempt to draw a distinction between types of alleged victims drew widespread criticism from commentators and victims' advocates, who say focusing on nuances of age risks minimizing the broader criminal and moral seriousness of Epstein's actions and the harm suffered by his victims.