House Oversight Democrats released a new batch of Jeffrey Epstein photos, prompting a tense CNN exchange in which commentator Scott Jennings defended President Trump and said many images were being used to smear him. Host Kaitlan Collins pushed back, noting the release also included photos of Bill Clinton, Larry Summers and other public figures. The disclosures follow earlier releases, including thousands of Epstein emails that implicated Summers; Trump ultimately signed the bill forcing the files’ release and has denied any wrongdoing.
Epstein Photo Trove Sparks CNN Clash — Scott Jennings Defends Trump
Several photos of Trump were included in the latest release of photos from Epstein’s estate. / House Oversight Democrats
House Oversight Committee Democrats released a new trove of photographs from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate on Friday, prompting a heated exchange on CNN’s The Source between host Kaitlan Collins and guest commentator Scott Jennings.
Jennings, a frequent CNN contributor, argued the images were being used to unfairly target President Donald Trump. He said many of the photos were “frivolous, publicly available pictures or pictures that were taken in public spaces” and maintained they were intended “only” to smear the president.
Epstein and Trump were friends for over a decade prior to a falling out in the 2000s. / House Oversight Democrats
“Many of these pictures are frivolous, publicly available pictures or pictures that were taken in public spaces that clearly have nothing to do with the victims or what happened to them,” Jennings told Collins and fellow guest Van Jones.
Collins pushed back, noting the release included images of former President Bill Clinton, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and other Democrats. She questioned whether the argument that the release was aimed exclusively at Trump held up when it also implicated other public figures.
“They’re releasing pictures of Bill Clinton and Larry Summers and Democrats, too,” Collins said. “I think you could make that argument maybe more if it was just pictures of Donald Trump, right?”
Jennings dismissed that retort, calling some of the other figures “roadkill” and reiterating his view that there is “not a single shred of evidence or any credible allegation that Trump did anything wrong at all, or had anything to do with this period.”
Democrats like Bill Clinton and Larry Summers have also been scrutinized over their friendships with Jeffrey Epstein. / House Oversight Democrats
The latest batch of photos included several images of Trump with unidentified women and at least one image that renewed scrutiny of Bill Clinton, showing him alongside Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s convicted accomplice. In November, the release of roughly 20,000 pages of Epstein-related emails revealed substantial correspondence between Epstein and Larry Summers, prompting Summers to take a leave from Harvard.
Jennings also noted that Trump ultimately signed the bill that compelled the release of the Epstein files, framing the signature as a sign of transparency despite reporting that the president spent months resisting the disclosure before signing under bipartisan pressure.
Trump and Epstein were photographed together several times during the 1990s and early 2000s. / Thomas Concordia/Getty Images
At a Friday Oval Office press conference, President Trump downplayed the new images, saying he had not seen them and calling them “no big deal,” adding that Epstein “was all over Palm Beach” and “has photos with everybody.” The president has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing in connection with Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell.
Why It Matters
The photo release has intensified public scrutiny of prominent figures who had ties to Epstein and has reopened political debate over how the images should be interpreted: as part of an investigative record or as political fodder. The dispute between Jennings and Collins highlights how media coverage of the files is itself becoming a contested political issue.
