The latest batch of records connected to Jeffrey Epstein has pulled the focus off of President Trump and onto House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
Newly released documents from Epstein’s estate, shared last week through the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, contain thousands of pages detailing various communications between political figures and Epstein.
Among them is a 2013 email sent by a representative of Jeffries, who had recently entered Congress at the time.
The message asked Epstein to consider donating and to attend a dinner with then-President Barack Obama.
NEW: Minority Leader Jeffries solicited campaign donations from Jeffrey Epstein in 2013, years after his convictions, according to emails released from Epstein’s estate. pic.twitter.com/kWipvrwVrv
— E X X ➠A L E R T S (@ExxAlerts) November 18, 2025
The email, drafted by New York City-based consulting firm Dynamic SRG, described Jeffries as “Brooklyn’s Obama” while encouraging Epstein to participate in Democratic fundraising events connected to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
In the note, Dynamic SRG’s Lisa Rossi told Epstein, “Hakeem is committed to electing a Democrat majority in 2014 and is encouraging his friends to participate in the DCCC/DSCC fundraising dinner with President Obama this coming Monday night.” Rossi then urged him to reach out if he wanted to “get involved” or secure an “opportunity to get to know Hakeem better.”
House Oversight Chair James Comer highlighted the email on the House floor as lawmakers considered the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 427 to 1 on Tuesday.
Comer stated that “another email shows fundraisers invited Epstein to an event or to meet privately with Hakeem Jeffries as part of their 2013 effort to win a majority,” adding that Jeffries’ political operation had been directly seeking financial backing from Epstein.
“So Hakeem Jeffries’ campaign solicited money from Jeffrey Epstein,” Comer told colleagues. “That’s what we found in the last document batch.”
At the time of the outreach, Epstein had already served a 13 month sentence for a sex offense against a minor and was attempting to regain influence among powerful circles.
Comer also noted during the floor debate that former President Bill Clinton “must appear for his deposition,” criticizing Democrats for failing to assist in scheduling his testimony after the committee subpoenaed him in August.
The revelations arrived as Jeffries faced additional scrutiny involving fellow Democrat Del. Stacey Plaskett of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Question: Why should Americans trust you and House Democrats when Plaskett was texting Epstein during a hearing?
Jeffries: *changes subject and waves hands around* pic.twitter.com/kpXXQxPTKi
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) November 17, 2025
More material from Epstein’s estate showed Plaskett communicating with Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing in which she questioned Michael Cohen, a former attorney and critic of President Donald Trump.
Epstein was watching the hearing in real time and sent her multiple messages offering feedback.
In one text thread Epstein discussed former Trump aide Rhona Graff, misspelling her name and writing, “Cohen brought up RONA – keeper of the secrets.”
Plaskett responded, “RONA?? Quick I’m up next is that an acronym.” Epstein then clarified, “[That’s] his assistant.”
It's a good day for Democrats to condemn Stacey Plaskett, who was TEXTING Jeffrey Epstein from a congressional hearing seeking advice on questioning a discredited witness with a vendetta against Trump.@RepRobertGarcia & @OversightDems, it's been 4 days—where is your statement? pic.twitter.com/GULuqcpEdM
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) November 18, 2025
Another conversation showed Epstein telling Plaskett, apparently referring to Cohen, “[He’s] opened the door to questions re who are the other henchmen at trump org.” Plaskett replied, “Yup. Very aware and waiting my turn.”
According to the files, he also told her she looked “great” and offered suggestions on how she might question Cohen.
Immediately after her questioning ended, Epstein wrote, “Good work.”
The documents also show that Plaskett received thousands of dollars from Epstein in campaign donations during the 2016 and 2018.
Epstein owned the private island Little Saint James in the U.S. Virgin Islands from 1998 until his death in 2019.
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On Tuesday, conservative lawmakers introduced a resolution to censure Plaskett, arguing that she had been “colluding” with Epstein and should be removed from the House Intelligence Committee.
The resolution described her communications with Epstein as conflicting with the public persona she projected, portraying herself as a strict advocate for accountability.
During the House debate on the censure resolution, Republican South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman said, “Some will try to spin this as politics but protecting the honor of this body is not partisan.”
“It’s not Democrat. It’s not Republican. Standing against a convicted predator’s influence in our proceedings is not partisan, it’s basic decency,” he noted.
“Delegate Plaskett’s relationship with Epstein stands in stark contrast to the public image she has curated for herself as a defender of justice and accountability while secretly collaborating with an individual whose crimes against vulnerable women and children shocked the nation,” a section of the resolution read.
However, Democratic lawmakers pushed back, with Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin describing Plaskett’s communication with Epstein as nothing more than a routine interaction with a “constituent.”
“Well, they want to give them another headline, which is that they’ve arraigned a Democratic member for taking a phone call from her constituent, Jeffrey Epstein, in the middle of a hearing,” Raskin remarked.
Jamie Raskin — one of the worst to ever disgrace the halls of Congress — says @StaceyPlaskett was just "taking a phone call from her constituent" when she colluded with a convicted sex offender during a committee hearing.
These people are SICK! https://t.co/t2mgClf8FK pic.twitter.com/JmnwR1OeaQ
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) November 18, 2025
“And, of course, I don’t think there’s any rule here against taking phone calls in a hearing.”
Raskin continued defending Plaskett, questioning what rule she may have violated and why the matter had been moved directly to a censure vote.
“Where is the ethical transgression? Where is [the] legal transgression?” he questioned.
Raskin also warned Republicans to consider whether any of their own members had been in contact with Epstein before making claims.
STACEY PLASKETT: “I got a text from Jeffrey Epstein, who at the time was my constituent. It was not public knowledge at that time that he was under federal investigation."
It was, however, a full 11 years after he was first arrested for child sex crimes. pic.twitter.com/WcUZ1BPR4g
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) November 18, 2025
“Are you saying anybody on your side of the aisle who had a phone call with Jeffrey Epstein should be censured?” he asked.
“Be careful your answer there, because there’s a lot more that’s about to come out, right? So you should think about what is the principle behind this rush to judge.”
Plaskett echoed Raskin’s argument, maintaining that she had communicated with Epstein only because he was a constituent.
“I got a text from Jeffrey Epstein, who at the time was my constituent,” she told colleagues. “[It] was not public knowledge at that time that he was under federal investigation, and … was sharing information with me.”
🚨 BREAKING: In a pathetic move, US House REJECTS censuring Democrat Stacey Plaskett over her collusion with Epstein to harm Donald Trump in 2019
EVERY DEMOCRAT VOTED TO PROTECT HER.
You disgust America, Dems. You're in leagues with Epstein and you just got exposed!
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 19, 2025
She defended her actions further on the House floor, saying, “Let me tell you something. I don’t need to get advice on how to question anybody from any individual. I have been a lawyer for 30 years.”
“I have sought information from confidential informants, from murderers, from other individuals, because I want the truth, not because I need them to tell me what to say,” Plaskett added.
Despite initial Republican momentum, the censure measure was defeated Tuesday evening when a group of GOP lawmakers joined Democrats in a 209-214-3 vote to block it.
