Speaker of the House announces Trump was an FBI informant tasked with taking down Epstein

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) defended President Donald Trump’s recent comments on the Jeffrey Epstein case Friday, telling reporters that the president always treated the allegations seriously and even served as an “FBI informant.”

Johnson said Trump’s use of the phrase “Democrat Epstein Hoax” referred not to Epstein’s crimes but to Democrats’ political attacks. “It’s been misrepresented. He’s not saying that what Epstein did is a hoax. It’s a terrible, unspeakable evil; he believes that himself. When he first heard the rumor, he kicked him out of Mar-a-Lago,” Johnson said.

Then Johnson made the striking claim: “He was an FBI informant to try to take this stuff down,” he told reporters, adding that Trump had “great sympathy for the women who suffered these unspeakable harms.”

The White House did not immediately comment on Johnson’s assertion, nor did Johnson’s office respond to requests for clarification. Trump has previously downplayed his ties to Epstein, though in 2002 he told New York Magazine: “I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy.” Reports have also detailed that the two were frequently seen socializing in Palm Beach before a falling-out around 2004, which the New York Times said stemmed from a real estate dispute and allegations that Epstein acted inappropriately toward a Mar-a-Lago member’s daughter.