PRESS REVIEW – Friday, July 18: We take a look at The Wall Street Journal's exclusive report on US President Donald Trump's alleged racy letter to Jeffrey Epstein for his 50th birthday. Also, we learn how Trump's team was on an "f***ing warpath" to kill the story, and we get reactions from his supporters. Finally, what's the effect of the bombshell report?
The Wall Street Journal has published an exclusive article, saying that it peeked into Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday album, where it saw a letter from what appears to be US President Donald Trump. The Journal says the letter is "bawdy" and racy. According to the paper, it contains typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked, hand-drawn woman and a squiggly "Donald" written below her waist, "mimicking pubic hair". A line from the letter purportedly says: "We have certain things in common, Jeffrey". The conclusion allegedly reads "Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret". Trump reacted by saying the article was "a fake thing", a "fake Wall Street Journal story" and "not him". He then said that he would file a lawsuit against the paper. The US Justice Department didn't respond to the WSJ's question on whether it was reviewing pages of the album. The FBI also declined to comment.
Rolling Stone reports that Trump's team was on an "f***ing warpath" to kill the story. The magazine spoke to several sources, who said that the Trump administration tried in vain to kill the story in a "days-long mission" before it was published. Rolling Stone notes that the WSJ is controlled by the Murdoch family, which also owns Fox News. Still, Trump's "maximum pressure campaign" didn't work. Politico, however, notes that "prominent MAGA figures rushed to defend the US president". Vice President JD Vance called the story "complete and utter bullshit", whereas Elon Musk said that it "really doesn't sound like something Trump would say", despite the pair's recent fallout.
Right after Trump said that he intends to sue the Wall Street Journal, he made another big announcement. The Guardian writes that Trump finally requested the release of "any and all pertinent" Epstein jury transcripts, in an effort to diffuse the Epstein files controversy. The BBC adds that it's unclear whether this means that Trump authorises the public release of these documents. Papers note that these latest developments follow days of pressure and criticism from some of Trump's most loyal supporters.
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