Trump eyed Ghislaine Maxwell pardon amid fear Epstein partner would talk: writer

An anxious Donald Trump weighed whether to pardon Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell for fear of what secrets she might spill about the billionaires' relationship, author Michael Wolff told The Daily Beast.

"After Maxwell, now 63, was arrested by the FBI in July 2020 for allegedly helping Epstein run his sex-trafficking ring—luring and grooming young girls into a web of abuse—Trump grew 'very wary' and began asking, 'What could she say—what would she say?'" Wolff told The Beast's Joanna Coles.

“They did everything together," Wolff said. "And this is from sharing, pursuing women, hunting women, sharing at least one girlfriend for at least a year, and this kind of rich-guy relationship with each other’s planes. I dare say they kind of loved each other. These [sic] were brothers in arms for a long time.”

Trump opted not to pardon Maxwell, who was sentenced to 20 years for her role in Epstein's scheme.

When a reporter asked Wednesday about the rumored Epstein "client list" that Attorney General Pam Bondi claimed was on her desk awaiting review, Trump exploded, "Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy's been talked about for years! You're asking — we have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things. And are people still talking about this guy, this creep? That is unbelievable."

The Department of Justice released a memo this week claiming the Epstein file was closed, and brushing off conspiracy theories that there was a "blackmail" list of clients, as well as the theory that Epstein was murdered in jail.

MAGA diehards called for Bondi's firing, and even Democrats in the House accused the DOJ of covering up the Epstein files to protect Trump.

Former "first buddy" Elon Musk even accused Trump of being on the list.

Trump’s communications director, Steven Cheung, told The Daily Beast, “Michael Wolff is a lying sack of s--- and has been proven to be a fraud."

Read The Daily Beast story here.