Rachel Maddow couldn’t stand President Donald Trump’s repeated denials that he signed a sexually suggestive letter for Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday, wondering on Monday what other scandal in presidential history could “even approximates a scandal this disgusting?”
The MSNBC host tore into Trump’s ties to Epstein on Monday’s “The Rachel Maddow Show,” hours after the WSJ and congressional Democrats released the apparent letter after the House Oversight Committee obtained a copy of a 2003 book from Epstein’s estate.
Trump had claimed in July that the letter didn’t exist after the Wall Street Journal reported on its contents, eventually suing the Rupert Murdoch-owned paper for reporting on it. But on Monday, Trump associates, including Vice President JD Vance and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, instead claimed the signature was a forgery.
Letters obtained by the New York Times from the same time period, however, showed other letters featuring Trump signing his name in a similar way.
“Now, I’m no forensic handwriting expert, but if the White House is hinging its whole defense against how ferociously creepy and suspicious this all is on how much these signatures don’t all look alike,” Maddow said, “if that’s their defense, that’s a terrible defense.”
The letter was released alongside other images from the estate, including one of Epstein and a member of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club holding a novelty check that appeared to show Epstein had jokingly sold Trump a “fully depreciated” woman for $22,500. Maddow noted the release of the images came after Trump claimed he and Epstein fell out after Epstein “took” women from his club.
“Real normal stuff here, you guys,” Maddow said. “I mean, what in presidential history even approximates a scandal this disgusting? What in the history of the United States of America, for anybody in any position of public trust, approximates the level of repulsiveness that Donald Trump brings to the presidency?”
The White House did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
