Donald Trump news: Epstein lawyer responds to Musk claims, US President considering selling Tesla

Amy Lee and Kimberley Braddish
The Nightly
A feud between Donald Trump and Elon Musk erupted with both trading insults on social media. (AP PHOTO)
A feud between Donald Trump and Elon Musk erupted with both trading insults on social media. (AP PHOTO) Credit: AAP

The lawyer who represented Jeffrey Epstein has responded to Elon Musk’s explosive claims about US President Donald Trump.

What began as a minor disagreement between Mr Musk and Mr Trump over the Administration’s sweeping tax and spending package quickly escalated into a bitter feud that played out on social media on Friday.

The former DOGE advisor took to X to claim that Mr Trump was blocking the release of unsealed files from the Jeffrey Epstein case because his name was included.

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“Time to drop the really big bomb: the real reason the Epstein files haven’t been released is because they name Trump.”

He finished the message by mocking Mr Trump’s habit of signing off with his initials, adding, “Have a nice day, DJT!”

The Tesla founder even doubled down on his claims, writing on X shortly after, “Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out.”

While Mr Trump is yet to respond publicly to the bombshell allegations, he shared a statement on Truth Social written by the lawyer who represented Epstein before he died by suicide in police custody in 2019.

“I was hired to lead Jeffrey Epstein’s defense as his criminal lawyer 9 days before he died. He sought my advice for months before that,” Criminal Defence Lawyer, David Schoen said.

“I can say authoritatively, unequivocally, and definitively that he had no information to hurt President Trump. I specifically asked him!”

A senior White House official has stated that Mr Trump has no plans to speak to Mr Musk, and is considering either selling or giving away his red Tesla.

Mr Trump is reportedly considering either selling or giving away his red Tesla S.
Mr Trump is reportedly considering either selling or giving away his red Tesla S. Credit: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

The high-profile rift between Mr Trump and Mr Musk comes after Musk became an outspoken critic of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” calling it a “disgusting abomination”.

Mr Musk also claimed Mr Trump would not have won the election without his support.

Mr Trump, speaking from the Oval Office on Friday, addressed Mr Musk’s criticism head-on. “Look, Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will anymore,” he said.

“He said the most beautiful things about me, and he hasn’t said bad about me personally, but I’m sure that’ll be next. But I’m, I’m very disappointed in Elon. I’ve helped Elon a lot.”

The US President suggested Mr Musk’s opposition was rooted in the bill’s removal of electric vehicle tax credits, which would hit Tesla’s bottom line. “I’m very disappointed because Elon knew the inner workings of the bill better than almost anybody sitting here,” Mr Trump said.

“He knew everything about it. He had no problem with it. All of a sudden he had a problem and he only developed a problem when he found out that we were going to have to cut the EV mandate because that’s billions and billions of dollars”.

While Mr Trump spoke, Mr Musk was active on X, mocking the President’s claims and referencing old Trump posts about government overspending. “False, this bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!” Mr Musk posted.

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