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President Trump’s name appeared on a contributor list for a book celebrating the 50th birthday of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, evidence that he participated in the collection even as he denied that he signed a sexually suggestive note and drawing.
Mr. Trump’s name is listed among dozens of Mr. Epstein’s acquaintances who were asked to contribute birthday messages for the leather-bound book in 2003. The list, reviewed by The New York Times, includes well-known Epstein associates like Leslie H. Wexner, then the owner of Victoria’s Secret and other retailers; Alan C. Greenberg, who ran the doomed Wall Street firm Bear Stearns; and the physicist Murray Gell-Mann. Mr. Greenberg and Mr. Gell-Mann both have since died.
The Times also reviewed an introductory letter to the book, which was handwritten by Ghislaine Maxwell, Mr. Epstein’s longtime associate who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for conspiring to sexually traffic minors.
It is no secret that Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein were friendly in the 1990s and early 2000s, before Mr. Epstein was convicted of sex crimes in 2008. But facing intense criticism over his administration’s refusal to release files related to government investigations of Mr. Epstein, Mr. Trump recently has sought to play down the extent of their relationship.
The president sued The Wall Street Journal for defamation after it reported on July 17 that he had signed the note and drawing in the book, a leather-bound album compiled by Ms. Maxwell to mark Mr. Epstein’s milestone birthday. The Journal described the drawing as the outline of a naked woman with Mr. Trump’s signature below her waist, suggesting pubic hair. It quoted an imagined conversation between Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein that concluded with Mr. Trump saying: “May every day be another wonderful secret.”
Shortly after The Journal published its article, Mr. Trump shot back on his social media network, Truth Social, writing, “The supposed letter they printed by President Trump to Epstein was a FAKE.”
On Thursday, a White House spokesman, Steven Cheung, said in a statement that Mr. Trump had kicked Mr. Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago, his club in Florida, “for being a creep.”
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the fake news stories concocted by the Democrats and the liberal media,” Mr. Cheung said. A lawyer for Ms. Maxwell had no immediate comment. A spokesman for Mr. Wexner declined to comment.
The Times found that at least once before, Mr. Trump had written Mr. Epstein an admiring note.
“To Jeff — You are the greatest!” reads an inscription in a copy of Mr. Trump’s book “Trump: The Art of the Comeback” that belonged to Mr. Epstein.
The message, reviewed by The Times, is signed “Donald” and dated “Oct ’97,” the month the book came out.
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The storm over the Epstein files that has engulfed Washington this summer shows no signs of abating, despite Mr. Trump’s efforts to change the subject. On Wednesday, a key House committee voted to subpoena the files from the Justice Department, even as House Speaker Mike Johnson sought to move the chamber toward a summer recess without holding a vote on whether to push the administration to release the files.
The controversy over the birthday book has only accelerated in the week since The Journal’s initial report. On Wednesday night, Brad Edwards, a lawyer for some of Mr. Epstein’s victims, said on MSNBC that the book was in the possession of Mr. Epstein’s estate, and Representative Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, said he planned to subpoena the estate to hand over the book.
Mr. Epstein’s estate issued a statement on Thursday saying it would comply with all lawful processes.
Ms. Maxwell has taken a leading role in the drama: A top lawyer from the Justice Department met with her Thursday, although neither the department nor her lawyers disclosed the substance of the conversation. A House committee has indicated it would like her to testify at a hearing in August.
The Times has not reviewed the letter that reportedly bears Mr. Trump’s signature.
In her introductory letter to Mr. Epstein, written in black on a textured card stock, Ms. Maxwell explained that the idea of the book was “to gather stories and old photographs to jog your memory about places, people and different events.
“Some of the letters will definitely achieve their intended goal — some well … you will have to read them to see for yourself. I know you will enjoy looking through the book, and I hope you will derive as much pleasure looking through it as I did putting it together for you.”
Before signing her name, she wished Mr. Epstein a “Happy Happy Birthday.”
By then, Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein had known one another for years. Their relationship went back to at least 1992, when the pair were together at a party at Mar-a-Lago.
The Times also reviewed a previously undisclosed photo of Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein with the singer James Brown. It isn’t clear where the photo was taken. Mr. Brown regularly performed in Atlantic City, N.J., where Mr. Trump owned the Taj Mahal casino.
In the photo, Mr. Brown is flanked by Mr. Epstein, who is wearing a white turtleneck and dark blazer, and Mr. Trump, wearing a suit and a pink tie.
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Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein remained friendly into the 2000s. In 2002, Mr. Trump told New York magazine that Mr. Epstein was a “terrific guy.” He added, “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life.”
A number of women who were in Mr. Epstein’s orbit have said they encountered Mr. Trump in the 1990s.
Stacey Williams, a former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model who was dating Mr. Epstein, has said Mr. Trump groped her when they visited him at Trump Tower. Maria Farmer, who went on to work for Mr. Epstein, said Mr. Trump ogled her bare legs before Mr. Epstein told him that “she’s not here for you.”
Mr. Trump has previously denied both women’s allegations.
The relationship between Mr. Trump and Mr. Epstein appeared to fizzle out around 2004, after the two men competed for a piece of real estate in Palm Beach, Fla. The future president prevailed, buying the oceanfront estate for $41 million.
Susan C. Beachy contributed research.
David Enrich is a deputy investigations editor for The Times. He writes about law and business.
Matthew Goldstein is a Times reporter who covers Wall Street and white-collar crime and housing issues.
Jessica Silver-Greenberg is a Times investigative reporter writing about big business with a focus on health care. She has been a reporter for more than a decade.
Steve Eder has been an investigative reporter for The Times for more than a decade.
