Lutnick admits travel to Epstein island, downplays relationship

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick minimized his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein Tuesday even as he acknowledged visiting the disgraced financier at his private island in 2012 after Epstein was a convicted sex offender — and years later than he previously said their relationship ended. 

Lutnick, speaking to a Senate panel, described going to Epstein’s island after being asked in Tuesday’s hearing about Justice Department documents showing he had planned a visit.

“I did have lunch with him, as I was on a boat going across on a family vacation, my wife was with me, as were my four children and nannies,” Lutnick told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee.

Lutnick added, “The only thing I saw with my wife and my children and the other couple and their children was staff who worked for Mr. Epstein on that island.” 

Lutnick was also questioned about Epstein seeking a copy of his nanny’s resume and a meeting with her in 2013, a year after the trip to the island. Asked whether that nanny had been on the island visit, Lutnick responded he had “no idea about that whole thing.” 

Emails released by the Justice Department show Epstein’s longtime accountant forwarded a resume for one of Lutnick’s nannies to Epstein and said he was trying to arrange a time for Epstein to meet her.

Lutnick also said Ghislaine Maxwell was not on the island when he visited. Maxwell, a former girlfriend of Epstein, is serving a 20-year prison sentence after a jury found in 2021 that she recruited and groomed women for Epstein to sexually abuse.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt voiced continued support for Lutnick within the administration. 

“Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary,” Leavitt told reporters. 

Justice Department documents released in recent weeks indicate Lutnick previously incorrectly characterized the extent of his relationship with Epstein.

In an interview on the Pod Force One podcast last year, Lutnick described moving into a house next door to Epstein in 2005 and being so troubled by him that he and his wife agreed to never be in a room with him again. “So I was never in the room with him, socially for business or even philanthropy,” he said. 

The Justice Department documents also indicate that Lutnick and Epstein — who were neighbors in Manhattan — continued to exchange messages through 2018. 

Still, Lutnick told the Senate panel, “I did not have any relationship with him.”

Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon expressed doubt about Lutnick’s account.

“The reason people are bothered is because last year, you said you cut off all contact, but there are eight incidences of interaction” since then, Merkley said. “In 2012 you were planning a trip to the private island with your family. That sounds like somebody you know well enough to call up and say, ‘Let’s get our families together.’”

Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to Florida state prostitution charges, including soliciting a minor for prostitution.

Some lawmakers have called for Lutnick’s resignation over his Epstein ties. The White House rejected those claims Monday.

“President Trump has assembled the best and most transformative cabinet in modern history. The entire Trump administration, including Secretary Lutnick and the Department of Commerce, remains focused on delivering for the American people,” said White House spokesman Kush Desai. 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com