Epstein aide Ghislaine Maxwell defends Trump as a ‘gentleman’: Will that calm Maga anger?

The United States Justice Department has released transcripts from interviews with Ghislaine Maxwell, the long-time associate of Jeffrey Epstein.

The development comes amidst a growing divide within Donald Trump’s Maga (Make America Great Again) supporter base as the US president’s connections to the disgraced financier are put under the lens.

Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s sex trafficking operation, described Trump as a “gentleman in all respects” and said she never saw him behave improperly with young women.

The timing of the transcripts’ release — on Friday (August 22, 2025) — was not coincidental.

For months, Trump’s base has grown increasingly frustrated over his administration’s handling of the Epstein files, a trove of documents many conspiracy-minded supporters believe contain incriminating evidence against powerful figures.

The US Justice Department had previously announced that no further disclosures were planned, which only intensified criticism and fuelled allegations of a cover-up. Against this backdrop, Maxwell’s remarks are being positioned as a way to cool tensions within the MAGA movement.

What Maxwell said about Trump

In the series of interviews held in Florida, Maxwell repeatedly defended Trump when asked about his interactions with Epstein.

She was questioned by US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche — a former personal lawyer to Trump — along with a small group that included Associate Deputy Attorney General Diego Pestana, an FBI agent, a deputy US marshal, and three of Maxwell’s attorneys.

Maxwell insisted she never observed Trump in compromising circumstances involving Epstein or the women around him.

“I actually never saw the president in any type of massage setting,” she said, referring to the coded language prosecutors say Epstein and his associates used to describe sexual encounters with girls.

She added, “I never witnessed the president in any inappropriate setting in any way. The president was never inappropriate with anybody. In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects.”

Her testimony also touched on other questions about Trump’s association with Epstein. When asked about a risqué book prepared for Epstein’s 50th birthday that allegedly included contributions from Trump, Maxwell said she could not remember any specifics.

“It’s been so long. I want to tell you, but I don’t remember,” she explained.

At one point, Maxwell went beyond direct questioning to offer unsolicited praise of Trump’s political career. “I just want to say that I find – I – I admire his extraordinary achievement in becoming the president now,” she said.

“And I like him, and I’ve always liked him.”

Why Maxwell’s testimony is controversial

Maxwell’s testimony comes with clear complications. She was convicted in 2021 for aiding Epstein in recruiting and trafficking minors and is serving two decades in federal custody.

The government has described her as a serial liar.

Prosecutors originally charged her with perjury in addition to trafficking offences, though those counts were dropped after her conviction. She chose not to testify at her trial.

There is also speculation that Maxwell is attempting to win concessions from Trump’s administration. Her lawyer, David Markus, had spent weeks before the interview publicly offering praise of Trump and suggesting that clemency could be on the table.

Trump himself had in the past made remarks wishing Maxwell well after her arrest and left open the possibility of a pardon before she was convicted.

Maxwell was also recently transferred to a lower-security prison camp despite restrictions that normally prevent sex offenders from being placed in such facilities.

Officials have not explained the circumstances of that transfer, but the development has fuelled questions about whether she is seeking or receiving preferential treatment.

During the DOJ interview, Blanche made clear that while Maxwell had limited immunity for her statements, he was not making promises in return.

“I’m not promising to do anything,” he told her during the discussions.

How Maga is divided vis-à-vis Trump & the Epstein files

Trump’s association with Epstein has been well-documented over the years, though he has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing in relation to Epstein’s trafficking network.

Court filings have referenced Trump alongside other high-profile figures, including former US President Bill Clinton, who had social or professional connections to Epstein.

Trump’s political allies have long leaned into conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein’s 2019 death in jail, suggesting foul play and insisting that the government possesses damaging evidence implicating prominent individuals.

For years, the narrative of a suppressed “client list” circulated widely among right-wing influencers.

When Trump resumed office in January, Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel hinted at large-scale disclosures of Epstein-related records.

That promise raised expectations among Trump supporters that the files would confirm long-held suspicions.

However, when the Justice Department announced last month that no further releases would occur and that the unreleased material was largely explicit recordings of girls, the reaction was swift and hostile.

The department also reiterated that investigations had found no evidence contradicting the conclusion that Epstein had died by suicide, dismissing theories of murder.

These statements inflamed Trump’s base, producing anger online and creating rare fractures within the MAGA movement.

Why DOJ’s approach to Maxwell is suspicious

The decision by Blanche, the deputy attorney general, to personally conduct interviews with Maxwell reflected the administration’s urgency in trying to regain control of the narrative.

It is highly uncommon for the US Justice Department’s second-in-command to take on direct questioning of a convicted felon.

Blanche had previously defended Trump in his criminal trials.

His interviews with Maxwell stretched across two days and resulted in hundreds of pages of transcripts. He later said, “the Department of Justice will share additional information about what we learned at the appropriate time.”

That information was made public weeks later in redacted form.

Maxwell denied prosecutors’ earlier claims that Epstein had paid her tens of millions of dollars to secure her silence. “That is categorically false,” she said.

Instead, she claimed the funds were used for investments and expenses tied to Epstein, such as the purchase of a helicopter she said was never hers.

“My belief is that that money also contained money that was for a helicopter, for instance, that I never owned and I — was never mine,” Maxwell explained.

How Maga influencers are trying to control the narrative

Following the release of the Maxwell transcripts, many prominent Trump supporters quickly highlighted her remarks as vindication. Laura Loomer, a conservative activist and outspoken MAGA figure, told Politico that Maxwell’s testimony demonstrated Trump “has always been an honourable person.”

She added, “I’m hoping that, you know, these transcripts will quell a lot of the nasty, salacious lies and rumours that were spread by bad actors online who are trying to use Pam Blondie’s shortcomings as a way to attack President Trump,” referring to Bondi by a mocking nickname.

Chaya Raichik, the creator of the “Libs of TikTok” account, shared passages from the transcripts on social media, writing that “liberals are going to explode.”

Another conservative influencer, Rogan O’Handley — better known online as DC Draino — argued that Maxwell’s defence of Trump should redirect attention toward other figures.

“If Trump was an Epstein client, the Deep State would’ve already leaked it,” he wrote. “He’s clean. Now release the Epstein Files and let’s arrest the real bad guys.”

How Democrats are reacting vis-à-vis the Maxwell interview

Democrats have responded by questioning Maxwell’s motives and stressing her history of deceit. US Representative Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, dismissed her testimony outright.

“Ghislaine Maxwell is a convicted sex trafficker and known liar. Her interview with Trump’s DOJ lawyer shows she’s desperate for a pardon. She claims no involvement in wrongdoing, which is insulting to the girls and young women she victimized and trafficked. She cannot be trusted,” Garcia wrote in a statement posted to X.

Ghislaine Maxwell is a convicted sex trafficker and known liar. Her interview with Trump’s DOJ lawyer shows she’s desperate for a pardon. She claims no involvement in wrongdoing, which is insulting to the girls and young women she victimized and trafficked. She cannot be trusted.

— Congressman Robert Garcia (@RepRobertGarcia) August 22, 2025

Other critics argued that the Justice Department’s reliance on Maxwell’s statements to reassure the public is deeply flawed.

Given her conviction and her efforts to appeal her case, many believe she has strong incentives to portray Trump positively in hopes of leniency.

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With inputs from agencies

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