Vance says Epstein had connections to US, Israeli intelligence

During a lengthy podcast interview, US Vice President JD Vance made claims regarding the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's alleged intelligence connections. Vance asserted that Epstein maintained links to senior levels of both American and Israeli intelligence, and suggested that his Israeli connections appeared aligned with left-of-centre political elements rather than right-wing circles.

When asked about theories connecting Epstein to Israel's Mossad spy agency, Vance stated that Epstein "clearly had connections to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence." He characterised these connections as having a left-leaning ideological orientation, noting he found this aspect "fascinating."

Vance also conceded that the Trump administration handled communications surrounding Epstein files poorly. He focused criticism on former Attorney General Pam Bondi, who had publicly stated that an alleged Epstein client list was "sitting on my desk right now." Under Bondi's tenure, the Justice Department distributed materials to conservative commentators and influencers labelled "The Epstein files: Phase 1" and "Declassified." Vance acknowledged knowing Bondi personally and believing her actions lacked malicious intent, instead attributing her statements to an attempt to respond to political pressure. He stated that Bondi was publicly criticised for her comments, which undermined public trust in the administration's transparency efforts. Vance concluded that while the administration "absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files," he did not believe the mishandling was motivated by an attempt to conceal information.