The Smoking Gun

Ivanka Trump

United States of America v. Donald Trump

Statement of Facts:

  1. Donald Trump’s name appears in flight logs and other documents associated with Jeffrey Epstein, including entries in Epstein’s so-called “black book.” The contact book lists several Trump family members, including Ivana Trump, Ivanka Trump, and Robert and Blaine Trump, with a total of eight personal phone numbers. Donald Trump is listed separately under “Jeffrey (J),” with an additional fourteen personal phone numbers.
  2. In 2016, multiple civil lawsuits were filed alleging sexual abuse by Trump when plaintiffs were minors. These lawsuits describe interactions with individuals associated with Epstein and claim trafficking or recruitment for modeling. One survivor was an aspiring model allegedly recruited by a sex-trafficking handler who scouted teenage models for Donald Trump. According to the lawsuit, she was recruited from the 42nd Street Port Authority and brought to a party at the Les Wexner mansion, where Jeffrey Epstein was also present. The lawsuit claims that the survivor was subjected to “violent sexual roleplays” involving Trump at several parties between 1993 and 1994. The complaint states: “The recruiter suggested that she might become a model if she met the right people at a fashionable party. That was a typical approach used by Epstein’s recruiters, who leveraged his high-level contacts with fashion, modeling, photography, travel, political, and entertainment figures to entice girls, tweens, and teens.” The lawsuit further alleges: “[Epstein] penetrated her anally and vaginally despite her loud pleas to stop. She stated that Epstein attempted to strike her on the head with his closed fists while angrily screaming that he, rather than Trump, should have been the one who took the girl’s virginity.”
  3. In another lawsuit against Donald Trump, the survivor alleges that she was kidnapped at age 11 on March 19, 1993, in front of a pizza shop in Waterbury, Connecticut, and was trafficked to the Les Wexner mansion by the time she turned twelve. The complaint claims that the minor was sexually abused at the mansion. According to reporting cited in the lawsuit, the Waterbury Police Department reportedly denied access to the abduction case. For context, former Waterbury mayor Philip Giordano was convicted in 2003 on federal charges involving the sexual abuse of minors. Separately, another Waterbury native, Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland, resigned in 2004 amid a federal investigation into corruption, including accepting gifts and favors from out-of-state contractors and campaign donors.
  4. Many news media outlets reportedly chose not to cover the 2016 lawsuits against Donald Trump, at a time when they were managing their own internal sexual misconduct issues. The “Shitty Media Men” list, circulated anonymously in 2017 as a Google Doc, cataloged allegations of sexual harassment, assault, and predatory behavior by roughly 70 men working in U.S. media and publishing. The list was compiled primarily from anonymous submissions by women in the industry and included brief descriptions of alleged misconduct rather than verified legal findings. Many of the men named were journalists, editors, or other media professionals affiliated with prominent outlets such as The New York Times, The New Yorker, BuzzFeed, Jezebel, Gawker, Vice, The Atlantic, and Rolling Stone. The document gained wide attention during the #MeToo movement, prompting some employers to conduct internal investigations, remove or discipline employees, or issue public statements.
  5. In a December 2017 interview with Vanity Fair, Steve Bannon remarked, “What about the allegations concerning her father (Ivanka’s father, Donald Trump) and that 13-year-old? (referring to one of the 2016 lawsuits).”
  6. Donald Trump made several controversial statements about his daughter Ivanka in public interviews. In 1994, he commented, “She’s a very beautiful baby. She’s got Marla’s legs. We don’t know whether or not she’s got this part yet (breasts), but time will tell.” In 2006, he said, “If Ivanka weren't my daughter, perhaps I'd be dating her. Isn't that terrible? How terrible? Is that terrible?” Additionally, a provocative photograph was published showing Ivanka as a teenager in her father’s lap in such a manner that has been critiqued as “giving him a lap dance”.