Fact Check: Here's What We Know About Bill Clinton, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell's White House Photographs

Claim:

U.S. President Bill Clinton was photographed with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at the White House during his time as commander in chief.

Rating:

Context:

According to the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum, the pictures were captured by White House photographer Ralph Alswang on Sept. 29, 1993. Epstein and Maxwell were photographed speaking with Clinton after the president made remarks at an event for donors to the White House restoration project. According to visitor logs obtained by the Daily Mail, Epstein visited the White House at least 17 times during Clinton's term in office.

On Dec. 31, 2023, a user on X reposted a picture of former U.S. President Bill Clinton speaking at the White House with Jeffrey Epstein, who would later become a convicted sex offender, and Ghislaine Maxwell, who would later become a convicted sex trafficker. This is a real photograph.

The user on X referenced the release of a list of names of people who had varying degrees of association with Epstein. We previously reported the facts about the news of that list.

Clinton Statement and Epstein's Death

Epstein was found dead in his jail cell on Aug. 10, 2019. His death was ruled by an autopsy to be a suicide by hanging.

Weeks earlier, a spokesperson for Bill Clinton had released a statement that said the former president "[knew] nothing about the terrible crimes" that Epstein had been accused of, and that the pair hadn't spoken to each other "in well over a decade."

The Context of the Photos

In our initial research of the photo, we contacted the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum for more information. In response, they sent two additional pictures, for a total of three photographs of Clinton, Epstein, and Maxwell together.

(Courtesy: Ralph Alswang/White House, 1993)

A caption on RollingStone.com said the pictures showed Epstein and Maxwell receiving a "VIP tour." However, a spokesperson for the Clinton library told us that "'tour' is probably not the correct way to describe this image."

"The president made brief remarks for the White House Restoration Project event, then greeted individuals present," a spokesperson told us. The event was said to have been for donors.

All three photographs were captured by then-White House photographer Ralph Alswang on Sept. 29, 1993.

The spokesperson for the Clinton library also directed us to a public link that provided more information about the event. "These images were released through a Freedom of Information Act request, FOIA case # 2006-1135-F, segment 85," the spokesperson said. "The public can access the finding aid the processing archivist produced at the following link."

The link to the Clinton Digital Library, part of the National Archives website, noted that then-first lady Hillary Clinton was also in attendance. It read as follows: "President Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton host a reception for 'The Donors to the White House Restoration Project of 1993' in the Blue Room and the Green Room."

We also found, on TheWire.in, this fourth picture from the same day that showed Clinton shaking hands with Epstein as Maxwell looked on:

Courtesy: William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum

Further Reporting

In addition to these pictures of Clinton with Epstein and Maxwell, we've published other stories that showed the former president had been photographed with one or the other in different situations.

Further, according to visitor logs obtained by the Daily Mail, Clinton was visited in the White House by Epstein at least 17 times.

Sources:

“All Presidential Series Photographs from the Clinton Administration Taken from September 27, 1993 and September 29, 1993 through September 30, 1993.” Clinton Digital Library, https://clinton.presidentiallibraries.us/items/show/49197.

Bates, Daniel. “Jeffrey Epstein Visited Clinton White House 17 Times, Logs Reveal.” Mail Online, 2 Dec. 2021, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10235499/Epstein-Clinton.html.

Izzo, Jack. “Exposed: What To Know About the List of Names Connected to Jeffrey Epstein.” Snopes, 2 Jan. 2024, https://www.snopes.com/news/2024/01/02/epstein-maxwell-list-explained/.

Marcetic, Branko. “Jeffrey Epstein’s Sex Crimes: New Revelations on the Role of US Political Elite.” TheWire.in, 17 Jan. 2022, https://thewire.in/world/jeffrey-epsteins-sex-crimes-new-revelations-on-the-role-of-us-political-elite.

Marks, Andrea. “Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Hollywood Stars Traveled on Private Jets Government Says Maxwell and Epstein Used to Traffic Underage Girls.” Rolling Stone, 30 Nov. 2021, https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/ghislaine-maxwell-jeffrey-epstein-pilot-testimony-1264615/.

Ruhalter, Kana. “White House Visitor Logs Show Just How Friendly Epstein and President Clinton Were.” The Daily Beast, 2 Dec. 2021, https://www.thedailybeast.com/jeffrey-epstein-visited-president-bill-clinton-17-times-white-house-visitor-logs-show.

Sisak, Michael R., et al. “Medical Examiner Rules Epstein Death a Suicide by Hanging.” The Associated Press, 17 Aug. 2019, https://apnews.com/article/a947e0d85d31496eb5bd9ff4994c9718.