Todd Blanche says DOJ can’t pursue Epstein tips linked to Trump
WASHINGTON, DC: Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday that the Department of Justice is unable to pursue several tips submitted to the FBI alleging Donald Trump’s involvement with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, citing limitations around anonymous and second-hand information.
Speaking on CNN’s 'State of the Union', Blanche said many of the tips referenced in recently released Epstein-related documents lack the specificity and sourcing required to open a federal investigation.
His comments come amid renewed scrutiny of materials released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which has reignited public and media attention around figures named in tips submitted to the FBI.
Blanche: "I don't appreciate it being directed towards Donald J Trump, because that pushes a narrative that is completely false. There are all kinds of people that are mentioned in the 'Epstein files' that we had to look at and run down." pic.twitter.com/RrCmiJEKzb
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 1, 2026
Todd Blanche cites anonymous and second-hand tips
Blanche told CNN host Dana Bash that the nature of many tips makes them effectively unusable for investigation.
“Some of these tips were anonymous,” Blanche said. Others, he added, were based on “second-hand information,” which he described as “not something that can be really investigated.”
The tips in question were submitted to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center and later included in a tranche of nearly three million documents released by the DOJ on Friday.
Among those materials are allegations referencing Trump and Epstein, though the documents themselves clarify that the information was provided by members of the public and not independently verified by law enforcement.
Internal DOJ emails show the tips were compiled in August as information from what were described as “Trump accusers.”
Portions of the documents indicate that while the FBI tried to follow up with some callers, not all tipsters were contacted and several failed to leave identifying information.
Trump-related tips disappear from DOJ public database
By Sunday morning, the DOJ’s publicly available index of tips related to the president was no longer accessible. The reason for its removal was not immediately clear.
Blanche noted the index was not limited to Trump allegations and also included references to other politicians and public figures.
“There are all kinds of people that are mentioned in the quote ‘Epstein files’ that we had to look at,” Blanche said.
DOJ rejects validity of allegations
The Department of Justice moved Friday to distance itself from the claims included in the document release, stressing that the materials consist entirely of public submissions and were published to comply with transparency requirements, not to validate their contents.
“This production may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents, or videos, as everything that was sent to the FBI by the public was included in the production that is responsive to the Epstein Files Transparency Act,” the DOJ said in a statement.
The spokesperson added that some of the allegations targeting Trump were submitted shortly before the 2020 election and lacked credibility.
“Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election,” the statement said. “To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false.”
Blanche echoed that position during his CNN appearance, emphasizing that inclusion in the document release should not be interpreted as evidentiary or investigative validation.
