Trump admin seeks to strike Epstein connections from record [View all]

Trump admin seeks to strike Epstein connections from record
The Trump admin employs an extreme stalling tactic in suit concerning potential Epstein-related Trump interviews

By Russell Payne
Staff Reporter
Published February 21, 2026 6:30AM (EST)


(Salon) The Trump administration is using an irregular legal tactic in an attempt to suppress court info, including regarding the president’s relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In multiple Freedom of Information Act suits, the administration is attempting to strike certain facts from the public record, a tactic typically aimed at delaying proceedings. One of these cases is aimed at revealing any interviews President Donald Trump may have done with law enforcement during the investigation into Epstein.

In recent months, Department of Justice lawyers have begun making “motions to strike” in some high-profile FOIA cases, including one concerned with the $400 million Qatari jet gifted to Trump, one regarding deportations to El Salvador, and two involving Epstein.

One of the Epstein-related cases concerns potential intervention by Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel into the review of Epstein-related documents. The other is aimed at revealing any interviews with Trump law enforcement may have conducted in the 2005 to 2008 investigation into Epstein. Each FOIA case was brought by the nonpartisan watchdog group American Oversight.

In the legal context, a motion to strike refers to a request to remove a piece of evidence from the court’s record — a move that is typically reserved only for when a piece of evidence is considered redundant, immaterial, impertinent or scandalous. ..........................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2026/02/21/trump-admin-seeks-to-strike-epstein-connections-from-record/