Former U.S. President Bill Clinton bemoaned his ties with deceased convicted sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein.
In his upcoming book, “Citizen,” scheduled for release next week, Clinton, sheds light on his encounters with Epstein.
According to excerpts first reported by The US Sun, Clinton admits to flying on Epstein’s private aircraft, infamously known as the Lolita Express, in 2002 and 2003.
He reflects that despite the opportunity to visit sites related to his foundation, the association with Epstein led to years of scrutiny that followed weren’t an equitable trade off.
Do you think Bill Clinton visited Epstein Island? pic.twitter.com/IbpMSjyT4h
— Donald J. Trump News (@realTrumpNewsX) November 14, 2024
Clinton wrote, “The bottom line is, even though it allowed me to visit the work of my foundation, traveling on Epstein’s plane was not worth the years of questioning afterward. I wish I had never met him.”
In his memoir, Clinton claims Epstein, who allegedly committed suicide in a jail cell in 2019, had offered the use of his plane to assist Clinton’s foundation work, where they supposedly discussed topics like economics and politics.
Clinton also emphatically denies visiting Little Saint James, Epstein’s private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and states that their meetings were limited to brief encounters, one at his Harlem office and another at Epstein’s residence in New York.
Alina Habba on the portrait of Bill Clinton in a blue dress that hung in Epstein's residence:
“You put a picture like that in your entry way of a former President. What’s that saying? That’s a power play saying – I own you.” pic.twitter.com/fuVnM8sX5a
— Blondelady2024 (@arva61138) November 12, 2024
“I had always thought Epstein was odd but had no inkling of the crimes he was committing,” Clinton remarked.
“He hurt a lot of people, but I knew nothing about it, and by the time he was first arrested in 2005, I had stopped contact with him. I’ve never visited his island.”
Earlier this year, explosive court documents suggested that Clinton had a preference for younger females.
🚨 NEVER FORGET: Diddy and Hillary Clinton played a HUGE role together in the 2004 Democratic National Convention
I’m sure this comes as a shock to nobody.
How do the Clintons ALWAYS end up knee deep in this stuff?
First with Epstein, now with Diddy? No wonder Hillary is now… pic.twitter.com/cAJhg5ealQ
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) September 17, 2024
Testimony from Johanna Sjoberg, who was hired as a massage therapist at 20, was made public following a court ruling.
Sjoberg claimed Epstein said, “Clinton likes them young, referring to girls.”
Clinton has been dealing with inquiries regarding his relationship with Epstein due to their documented encounters dating back to his presidency.
Epstein was reportedly invited to the White House numerous times between 1993 and 1995.
Despite claiming he cut contact with the convicted pedophile after his 2008 conviction in Florida, Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former associate, attended Chelsea Clinton’s wedding in July 2010.
In a 2016 deposition, Maxwell denied allegations of Clinton dining on Epstein’s island, stating, “The allegation that Clinton had a meal on Jeffrey’s island is 100 percent false. I’m sure he had a meal on Jeffrey’s plane.” She also noted she couldn’t recall how often Clinton flew on Epstein’s jet.
Maxwell received a 20-year prison sentence in June 2022 for conspiring with Epstein to abuse minors.
Elsewhere in the memoir, Clinton recalls a challenging interview about his affair with Monica Lewinsky that occurred six years ago.
“Today Show” host Craig Melvin unexpectedly questioned whether Clinton would have resigned from office if the scandal occurred during the #MeToo movement in 2018.
“The former president insisted no because, he reasoned, the impeachment was illegitimate and had to be fought,” The Guardian stated.
“Then Melvin read from a Lewinsky column about how the MeToo reckoning changed her view of sexual harassment and asked if Clinton felt differently now.”
Clinton’s book notes, “I said, ‘No, I felt terrible then.’ ‘Did you ever apologize to her?’ I said that I had apologized to her and everybody else I wronged. I was caught off guard by what came next.”
“‘But you didn’t apologize to her, at least according to folks that we’ve talked to.’ I fought to contain my frustration as I replied that while I’d never talked to her directly, I did say publicly on more than [one] occasion I was sorry,” the excerpt continued.
The Guardian reported that Clinton was ready to explain why he hadn’t apologized directly to Lewinsky but wasn’t prepared for accusations of not apologizing at all.
He acknowledged the interview as “not my finest hour,” but criticized Melvin for being young during the scandal and likely not fully briefed.
Clinton noted the importance of saving anger for when others are wronged, not himself. “I live with it all the time,” Clinton wrote about the affair. “I wish her nothing but the best.”
In 2021, Lewinsky argued in an interview that Clinton “should want to apologize” to her but had not.