*

No credible evidence links Clinton, Summers, Hoffman to

Epstein's trafficking

*

Case could be challenged as 'vindictive prosecution'

*

Trump denies knowledge of Epstein's abuse and trafficking

*

Republican support for Trump on Epstein issue is low

(Adds response from Hoffman, Clinton spokesperson, paragraphs

12-15)

By Andy Sullivan and Jan Wolfe

WASHINGTON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice

Department said on Friday it will fulfill President Donald

Trump's request to investigate Jeffrey Epstein's ties to former

Democratic President Bill Clinton and JPMorgan ( JPM ), as Trump

sought to shift the focus from his relationship with the

convicted sex offender.

The move comes two days after a congressional committee

released thousands of documents that raised new questions about

Trump's relationship with the late financier, and marks the

latest in a series of demands by Trump for federal law

enforcement to pursue his perceived political enemies.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said Jay Clayton, the top federal

prosecutor in Manhattan, will lead the investigation.

The Epstein scandal has been a political thorn in Trump's

side for months, partly because he amplified conspiracy theories

about Epstein to his own supporters. Many Trump voters believe

Bondi and other Trump officials have covered up Epstein's ties

to powerful figures and obscured details surrounding his death

by suicide in a Manhattan jail in 2019.

Trump has harnessed the Justice Department to target other

perceived political enemies, notably former FBI Director James

Comey and New York State Attorney General Letitia James, both of

whom were charged after Trump replaced the prosecutor leading

the cases.

'NOT HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO WORK'

Legal experts say Trump's demands could undermine the

criminal cases that emerge from those probes, as judges can

dismiss cases found to be motivated by "vindictive prosecution"

- which both Comey and James have raised, though judges have not

yet ruled on their requests to dismiss the cases.

Patrick J. Cotter, a former federal prosecutor, said it was

"outrageously inappropriate" for Trump to order the department

to investigate individual citizens, adding, "That's not how

it's supposed to work."

Along with Clinton, who socialized with Epstein in the early

2000s, Trump said he had asked the Justice Department to

investigate former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and Reid

Hoffman, the LinkedIn founder who is also a prominent Democratic

donor. All three men were mentioned in the 20,000

Epstein-related documents released by the House Oversight

Committee on Wednesday.

"Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrat's problem,

not the Republican's problem!" Trump wrote on social media.

"They all know about him, don't waste your time with Trump. I

have a Country to run!"

JPMorgan ( JPM ) said in a statement the U.S. bank regrets its

past association with Epstein, who was a client between 1998 and

2013, and did not help him commit "heinous acts."

Clinton's deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said on X,

"These emails prove Bill Clinton did nothing and knew nothing.

The rest is noise meant to distract from election losses,

backfiring shutdowns, and who knows what else."

In a post on X, Hoffman called on Trump to release all of

the Epstein files, saying his only engagement with Epstein was

to raise funds for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"I want this complete release because it will show that

the calls for baseless investigations of me are nothing more

than political persecution and slander," he said.

Summers did not immediately respond to a request for

comment.

The Justice Department's decision to acquiesce to Trump's

demand came despite a July memo in which the department and the

FBI said there was no "evidence that could predicate an

investigation against uncharged third parties" in the Epstein

case.

"This systematic review revealed no incriminating 'client

list,'" the memo said. "There was also no credible evidence

found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of

his actions."

TRUMP FACES CONTINUED PRESSURE OVER EPSTEIN

Trump and Epstein were friends during the 1990s and the

2000s, but Trump says he broke off ties before Epstein pleaded

guilty in 2008 to charges of soliciting a minor for

prostitution.

Trump has consistently denied knowing about the late

financier's abuse and sex trafficking of underage girls. Still,

some of Trump's most ardent supporters have accused his

administration of a cover-up. Trump, who frequently engages with

reporters, has declined to take questions over the last several

days as new revelations about Epstein have become public.

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives is

expected to vote next week on legislation that would force the

Justice Department to release all of the material it holds on

Epstein, who was facing federal charges of sex trafficking

minors at the time of his suicide. The measure is expected to

pass, even after House Speaker Mike Johnson repeatedly

maneuvered to try to block the vote. It would also require the

Senate to pass similar legislation and Trump's approval to

compel the Justice Department to act.

Just four in 10 Republicans in an October Reuters/Ipsos poll

said they approved of Trump's handling of the Epstein files,

well below the nine in 10 who approve of his overall performance

in the White House.

EPSTEIN SOCIALIZED WITH WELL-KNOWN FIGURES

JPMorgan ( JPM ) paid $290 million in 2023 to some of Epstein's

victims to settle accusations that it had turned a blind eye to

his sex trafficking. The deal followed embarrassing disclosures

that JPMorgan ( JPM ) ignored internal warnings and overlooked red flags

about a valued client. The bank did not admit wrongdoing in the

settlement.

No credible evidence has surfaced that Clinton, Summers or

Hoffman were involved in Epstein's sex trafficking. All have

previously denied wrongdoing and have expressed regret about

their relationships with him.

Clinton flew on Epstein's private jet several times before

the financier's 2008 conviction, while Summers accepted

philanthropic gifts from Epstein while serving as president of

Harvard University. Hoffman has acknowledged meeting with

Epstein multiple times in professional situations.

Before his 2008 conviction, Epstein worked and socialized

with a long list of well-known figures, including the UK's

former Prince Andrew, who was stripped of his royal title due in

part to his association with Epstein.

Clayton, the prosecutor who will head the probe into

Clinton, JPMorgan ( JPM ) and the other figures, is a political

independent who chaired the Securities and Exchange Commission

during Trump's first White House term.