Vice President JD Vance appears to have undercut President Donald Trump’s effort to move past the Epstein files controversy, telling the Daily Mail he remains open to further congressional investigations just as Trump urged the nation to turn the page on the scandal.
The divergent messaging emerged Tuesday when Vance told the Daily Mail he supported British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s suggestion that Prince Andrew testify before Congress about his connections to Jeffrey Epstein. Trump stood in the Oval Office and declared it time for the country to move on from the files released last week by the Justice Department.
“I think it’s really time for the country to get onto something else,” Trump said, after his name appeared 5,300 times in the newly released documents.
The latest tranche of materials includes 3 million files, 180,000 images and 2,000 videos related to Epstein, who died in 2019. The sheer volume of documents has reignited scrutiny of multiple high-profile figures who appeared in the records, including Trump, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Elon Musk.
Vance struck a notably different tone in his interview with the Daily Mail. When asked about Starmer’s comments regarding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor—previously known as Prince Andrew—Vance indicated his willingness to pursue additional testimony.
Vance said he was certainly open to it, referring to the possibility of the British royal appearing before Congress.
Vance told the Daily Mail he would allow congressional Republicans to determine whether Prince Andrew should testify, saying it remained their decision rather than his. However, he made clear his personal position favored continuing official probes into the files released by the Justice Department.
The vice president used the interview to criticize what he described as troubling connections among America’s elite. The files released by the Justice Department showed there was an incestuous nature to America’s elites, Vance said.
Vance has maintained vocal skepticism about the Epstein case dating back years. In 2021, when he was campaigning for Senate, Vance tweeted questioning why the U.S. government would keep Epstein’s clients secret. His past commentary on the scandal stands in contrast to his more recent efforts to distance Trump from the controversy.
After joining Trump’s political orbit, Vance shifted his messaging to emphasize alleged connections between Epstein and left-wing political figures. He insisted the Trump administration was not shielding information even after missing a legal deadline in December 2025 to release the documents.
In his Daily Mail interview, Vance attempted to separate Trump from other prominent figures mentioned in the files. He said President Trump was very much outside of the social circle, knowing a lot of these people and certainly having similar wealth and power, but never really being friendly with Epstein in a way that a lot of these other people were.
Vance specifically named Bill Gates and Bill Clinton as examples of individuals he believes the files reflect poorly upon. Gates issued a statement denying allegations made against him in the documents. The Clintons agreed to testify to Congress regarding their ties to Epstein, though inclusion in the files does not necessarily suggest wrongdoing.
Trump’s remarks in the Oval Office indicated his desire to conclude discussion of the Epstein files. The president suggested the documents exonerated him while simultaneously praising Bill and Hillary Clinton, calling the former president someone he always liked and describing Hillary Clinton as capable and smart.
When CNN correspondent Kaitlan Collins questioned whether moving past the files would deliver justice to Epstein’s victims, Trump lashed out at the reporter. Trump called Collins the worst reporter and told her to smile more during the exchange.
The contrast between Vance’s openness to further investigation and Trump’s call to move on highlights potential tensions in how the administration addresses the ongoing fallout from the document release. Starmer’s statement that Prince Andrew should be prepared to testify before Congress added international pressure to the domestic controversy.
British politician Lord Peter Mandelson also faces scrutiny following the document release. Mandelson, who insists he was unaware of Epstein’s crimes, now confronts a police investigation in the United Kingdom. Other prominent Americans mentioned in the files include entertainment industry figures Steve Tisch and Casey Wasserman.
The Justice Department’s release last week represented the largest disclosure of Epstein-related materials since federal law mandated their publication. The materials have generated renewed public interest in Epstein’s network of connections among business, political and entertainment elite.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former associate, appears throughout the released materials. The documents detail communications and interactions involving numerous public figures over multiple years.
Vance’s 2021 social media posts questioned the motivations behind keeping Epstein client information confidential, suggesting journalists should investigate the case more aggressively. Those earlier statements now stand alongside his current position that the released files demonstrate broader problems with elite social circles while simultaneously clearing Trump of wrongdoing.
The White House and representatives for Vance have been contacted for comment regarding the apparent disconnect between the vice president’s openness to additional testimony and the president’s stated desire to move forward. The differing approaches may signal ongoing debates within the administration about how to handle continued public and congressional interest in the Epstein documents.
As the controversy continues, congressional Republicans will determine whether to pursue testimony from Prince Andrew or other individuals mentioned in the files. Vance’s statement that he would defer to congressional decision-making while expressing personal support for additional investigation leaves open the possibility of further hearings.
Sources:
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/vance-accidentally-sabotages-trump-epstein-160731702.html
https://www.thedailybeast.com/jd-vance-accidentally-sabotages-trumps-epstein-files-plea/
https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/jd-vance-epstein-files-trump-b2913587.html
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/get-on-to-something-else-trump-urges-us-to-move-on-from-epstein-files/ar-AA1VBx3g?ocid=RT2DHP&apiversion=v2&domshim=1&noservercache=1&noservertelemetry=1&batchservertelemetry=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1