The House Oversight Committee has obtained documents from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein, including a controversial "birthday book" linked to the late financier. This book reportedly contains a letter that President Donald Trump allegedly signed for Epstein's 50th birthday in 2003. Democratic members of the committee shared an image of the page they claim features Trump's name on social media.

Trump has denied writing the letter, labeling it as "fake." He has also filed a $10 billion defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the letter's existence. The lawsuit asserts that the publication's claims are false. In response, Dow Jones, the parent company of the newspaper, expressed confidence in its reporting and stated it would vigorously defend against the lawsuit.

The White House has also weighed in, asserting that the signature in the birthday book does not belong to Trump. Taylor Budowich, the White House deputy chief of staff, emphasized this point on social media, stating, "Time for @newscorp to open that checkbook, it's not his signature. DEFAMATION!"

The House Oversight Committee issued a subpoena in late August for documents from Epstein's estate, which included the birthday book. The committee requested that these documents, which also encompass banking records, flight logs, and calendars, be delivered by September 8, 2025.

Ghislaine Maxwell, a former associate of Epstein, has stated that Epstein asked her to coordinate contributions for his birthday book. However, she could not recall if Trump, who was a private citizen at the time, contributed. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 on charges related to sex trafficking and is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.

Epstein was arrested in July 2019 on federal charges of conspiracy and child sex trafficking. He died in custody a month later, with his death ruled a suicide by hanging. The recent developments surrounding the birthday book have drawn attention from various parties, including Brad Edwards, an attorney representing Epstein's survivors. Edwards criticized Trump, stating, "His hypocrisy has been most frustrating for the victims."

The House Oversight Committee has previously released tens of thousands of pages of documents related to Epstein, much of which was already known to the public. While the committee has received the birthday book, it remains unclear if all documents will be made public immediately.