The latest tranche of Epstein files released by the Justice Department has sent shockwaves through the international community. Foreign governments, royal families, businesses, universities, and cultural institutions are investigating those with ties to the notorious sex criminal, and powerful figures around the world have been forced to step down from influential positions amid revelations that they were a part of his network. The United States, however, doesn’t seem to care so much.
It should be one of the most consequential sex and crime scandals in the history of the United States, but many of those tied to Epstein are skating by with little in the way of consequence. President Donald Trump — a longtime friend of Epstein’s whose name allegedly appears in the files over a million times — and other figures working within or tied to his administration seem to not only hang above the fray, but enjoy the protection of the American justice system.
This week, Attorney General Pam Bondi appeared before the House Judiciary Committee, where she thrice refused to acknowledge a group of survivors sitting in the hearing room, who all affirmed that they had not been granted an opportunity to meet with the attorney general despite their requests. Bondi refused to answer questions about the Justice Department’s failure to open investigations in potential coconspirators, and dismissed questions from lawmakers about the department’s sloppy handling of sensitive victim information, and about the over-redaction of potentially incriminating information.
The White House also shrugged off questions about Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who — although not implicated in any criminality — was caught in a bold-faced lie about the extent of his dealings with Epstein. On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt abruptly cut off a press briefing after being asked by a reporter if the administration would continue to stand by Lutnick. “Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary,” Leavitt said. Trump has also brushed off questions about Lutnick and other figures tied to the administration appearing in the files.
But outside of America’s borders, Epstein’s ghost is threatening to topple governments and prompting a wave of public and private sector resignations.
In the United Kingdom, the former Prince Andrew — now citizen Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor after being stripped of his titles in 2025 — was evicted from the royal “lodge” he shared with his ex-wife Sarah Furgeson, the former Duchess of York, who was also revealed to have a financial relationship with Epstein earlier this month. Mountbatten-Windsor settled a civil lawsuit in 2022 brought against him by Virginia Giuffre, who accused Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell of trafficking her to the former prince and other men when she was a teenager.
Now, the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service is weighing an investigation into Mountbatten-Windsor over new evidence that he may have transferred confidential government reports to Epstein while representing the kingdom as a trade envoy.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, meanwhile, is facing calls for his own resignation and a potential vote of no confidence over his relationship with Peter Mandelson, a prominent figure in the Labour Party who was tapped to serve as United States Ambassador under Starmer. Questions about the extent Starmer was aware of Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein were heightened after newly released emails revealed that the two men had joked about Epstein’s relationships with young women, and that Mendelson may have provided Epstein with sensitive government emails containing privileged financial information.
Two high-level officials in Starmer’s administration have resigned in the face of the scandal, Mandelson resigned from the Labour Party this month after being dismissed from his ambassadorship last year, and authorities are exploring a criminal investigation into his conduct. While Starmer insists he was misled by Mandelson about his ties to Epstein, in the view of the UK public and lawmakers, the buck stops with him.
Consequences are being felt in other nations, as well. Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit is in hot water after emails revealed she had borrowed one of Epstein’s Palm Beach properties in 2013. Norway’s former Prime Minister Thorbjørn Jagland has also been embroiled in the scandal. On Thursday, Thorbjørn was charged with corruption by Norwegian authorities in connection to Epstein, after being stripped of his diplomatic immunity earlier this week.
Jack Lang, France’s former Culture Minister, resigned last week from his position as president of the prestigious Arab World Institute in Paris. In Slovakia, a national security adviser to Prime Minister Robert Fico stepped down earlier this month. A Swedish U.N. official resigned after the documents revealed a visit to Epstein’s island. Several other countries — including Poland and Lithuania — have opened investigations into the potential trafficking of girls from their nations.
On Friday, DP World Chairman and Chief Executive Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem — who was discovered to be one of the names of potential Epstein co-conspirators whose name was redacted in files after a review by lawmakers — resigned from his position atop the Emirati international exporter.
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who pushed to unredact the names of Bin Sulayem and five other individuals, wrote on X after Bin Sulayem’s resignation that he and other lawmakers would “not rest until there is elite accountability for the Epstein class.”
But in the United States, the Justice Department has staunchly refused to pursue further criminal investigations into Epstein’s potential co-conspirators or participants in his trafficking ring. Resignations have been few, and powerful figures with ties to Epstein, from former President Bill Clinton and Microsoft founder Bill Gates to Tesla billionaire Elon Musk and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon seem to have been afforded cover under Trump and his administration’s repeated insistence that the scandal is a “hoax” and that Americans should turn their focus elsewhere.
As the international community rallies to excise the cancer of Epstein’s crimes from its public institutions, Americans can only watch from afar, and lament the decay of what was once a model justice system.
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