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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt brushed off a question on Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein during a press briefing Tuesday, before redirecting her response to listing the administration’s recent wins and ending the press conference.
“Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary,” Leavitt said Tuesday when asked if President Donald Trump and the White House still support the Commerce chief following his testimony before the Senate Appropriations subcommittee Tuesday.
Leavitt repeatedly was questioned about Epstein during the press conference, including regarding Lutnick saying Tuesday before lawmakers that he visited Epstein’s notorious island while on a family vacation in 2012, but that he otherwise had no relationship with the convicted sex offender.
“My wife was with me, as were my four children and nannies,” he said Tuesday. “I had another couple with, they were there as well, with their children, and we had lunch on the island — that is true — for an hour.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration continues to back Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick when asked about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
He also added: “I did not have any relationship with him. I barely had anything to do with that person, OK?”
Lutnick previously said that he cut off contact with Epstein in 2005, with recent document releases from the Department of Justice’s investigations into Epstein showing the pair communicated years later. Democrats and other critics have increasingly called for Lutnick’s ouster amid the document release, sparking questions as to whether the administration continues to support the Commerce chief.
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Leavitt brushed off the media that the administration continues to back Lutnick before launching into a series of wins notched under Trump’s watch that the media did not ask about during the press conference — including that the Dow Jones Industrial Average crossing 50,000 points for the first time ever earlier in February.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that the Trump administration continues to back Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick when asked about his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. (Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo/Reuters)
“I will just point out that there are a lot of wins in the news this week that people in this room have not asked about, because you continue to ask questions about the same subject,” Leavitt said. “So let me point them out for you again. On Friday, the Dow shattered 50,000 for the first time ever. This week, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons came out in opposition to gender mutilation surgeries for children. They are the first major medical group to do so.”
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The Department of Justice released a trove of Epstein documents Dec. 19, 2026, following President Donald Trump’s signature on the Epstein Files Transparency Act in November 2025. (Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
“A federal appeals court today — nobody asked about that — just upheld the Trump administration’s policy of detaining illegal aliens, validating the strong measures that have driven illegal crossings to historic lows, and sent a crystal clear message that under President Trump, if you enter the country illegally, you will be detained and removed the murder rate,” she continued. “Again, not a single question about this has plunged to a 125-year low as crime falls across the board thanks to President Trump’s crime crackdown.”
Leavitt added that national median rent prices fell to four-year lows and that mortgage affordability surged to a four-year high as the administration hammers home affordability to ease housing and cost woes.
“There’s a reason why Americans’ trust in mainstream media outlets is at an all-time low — they’re Fake News,” White House spokesman Kush Desai told Fox News Digital later Tuesday when asked about the exchange. “The Trump Administration will never hesitate to share the truth with the American people.”
Leavitt wrapped up the press conference after listing off the administration’s wins, noting Trump’s busy schedule.
The briefing started roughly 40 minutes late, with Leavitt attributing the delay to a meeting with Trump to review updates on the Nancy Guthrie missing person case. The briefing lasted a total of just over 20 minutes.
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“We’re going to get back to business. The president is very busy today and you will see him all tomorrow at the event in the East Room touting his administration’s energy policy,” she said.
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