Prominent tech investor Paul Graham recently posted on X, stating, "I remember reading allegations in 2016 about Trump having sex with underage girls. At the time I dismissed them, but the energy the administration has put into preventing the release of the Epstein files has convinced me there must be some truth in them." This tweet links prior unverified claims against Donald Trump to the ongoing process of unsealing court documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
However, the extensive release of Jeffrey Epstein's court documents, primarily unsealed in January 2024 as part of a defamation lawsuit against Ghislaine Maxwell, did not introduce new allegations of wrongdoing against Donald Trump. While Trump's name appeared in some of these documents, often in passing or in previously known contexts, multiple reputable sources confirmed that the unsealed files contained no fresh evidence of illicit behavior on his part. For instance, one witness recalled Epstein mentioning calling Trump during a stop in Atlantic City, and a 2016 allegation by Sarah Ransome that mentioned Trump was later recanted.
The "allegations in 2016" referenced by Graham likely refer to a lawsuit filed that year by an anonymous plaintiff, "Jane Doe" or "Katie Johnson," which accused Trump and Epstein of rape when she was 13 in 1994. This specific lawsuit was subsequently dismissed or withdrawn, and its credibility has been questioned by fact-checking organizations. Other widely reported allegations against Trump in 2016 primarily concerned sexual misconduct with adult women, distinct from the claims of underage sexual activity.
The notion of the administration "preventing the release" of Epstein files contrasts with the documented, multi-phase unsealing process that has been underway, including a "first phase of declassified Epstein files" released by Attorney General Pamela Bondi in February 2025. Paul Graham, co-founder of the influential startup accelerator Y Combinator, is a well-known public figure who has recently expressed strong political views, including an open letter in October 2024 urging moderate voters to support Kamala Harris and stating that Donald Trump is "far worse" than a typical politician. His tweet appears to reflect a personal interpretation and political stance rather than newly substantiated information from the unsealed documents.
The ongoing public discourse surrounding the Epstein case continues to highlight the distinction between previously known associations or unverified claims and the factual content revealed through official legal proceedings. The unsealed documents, while shedding light on Epstein's broader network, have not provided new evidence to support the specific allegations against Donald Trump as implied in Graham's recent social media post.