‘He Was Not a Pedophile’: Megyn Kelly Ties Herself in Knots Defending Epstein — ‘He Wasn’t Into 8-Year-Olds’

Megyn Kelly is catching heat after appearing to downplay Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes during a recent discussion about the disgraced financier. The conservative host suggested she once believed Epstein wasn’t “an actual pedophile” because he “only” victimized girls aged 15 and older — comments that have since sparked outrage online.

Kelly made the remarks during a conversation with journalist Batya Ungar-Sargon, following reports that Democrats had released emails implying Donald Trump “knew about the girls” during his friendship with Epstein.

“I do know somebody very, very close to this case who is in a position to know virtually everything,” Kelly said. “And this person has told me from the start, years and years ago, that Jeffrey Epstein, in this person’s view, was not a pedophile.”

She went on to elaborate: “This is this person’s view, who was there for a lot of this, but that he was into the barely legal type. Like, he liked 15-year-old girls. I’m just giving you facts that he wasn’t into, like, 8-year-olds. But he liked the very young teen types that could pass for even younger than they were, but would look legal to a passerby.”

“And that is what I believed and that is what I reliably was told for many years,” Kelly added.

The comments quickly set off alarms — not only for what Kelly said, but for what she seemed to imply: that somehow, the abuse of 15-year-old girls was a lesser evil.

Kelly did note that her opinion shifted after former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi claimed Epstein had “thousands of videos” containing child sexual abuse material.

“For the first time, I thought, oh, no, he was an actual pedophile,” Kelly recalled. “I don’t know whether it’s true. I have to be honest, I don’t really trust Pam Bondi’s word on the Epstein matters anymore.”

She also claimed that no victims had come forward saying they were younger than 14. “You can say that’s a distinction without a difference. I think there is a difference. There’s a difference between a 15-year-old and a 5-year-old, you know?” she said. “The whole thing is just disgusting.”

Yes — it is disgusting. But Kelly’s logic, suggesting that Epstein’s predation was somehow mitigated by the age of his victims, misses the point entirely. Epstein wasn’t just “into young girls.” He was a serial abuser who used wealth and power to exploit minors — and there’s no moral or legal gray area there.

Kelly may have intended to offer context and make Donald Trump’s ties to Epstein seem less scandalous, but instead she ended up doing verbal gymnastics to defend the indefensible. (Watch the clip below).

Megyn Kelly: "I know somebody very close to this case…Jeffrey Epstein, in this person's view, was not a pedophile…He was into the barely legal type, like he liked 15 year old girls…He wasn't into like 8 year olds…There's a difference between a 15 year old and a 5 year old." pic.twitter.com/a7wmT3BRJU

— Republican Accountability (@AccountableGOP) November 13, 2025