White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt abruptly shut down her briefing Tuesday after a straightforward question about Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s ties to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein struck a nerve — exposing an administration eager to change the subject rather than answer it.
Leavitt was barely into the briefing when a reporter asked whether President Donald Trump still stood by Lutnick after the commerce secretary acknowledged under oath that he visited Epstein’s private island, Little Saint James, during a family vacation.
That admission came earlier in the day before the Senate Commerce Committee, where Lutnick’s testimony clashed with his prior insistence that he had severed ties with Epstein years earlier.
Rather than address the substance of the question — that a sitting Cabinet secretary had social contact on property owned by a man later convicted of procuring minors for prostitution — Leavitt pivoted. She scolded reporters for not asking about unrelated administration “wins,” rattling off talking points about the stock market, crime, and other boilerplate defenses before abruptly ending the Q&A.
“You continue to ask questions about the same subject,” Leavitt snapped, launching into a prepared response before walking away from the lectern with aides in tow.
The exchange underscored how politically radioactive Epstein-related revelations have become — particularly when they involve senior administration officials.
Lutnick, a billionaire Wall Street executive and longtime Trump ally, has claimed he “barely had anything to do” with Epstein, despite conceding that he had lunch with him on the island while vacationing with his wife, children, and nannies.
During his Senate testimony, Lutnick also stated there were “probably about 10 emails connecting me with him over a 14-year period,” while continuing to deny any meaningful relationship.
Leavitt’s reaction only amplified the scrutiny. By refusing to engage with the question, she reinforced the perception that the White House is more concerned with controlling optics than clarifying the record.
Reporters, sensing vulnerability, pressed on whether the administration had previously downplayed or mischaracterized the extent of Lutnick’s interactions with Epstein — a figure whose crimes continue to cast a long political shadow.
Faced with that line of inquiry, Leavitt effectively pulled the plug on the briefing, sidestepping follow-up questions about Lutnick’s credibility, Trump’s judgment, and the broader implications for an administration already facing mounting scrutiny.
The moment made one thing unmistakable: the White House knows these Epstein-related questions aren’t fading away, and Tuesday’s briefing showed just how rattled it is by what comes next.
Watch the clip below:
