A stunning claim about Jeffrey Epstein has put one of Donald Trump’s cabinet officials in the crosshairs of a congressional investigation.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is now facing a potential subpoena after publicly suggesting that Jeffrey Epstein handed over blackmail material — specifically, incriminating videos of his powerful clients — in exchange for leniency.
“Whatever happened in that massage room, I assume, is on video,” Lutnick said Wednesday. “This guy was the greatest blackmailer ever.”
The remark, made publicly, sent shockwaves through Washington and prompted an immediate response from Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee. Garcia said the committee will be requesting Lutnick’s testimony under oath.
“We need to speak to him, the entire oversight committee,” Garcia said during an appearance on CNN’s OutFront with Erin Burnett. “We’re very interested in understanding what exactly he knows, where those theories come from, and anyone, particularly if you’re in the Trump administration and you are saying those comments so freely, you have to have additional information so you can believe that we’re going to follow up.”
That “follow up” now appears to mean a formal subpoena.
The theory itself is explosive — that Epstein, the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender, may have avoided harsher punishment by providing authorities with compromising footage of the rich and influential. Epstein was known for surrounding himself with billionaires, celebrities, and politicians. And despite the high-profile nature of his connections, much of what he knew — and who he was connected to — remains under lock and key.
Garcia also took aim at Trump’s unfulfilled promise to release the full Epstein files.
“Democrats have tried to force the administration to release the Epstein files,” Garcia said, noting that transparency was something Trump himself pledged during his campaign — a pledge that never turned into action.
Lutnick’s comments have now reopened that wound. Whether his theory is based on insider knowledge, loose speculation, or something else entirely is what lawmakers intend to find out — under oath.
If the subpoena goes through, Lutnick would be the highest-ranking Trump official to be questioned directly about Epstein and what the government may have known — or chosen to ignore.
This could be the beginning of a long-overdue reckoning. Watch Rep. Garcia’s full reaction in the CNN clip below.
