Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told senators Tuesday that “I have nothing to hide” in relation to his interactions with disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in his first appearance before Congress since the emergence of new details about their communications.
At a Senate Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the federal broadband program known as BEAD, Democratic senators repeatedly pressed Lutnick about the times he met with Epstein and Lutnick’s past statements downplaying any involvement with him. The hearing came in the wake of the release of millions of pages related to Epstein late last month by the Justice Department to comply with the law enacted in November forcing disclosure of documents and investigative materials related to Epstein.
On an episode of the Pod Force One podcast in October, Lutnick said he visited his neighbor Epstein’s home once in 2005 and after questioning Epstein about a massage table in his home, Lutnick decided not to see Epstein again, calling him “disgusting.”
