Trump signals potential lawsuit against Michael Wolff, Epstein estate after DOJ document release

President Donald Trump announced a "high likelihood" of legal action against author Michael Wolff and the estate of Jeffrey Epstein on Saturday, responding to newly released documents that Trump says reveal a conspiracy to damage him politically. The declaration came aboard Air Force One during a flight to Palm Beach, Florida.

The Justice Department released more than 3 million Epstein-related records and personal emails on Friday. Rather than implicating Trump—as many on the left had hoped—the documents appear to show Wolff actively coaching Epstein on how to weaponize his connection to Trump for political damage during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Trump did not mince words about what the documents revealed:

"It looked like this guy, Wolff, was a writer, was conspiring with Epstein to do harm to me."

The Emails That Backfired

The released correspondence includes a March 2016 email exchange between Wolff and Epstein that Fox News Digital reviewed. In it, Wolff encouraged the disgraced financier to develop a "counter narrative" to deflect from James Patterson's book "Filthy Rich: A Powerful Billionaire, the Sex Scandal that Undid Him, and All the Justice that Money Can Buy."

Wolff's advice to Epstein was explicit:

"You do need an immediate counter narrative to the book."

But Wolff didn't stop at media strategy. He laid out a political playbook that treated Trump as a target:

"I believe Trump offers an ideal opportunity. It's a chance to make the story about something other than you, while, at the same time, letting you frame your own story."

The calculus was nakedly political. Wolff told Epstein that turning against Trump would provide him cover:

"Also, becoming anti-Trump gives you a certain political cover which you decidedly don't have now."

A previously released email from February 2016 showed Wolff suggesting that Epstein was the "bullet" that could end Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. The picture these communications paint is unmistakable.

What the Documents Actually Show

For years, the left treated every mention of Epstein in connection with Trump as confirmation of something sinister. Media outlets breathlessly covered the document releases, seemingly anticipating a bombshell that would finally deliver the goods on the president.

The documents delivered—just not what they expected.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche addressed the substance of the records in a statement to Fox News Digital on Friday:

"In none of these communications, even when doing his best to disparage President Trump, did Epstein suggest President Trump had done anything criminal or had any inappropriate contact with any of his victims."

That statement matters. Even in private correspondence where Epstein had every incentive to leverage whatever he could against Trump—and was being actively encouraged by Wolff to do so—he made no such claims. The absence speaks volumes.

Trump's Response

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump characterized the documents as vindication. He acknowledged he hadn't personally reviewed them but said he'd been briefed by people he trusted:

"I didn't see it myself, but I was told by some very important people that not only does it absolve me, it's the opposite of what people were hoping, you know, the radical left, that Wolff, who's a third-rate writer, was conspiring with Jeffrey Epstein to hurt me, politically or otherwise, and that came through loud and clear."

Trump also reframed his past association with Epstein in light of the revelations:

"Because he was conspiring with Wolff to do harm to me politically. That's not a friend."

The statement signals Trump's willingness to pursue the matter in court. A lawsuit against Wolff and the Epstein estate would force both parties to answer for the correspondence now in the public record.

The Wolff Pattern

Michael Wolff built a career on proximity to Trump and then used that access to write books designed to damage him. His 2018 book "Fire and Fury" was marketed as an inside account of a chaotic White House, filled with anonymously sourced claims that Trump's own allies disputed.

The newly released emails suggest Wolff's antagonism toward Trump predates even the presidency. In 2016, while Trump was still a candidate, Wolff was already advising a man facing serious allegations on how to redirect media attention toward Trump.

Instead of journalism, Wolff's work was opposition research dressed up as media strategy. Wolff positioned himself as a writer while functioning as something closer to a political operative—one willing to collaborate with a figure like Epstein to achieve his aims.

The Document Dump Strategy

The release of more than 3 million records by the Justice Department represents a significant act of transparency. The sheer volume ensures that media coverage will be scattered—headlines will cherry-pick whatever fits pre-existing narratives.

But the core revelation cuts against those narratives. The documents don't show Trump entangled in Epstein's crimes. They show Wolff coaching Epstein on how to manufacture that impression for political gain.

The left spent years demanding these releases. They expected a weapon. What they got was evidence of a media figure conspiring with a disgraced financier to sabotage a presidential campaign