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President Donald Trump and his allies have tried to steer discussion about the Jeffrey Epstein case away from Trump and instead use it to attack Democrats, including former President Barack Obama.
In a July 27 interview on CNN’s "State of the Union," U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., blamed Obama for the "sweetheart deal" given to Epstein, a sex offender who died in federal custody in 2019.
"Remember, there was a plea deal that was struck in 2009, way before I was in office, way before Trump was even considering to be in office, way before Pam Bondi was in office, way before Kash Patel was director. (In) 2009, there was a sweetheart plea deal that was made underneath the Obama administration and that sweetheart has not been exposed," Mullin said.
CNN host Jake Tapper interjected, "No, that's not right."
Mullin responded, "It's not?" and asked, "When was the case heard?"
Tapper said: "It was 2008. The U.S. attorney at the time was a guy named Alex Acosta. He was a Bush appointee. He went on to become President Trump's secretary of labor. It all took place in 2008."
Mullin asked: "Who was in office at the time?"
Tapper answered: former President George W. Bush.
Mullin continued to push back. "No, 2009 is when the case came out, and it was — and Obama was in office at the time."
Tapper told Mullin his statement was "not true."
Mullin replied, "The case was sealed in 2009. That's absolutely true. It was heard in 2008. It was sealed in 2009."
Mullin falsely pointed at Obama. But Epstein reached a plea agreement before he pleaded guilty in June 2008. A judge unsealed the agreement in 2009, which meant that it could be viewed by the public, including Epstein victims and reporters.
We contacted Mullin’s office and did not receive a reply by our deadline.
READ MORE: Trump deputy attorney general's past raises questions in the Epstein case
Timeline of Epstein events
Alexander Acosta, a George W. Bush appointee, served as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida from 2005 to 2009. In that role, Acosta signed a nonprosecution agreement that "essentially shut down an ongoing FBI probe" into Epstein’s alleged sex crimes, according to a 2018 Miami Herald investigation.
The Herald reported that Acosta entered into discussions about the plea agreement in August 2007. Epstein signed the agreement Sept. 24, 2007, but his attorneys delayed his court appearance.
Epstein pleaded guilty in June 2008. He served about 13 months in jail under a work release arrangement in which he returned to the jail to sleep at night.
A 2020 summary of a Justice Department Office of Professional Responsibility investigation into the case also said the agreement was signed Sept. 24, 2007.
The office concluded, "Acosta’s decision to resolve the federal investigation through the (nonprosecution agreement) constitutes poor judgment."
As part of the agreement, Epstein agreed to plead guilty to state prostitution charges; register as a sex offender; serve 18 months in county jail; and pay monetary damages to his victims. In exchange, the U.S. attorney’s office agreed to end its Epstein investigation and forgo federal prosecution of him or "any potential co-conspirators." Prosecutors agreed to seal the agreement and not share it with the victims.
In July 2019, Epstein was arrested on federal charges for recruiting dozens of underage girls to his New York City mansion and Palm Beach, Florida, estate from 2002 to 2005 to engage in sex acts for money. About a week later, amid criticism for his role in Epstein’s case, Acosta resigned as Trump’s labor secretary.
Court unsealed plea deal in 2009
In February 2009, a month into Obama’s first term, a federal judge rejected a request by an attorney representing two of Epstein’s victims to unseal the document.
But attorneys for women suing Epstein and an attorney for The Palm Beach Post newspaper continued to press to unseal the agreement. Palm Beach Circuit Judge Jeffrey Colbath ordered the agreement unsealed in June 2009.
Epstein’s lawyers appealed, and the Fourth District Court of Appeal in September 2009 upheld Colbath’s decision to unseal the agreement and it was unsealed that month.
Our ruling
Mullin said the Epstein plea agreement "was a sweetheart plea deal that was made under the Obama administration."
The agreement was signed in 2007, months before Epstein pleaded guilty in June 2008, when Bush was president.
We rate this statement False.
PolitiFact researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this fact-check.
Our Sources
- CNN State of the Union, Tapper, Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin spar on the effort to release the full Epstein files and transcript, July 27, 2009
- Justice Department Office of Professional Responsibility, Executive summary of report Investigation into the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida’s Resolution of Its 2006–2008 Federal Criminal Investigation of Jeffrey Epstein and Its Interactions with Victims during the Investigation, November 2020
- Justice Department, Statement by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on the resignation of assistant attorney general R. Alexander Acosta, June 10, 2005
- Miami Herald, For years, Jeffrey Epstein abused teen girls, police say. A timeline of his case, Nov. 28, 2018
- Miami Herald, How a future Trump Cabinet member gave a serial sex abuser the deal of a lifetime, Nov. 28, 2018
- AP, Top Justice civil rights official named U.S. attorney in Miami, June 10, 2005
- Palm Beach Daily News, Judge rules Epstein pact to stay sealed, Feb. 17, 2009
- Palm Beach Post, Judge agrees to unseal Epstein’s sex scandal deal, June 26, 2009
- Palm Beach Daily News, Court: Epstein agreement stays sealed, July 2, 2009
- Palm Beach Post, Appeals court backs unsealing of Epstein’s ‘07 deal with feds, Sept. 4, 2009
- Palm Beach Daily News, Attorney for Epstein victims: ‘I have never seen a stranger case,’ Sept. 30, 2009
- Palm Beach Daily News, Court backs Epstein's victims; Attorneys for women seek to overturn sex offender's deal. April 21, 2014
- Palm Beach Post, Sex offender wins sealing of letters in his plea deal, Sept. 23, 2014
- Palm Beach Post, Feds defend cutting deal with sex offender Epstein; Prosecutors say they were trying to help traumatized women. June 23, 2017
- NPR, Jeffrey Epstein files: Tracing the legal cases that led to sex-trafficking charges, July 25, 2025
