WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Donald Trump says he may sue journalist and author Michael Wolff, claiming Wolff worked with Jeffrey Epstein to hurt Trump politically. Trump made the comments on Air Force One on January 31, 2026, one day after the Department of Justice released a massive set of Epstein-related records under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
The DOJ release included more than 3 million pages of documents, plus thousands of videos and hundreds of thousands of images. The drop quickly fueled fresh headlines and online debate, and Trump used it to argue the materials cleared him. He also said they point to a coordinated effort against him.
“It looked like this guy, Michael Wolff, was a writer, was conspiring with Epstein to do harm to me,” Trump told reporters. He called Wolff a “third-rate writer” and said “very important people” told him about the alleged scheme. Trump added that he could also target the Epstein estate, saying Epstein “was conspiring with Wolff to do harm to me politically.”
What Trump Says the Epstein Documents Show
Trump framed the new DOJ disclosure as proof he did nothing wrong. He said the files support his claim that he was targeted, not protected. In his telling, the latest Epstein documents don’t land on him; they land on people he views as political enemies and critics.
That stance shifts the focus away from what the records contain and toward who Trump thinks used Epstein’s information as a weapon. It also puts Michael Wolff in the middle of the news cycle, tied to the Epstein files release.
Who Is Michael Wolff?
Michael Wolff is a well-known U.S. journalist and author. He’s best known for Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House (2018), an unauthorized book about the early Trump White House. The book sparked immediate backlash and legal threats from Trump’s side, and it helped cement Wolff’s reputation as a sharp Trump critic.
Wolff later published more Trump-focused books, including Siege and Landslide. He also writes and comments through his Substack newsletter, a podcast, and social media, where he regularly discusses Trump and Trump-era politics.
Wolff’s Past Links to Epstein
Michael Wolff’s name has appeared in earlier reporting tied to Epstein because of contact between them. Past document releases and media accounts described emails and conversations involving Wolff and Epstein.
Michael Wolff has also said he recorded audio of conversations with Epstein in 2017 while working on Fire and Fury, describing Epstein as a source. Epstein reportedly spoke about Trump’s election and Trump’s personal life during those talks.
In late 2025, Wolff sued First Lady Melania Trump after he said her legal team threatened a $1 billion defamation claim tied to Wolff’s public comments about the Trumps and Epstein. Wolff described his lawsuit as an effort to force testimony and pull out details about past connections in the 1990s modeling world, where he said Trump and Epstein had ties.
After Trump’s new lawsuit threat, Wolff responded on Substack and brushed it off as part of a pattern. He said Trump has threatened to sue him multiple times before.
Inside the January 2026 DOJ Epstein Files Release
The DOJ release on January 30, 2026, is one of the largest single document dumps connected to Epstein. It followed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which Trump signed on November 19, 2025. The law required the public release of unclassified DOJ records tied to Epstein’s investigations, prosecutions, and custody issues.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the DOJ published more than 3 million additional pages, bringing the total close to 3.5 million pages. The release also included over 2,000 videos and about 180,000 images. The materials cover communications, investigative notes, and references to many prominent names in politics, business, and entertainment.
The files mention Trump hundreds of times, often tied to social references and flight-log context from years ago. The DOJ also said some items in the files include “untrue and sensationalist claims” submitted to the FBI, tied in part to the 2020 election period. Blanche said on CNN’s State of the Union that the release would not lead to new charges and that the department did not “protect” anyone, including the president.
Even with Trump allies promising full transparency, the release arrived more than a month after an earlier deadline. Critics used that delay to question the rollout. Trump, though, pointed to the disclosure as proof of vindication and said it exposed what he called a “conspiracy,” not wrongdoing by him.
Why Trump Says He Might Sue Wolff
Trump’s legal threat appears to rest on how he reads past emails and interactions between Michael Wolff and Epstein that have already been discussed in earlier document releases and press coverage.
One exchange described in those reports involved Epstein offering photos and stories that could harm Trump, while Wolff discussed strategies connected to Epstein-related books. Trump has long said he cut ties with Epstein years before Epstein’s 2008 conviction. Trump also says hedid not know about Epstein’s crimes.
By casting Michael Wolff’s reporting and his contact with Epstein as a planned political hit, Trump is trying to shift attention from the content of the Epstein files and toward motive and intent. Legal analysts point out that defamation and conspiracy claims are hard to prove, and public figures face a high bar under US law. A case would likely turn on proof of false statements, actual malice, and clear evidence of coordination.
The Epstein estate, which still faces civil matters tied to victims, has not publicly responded to Trump’s comments.
The public, journalists, and lawyers will keep combing through the newly released Epstein documents. Trump’s threat against Michael Wolff adds another conflict to a story that already mixes crime, politics, and years of public interest.
It’s still unclear if Trump will file a lawsuit. The threat alone signals that the Epstein files release won’t stay focused on the documents for long; it’s also becoming a fight over narratives, reputations, and old grudges.
