A protester holds up a photo of the future President Donald Trump with financier Jeffrey Epstein at a rally in Augusta, Georgia, on Aug. 2, 2025. Epstein, a convicted sex offender, died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting a federal sex trafficking trial.

A House committee wants a copy of the Jeffrey Epstein birthday book that reportedly contains a ribald message from President Donald Trump.

The House Oversight Committee is subpoenaing the late financier's estate to explore a possible mismanagement of a federal government investigation involving Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell.

The subpoena, signed on Aug. 25 by Rep. James Comer, the Republican chair of the oversight committee, requests Epstein’s will, any disclosure agreements he signed, the non-prosecutorial agreement Epstein signed with Southern District of Florida official in 2007, his financial transactions and holdings as well as any documents that could make up a "potential client list," including phone logs and visitors logs.

"It is our understanding that the Estate of Jeffrey Epstein is in custody and control ofdocuments that may further the Committee’s investigation and legislative goals," Comer wrote in a letter to lawyers overseeing Epstein's estate. "Further, it is our understanding the Estate is ready and willing to provide these documents to the Committee pursuant to a subpoena.

The first item the subpoena provides Congress with is "all entries contained within the reported leather-bound book compiled by Ms. Ghislaine Maxwell for Mr. Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday." Trump has denied a Wall Street Journal report that he contributed a handwritten note to the book and sued the publication.

The committee said it is "reviewing the possible mismanagement of the federal government’s investigation of Mr. Jeffrey Epstein and Ms. Ghislaine Maxwell, the circumstances and subsequent investigations of Mr. Epstein’s death, the operation of sex-trafficking rings and ways for the federal government to effectively combat them, and potential violations of ethics rules related to elected officials."

Subpoena arrives after Maxwell marathon interview release

The subpoena comes after the Justice Department delivered its first batch of Epstein documents to the committee on Aug. 22. The legal request also arrives after the DOJ released transcripts of Maxwell's marathon interviews with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche last month in Tallahassee, Florida. Maxwell talked about meeting Trump and the relationship between Epstein and former President Bill Clinton.

The Trump administration has faced heavy criticism by Republicans and Democrats due to its earlier refusal to release the investigative records the Justice Department and FBI have in connection with the case.

Epstein died by suicide in a New York federal prison in 2019 while awaiting federal charges related to sex trafficking, sparking outrage and theories about who else might've known or were involved with the sex ring he allegedly operated with Maxwell's assistance. Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Trump disputes writing a message to Epstein

Trump has denied writing an off-color message to Epstein in the book, and sued the Wall Street Journal after the outlet reported on his birthday greeting. Trump is seeking $10 billion in damages in the lawsuit filed in Miami federal court on July 18. He has named the Dow Jones & Company, News Corporation, owner Rupert Murdoch, and two Journal reporters in the lawsuit.

Under question is a story published July 17 describing a letter from Trump that the Journal wrote was part of a leather-bound birthday book with dozens of other letters presented to Epstein in 2003. Trump's letter ends with “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret,” according to the Journal.

According to the Journal, Trump's signature on the letter, which was written in the form of text inside a hand-drawn outline of a nude woman, is "a squiggly 'Donald' below her waist, mimicking pubic hair."

The president called the letter a "FAKE" in a social media post after the article was published and said the story is "false, malicious, and defamatory."

Epstein was worth millions at the time of his death. While Epstein owned properties in New York, Palm Beach, Florida, and the Caribbean, it remains unclear how he amassed his fortune. His estate paid hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements to Epstein’s victims.

His estate has until Sept. 8 to produce the oversight committee's requested information.

Asyha Bagchi, Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, Zac Anderson, Joey Garrison, and Jack Myer of the USA TODAY Network contributed.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: House committee subpoenas Epstein estate for 'birthday book' with alleged Trump note

Reporting by Terry Collins, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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