{"id":2456988,"date":"2025-07-08T16:05:02","date_gmt":"2025-07-08T20:05:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/elon-musk-claims-steve-bannon-is-on-epstein-client-list\/"},"modified":"2025-07-08T16:06:13","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T20:06:13","slug":"elon-musk-claims-steve-bannon-is-on-epstein-client-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/elon-musk-claims-steve-bannon-is-on-epstein-client-list\/","title":{"rendered":"Elon Musk claims Steve Bannon is on Epstein client list"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Felon-musk-claims-steve-bannon-is-on-epstein-client-list%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2456988&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Tesla CEO Elon Musk accused Steve Bannon,a former top aide to President Donald Trump and a prominent MAGA figure,of being connected to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Musk claimed Bannon&#8217;s name appeared in the controversial &#8220;Epstein files,&#8221; which allegedly list powerful individuals linked to Epstein&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >criminal activities involving illicit sexual exploitation<\/a> and blackmail. Bannon had spent hours interviewing Epstein in 2019 for an unreleased documentary shortly before Epstein&#8217;s suspicious death in jail, which some critics suspect was covered up to protect influential figures.<\/p>\n<p>Musk and Bannon have a longstanding feud, with Bannon attacking Musk&#8217;s pragmatic policies and Musk responding to Bannon&#8217;s calls for his arrest and deportation.Initially defending attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel for their handling of the Epstein files during the Trump administration, Musk later expressed frustration over Trump&#8217;s refusal to release the full Epstein files, questioning how people could trust Trump otherwise. Trump dismissed ongoing media questions about Epstein,calling the issue old news.<\/p>\n<p>the controversy highlights deep political conflicts involving high-profile figures around the unresolved mysteries surrounding Epstein&#8217;s crimes and the connections of prominent political allies.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Musk claims Steve Bannon is on Epstein client list after DOJ denies file exists<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2141865\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a former adviser to President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Donald Trump <\/a>who is now engaged in a feud with the White House, accused top MAGA ally <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/aclk?sa=l&amp;ai=DChsSEwiPg433-q2OAxXCR_8BHSIiHUEYACICCAEQABoCbWQ&amp;co=1&amp;gclid=CjwKCAjwg7PDBhBxEiwAf1CVu-G6zZO6Xkmg1ZDT2XRpA95GCsr_3DzxwJwZYbD965PtA9rEg-_wBBoCuKAQAvD_BwE&amp;category=acrcp_v1_48&amp;sig=AOD64_0nDKRM6sGwGR2f_7X0t7n4BjCAsw&amp;q&amp;adurl&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiOoIX3-q2OAxUKm4kEHU0FGx8Q0Qx6BAgPEAE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Steve Bannon<\/a> on Tuesday of being connected to the notorious convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.<\/p>\n<p>Bannon, an ideological hard-liner on matters such as immigration,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3284760\/steve-bannon-elon-musk-feud-first-buddy-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> has for years attacked Musk<\/a>, whose more pragmatic approach to various policies has outraged him. While Bannon, who served as a top aide to Trump during his first term, has conceded that Musk did a &ldquo;brilliant&rdquo; job leading the bureaucracy-slashing Department of Government Efficiency this year, he went for the jugular after the Tesla CEO&nbsp;had a public falling out with the White House over the president&rsquo;s prized &ldquo;big, beautiful,&rdquo; tax cut bill.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3465482\/julio-cesar-chavez-jr-mexican-boxing-legend-defends-son-arrest-ice\/\">Mexican boxing legend defends son arrested by ICE: &#8216;He is not a criminal&#8217;<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3465309\/case-against-wisconsin-judge-hannah-dugan-should-proceed-federal-judge\/\">Case against Wisconsin judge Hannah Dugan should proceed: Federal judge<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3464490\/kilmar-abrego-garcia-deportation-third-country-doj\/\">Abrego Garcia will be deported to third country if released, DOJ says<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>This week, Musk responded to Bannon&rsquo;s recent calls for him to<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/foreign-policy\/3433815\/russia-offers-refuge-elon-musk-amid-war-with-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> be arrested and deported <\/a>with a post that sparked instant controversy on social media.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Bannon is in the Epstein files,&rdquo; Musk said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/elonmusk\/status\/1942634205407764710?s=46&amp;t=aOOy8YEKiQSfdQpJkUhBhQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">post<\/a> to X after previously alleging that Trump himself is named in the files.<\/p>\n<p>The files surround the now-deceased Epstein&rsquo;s connections to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/7-of-the-most-cringeworthy-religious-mishaps-from-leading-leftists\/\" title=\"7 Of The Most Cringeworthy Religious Mishaps From Leading Leftists\">powerful political figures<\/a> and other prominent leaders. Epstein has often been accused of brandishing sex as a weapon to blackmail power players in his inner circle by offering them&nbsp;illicit sex with minors at private locations such as his notorious &ldquo;Epstein Island.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Epstein was first investigated for sex crimes in 2005, leading to a yearslong inquiry into his criminal activity and his arrest and imprisonment in 2019.<\/p>\n<p>Bannon spent 15 hours interviewing Epstein in 2019 for what he described as a documentary. Their conversations reportedly included details about Epstein&rsquo;s relationship with Trump. The documentary never came out, and Bannon was subsequently hit with allegations that he had grown friendly with the sex offender and was trying to help him out&nbsp;&ldquo;with his public-relations problems,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/steve-bannon-filmed-jeffrey-epstein-trump-friendship-documentary-tapes-2024-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">according<\/a> to <em>Business Insider<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Bannon shot the never-released video footage shortly before Epstein died in jail in 2019, in what authorities ruled a suicide. Critics said it was an inside job and cover-up designed to prevent Epstein from dishing during the coming trial about his connections to prominent figures.<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration, led by FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, promised to release full video surveillance footage monitoring Epstein&rsquo;s cell on the night of his death and all the federal files on the case, including the so-called &ldquo;Epstein client list.&rdquo; However, controversy sparked over those promises due to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3465645\/pam-bondi-says-missing-minute-from-epstein-footage-happens-every-night\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">missing minute<\/a> in the footage, and Bondi and Patel<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/3463927\/jeffrey-epstein-suicide-no-client-list-fbi-doj-find-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> later claimed<\/a> that there was no proof of such a list or evidence that Epstein had blackmailed famous people.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The video was not conclusive, but the evidence prior to it was, showing he committed suicide,&rdquo; Bondi said in a recent attempt to salve concerns about the missing minute. &ldquo;There was a minute that was off the counter, and what we learned from the Bureau of Prisons is every year, every night, they redo that video. &hellip; So every night the video is reset, and every night should have the same minute missing.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">President Donald Trump, right, talks with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, center, and White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, left, during a meeting with business leaders on Friday, Feb. 3, 2017, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo\/Evan Vucci)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Musk<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/investigations\/3333490\/musk-defends-bondi-patel-d-doj-chaotic-epstein-files-rollout\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> rose to Bondi&rsquo;s defense in February<\/a> when she faced criticism for releasing files containing publicly known information <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3408087\/goldman-bondi-preventing-release-jeffrey-epstein-files\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">and concerns<\/a> over why thousands of documents were missing. At the time, the attorney general said Patel&rsquo;s FBI failed to hand over the files in question and called on the agency to swiftly do so.<\/p>\n<p>Musk suggested that Patel was the victim of Biden-era employees working against him within the FBI by suppressing the controversial question. Neither Bondi nor Patel was to blame for the chaotic rollout, he said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Imagine if you were suddenly appointed AG or head of the FBI,&rdquo; Musk argued. &ldquo;You were just thrown on a ship with a hostile crew. Until you appoint some new crew members and figure out the ropes, you can&rsquo;t steer the ship effectively. It&rsquo;s literally impossible.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Imagine if you were suddenly appointed AG or head of the FBI. <\/p>\n<p>You were just thrown on a ship with a hostile crew. <\/p>\n<p>Until you appoint some new crew members and figure out the ropes, you can&rsquo;t steer the ship effectively. It&rsquo;s literally impossible. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/cN2fQnZtGR\">https:\/\/t.co\/cN2fQnZtGR<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/elonmusk\/status\/1895376584636539034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 28, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>But Musk changed his tune on the matter after breaking with Trump over the president&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rand-paul-reinvited-to-white-house-picnic-by-trump\/\" title=\"Rand Paul reinvited to ... picnic by Trump\">sweeping tax cuts bill<\/a> that recently passed both chambers of Congress.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;How can people be expected to have faith in Trump if he won&rsquo;t release the Epstein files?&rdquo; he <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/elonmusk\/status\/1942653394168246464?s=46&amp;t=aOOy8YEKiQSfdQpJkUhBhQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">said <\/a>Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/investigations\/3333490\/musk-defends-bondi-patel-d-doj-chaotic-epstein-files-rollout\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">MUSK RISES TO BONDI AND PATEL&rsquo;S DEFENSE AFTER DOJ&rsquo;S CHAOTIC EPSTEIN FILES ROLLOUT<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The same day, Trump denounced reporters for pressing him on the debacle.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy&rsquo;s been talked about for years,&rdquo; Trump told reporters at the White House before a Cabinet meeting. &ldquo;We have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things. Are people still talking about this guy, this creep? That is unbelievable.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2141865\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2141865\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Musk alleges Bannon linked to Epstein despite DOJ denial<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3142,"featured_media":2456989,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/musk-bannon-trump.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[50410,32192,58611,4133,32102],"class_list":["post-2456988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-controversy-2","tag-elon-musk","tag-epstein-client-list","tag-news","tag-steve-bannon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/musk-bannon-trump.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2456988"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2456992,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2456988\/revisions\/2456992"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2456989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2456988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2456988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2456988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}