4 December 25–30, 2025 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | | RIPTIDE | surprised. I truly just don’t know.” But while there’s no evidence Levine — like many others named in Epstein’s address book — had any involvement in the financier’s crimes, newly surfaced testimony suggests his proximity to Epstein’s inner circle ran deeper than previ- ously known. In a July 24 interview with the U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein’s co-conspirator and longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell re- ferred to the former Miami Beach mayor as her “very good friend,” and said she met Clinton after he left the White House in 2001 and later became friendly with him through Philip Levine. “I was actually introduced to the President post his coming out of the White House and be- came friendly with him, because of Philip Levine,” Maxwell told deputy attorney general Todd Blanche during the interview. “Because of what?” her attorney, David Markus, asked. She clarified: “Philip Levine.” In response to a New Times inquiry about his role in introducing Maxwell to the former presi- dent, Levine wrote in a text message: “That is not accurate as I told you already in a previous text.” (In that text, Levine said that he “never” intro- duced Maxwell to the former president and de- nied even knowing Clinton during “this time period.”) “This is simply untrue,” Levine continued. “This is public information and easily attainable. I have tried being helpful but based on my personal knowledge, unfortunately there is nothing I could contribute to further your efforts.” He followed up with links to a Wikipedia page documenting Epstein’s relationship with Clinton, citing early- 1990s events where Maxwell, Clinton, and Epstein were all present. “The precise nature of our relationship was that of a friend to my wife and I, nothing more and nothing less,” he wrote, regarding Maxwell calling him a “very good friend.” He married in 2018, while the relationship he referenced would have occurred years earlier. New Times asked Levine to clarify, but did not re- ceive a response. Epstein sexually abused children hundreds of times over more than a decade, exploiting girls as young as 14. Prosecutors said he couldn’t have done so without the help of Maxwell, his ex-girl- friend and longtime companion. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of sex-traffick- ing and other offenses connected to her facilita- tion and participation in Epstein’s actions. In 2022, she was sentenced to 20 years in prison for helping Epstein sexually abuse underage girls. Though Clinton has never been directly ac- cused of taking part in Epstein’s crimes, and he’s long denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, questions about his connection to Epstein have swirled for more than a decade, par- ticularly because of the former president’s own (and separate) rape accusations. Clinton was known to have traveled with Epstein in the years after he left office in 2001 and flown repeatedly on his private jet, which had been nicknamed the “Lolita Express” and was allegedly used by Epstein to sexually assault underage girls. Clinton, Maxwell, and Epstein notably appear together in one of more than a dozen photos from Epstein’s estate recently released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee. The photo (shown above) appears to be signed by Clinton. During the July interview, Maxwell testified that Clinton never visited Epstein’s private island estate and had no independent relationship with him outside of the trips the ex-president took on Epstein’s plane in the early 2000s. “President Clinton was my friend, not Epstein’s friend,” Maxwell told Blanche. “President Clinton liked me, and we got along terribly well. But I never saw that warmth with Mr. Epstein.” During the interview, Maxwell also said she was “very central” to the startup of the Clinton Global Initiative, an annual conference that has been hosted by the Clinton Foundation since 2005. “You were part of the ramp up or the startup of the Clinton Global Initiative?” Blanche asked. “I was, I would say, very central to that, yes,” Maxwell replied. [email protected] A photo of Bill Clinton, Ghislaine Maxwell, and Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein-Adjacent from p3 Photo by House Oversight Committee The Stories Your Friends Are Sharing FOLLOW US
