Vice President JD Vance told podcast host Joe Rogan this week that Jeffrey Epstein had connections to the highest levels of both American and Israeli intelligence, a claim for which no evidence has been presented and which Israel's former prime minister has previously and publicly denied.
"He clearly had connections to the upper, the highest levels, of American intelligence," Vance said during the nearly three-hour interview released Wednesday. "He clearly had connections to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence."
Vance went on to describe himself as "one of the O.G. Epstein conspiracy theorists," a label consistent with earlier comments. Last month, appearing on "The View," he said he was "frankly kind of a conspiracy theory on the Epstein stuff," describing it as troubling that a "clearly a sex predator" had socialized with so many powerful people.
In the Rogan interview, Vance specifically tied the alleged Israeli connection to the country's political left rather than to its government generally. He pointed to Epstein's documented association with former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, whose politics have moved toward the center in recent years and who has previously said he regrets the relationship while denying wrongdoing. Vance described Epstein as having been "connected to the elements of the Israeli deep state that were left of center," while acknowledging he did not know what that meant.
Vance also raised what he called a "separate conspiracy" involving Les Wexner, the Jewish billionaire philanthropist whose decades-long relationship with Epstein has been extensively documented. Vance suggested Epstein had served as Wexner's "tax guy." Wexner has said he cut ties with Epstein upon learning of his misconduct and has denied wrongdoing.
