âI think he thought that we were targeting him, and we werenât,â she said. âI donât believe thereâs any evidence that he abused any of the survivors. So, it wasnât a target against him. It was just, you know, a cry for us being fed up and wanting answers.â
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5485618-lisa-phillips-donald-trump-epstein-files/
Epstein survivor on Trump calling files controversy âDemocrat hoaxâ: âShocking and upsettingâ
Lisa Phillips, an accuser of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, said it was âshocking and upsettingâ for her to hear President Trump call their Capitol Hill push for transparency a âhoaxâ perpetrated by Democrats.
âFor me, personally, it was shocking and upsetting. I just â I couldnât believe that he said that,â Phillips said on CNNâs âAC360â when asked for her reaction to Trumpâs comments.
The former model noted Trump has long supported the effort to release documents related to Epstein, so his response âconfusedâ her.
âJust for so many years, he acknowledged that there were thousands of files, and he was going to release them,â she told CNN. âAnd so, hearing that today, I was just confused by it.â
Victims of Epstein gathered outside the Capitol on Wednesday in a press conference, where they offered testimony about their experiences, hammered the government for keeping the files under wraps and accused lawmakers who opposed the release of documents of shielding a group of rich and powerful people from accountability.
Phillips also described being taken to Epsteinâs private island in 2000.
âWe are not asking for pity. We are here demanding accountability, and Iâm demanding justice,â Phillips told the crowd. âCongress must choose: Will you continue to protect predators, or will you finally protect survivors?â
She also suggested the accusers could compile a list of clients after the Trump administration determined Epstein did not keep one.