Jasmine Crockett defends claim Lee Zeldin took Jeffrey Epstein donations—even though it was a totally different Jeffrey Epstein

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett claimed on Wednesday that former New York congressman and current Trump administration EPA administrator Lee Zeldin accepted campaign donations from a Jeffrey Epstein, but records show she cited a different individual with the same name. She later tried to defend herself, claiming that she did not have time to research the donors.

Crockett tried to defend her statements when she appeared on CNN, saying that she didn't have time to research his donors. She said that because Republicans have cited some Democrats taking donations from Epstein, she wanted "the Republicans to think about what could potentially happen" if people do not go through the FEC files.

She said that instead of looking at the FEC files on donations, her team "Googled" Republicans that had gotten money from those with the name "Jeffrey Epstein."

Crockett had said earlier, “We gonna expose it all!” Crockett said as she accused Zeldin and others of taking donations from “somebody named Jeffrey Epstein.” She made the remarks Tuesday after Republicans revealed that supporters of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries invited Epstein to a private meet and greet in 2013.

"I had my team dig in very quickly: Mitt Romney, the NRCC, Lee Zeldin, George Bush, WinRed, McCain-Palin, Rick Lazio,” she claimed. “I just want to be clear: If this is the standard that we gonna make, just know we are gonna expose it all. And just know that the FEC filings, they are available for everyone to review. This is absolutely ridiculous.”

Federal Election Commission filings Crockett referenced show the donations in question came from two unrelated men named Jeffrey Epstein, and both donations were made after the infamous sex trafficker died in 2019.

Zeldin received two donations while serving in the House of Representatives. The first came from Dr. Jeffrey Epstein of Manhasset, New York, who donated a total of $1,000 in April and August 2020. The second donor, also named Jeffrey Epstein, is a beverage distribution company owner in New Brunswick, New Jersey, who gave $600 in February 2020.

According to the New York Post, online FEC records going back to 2012 show no donations from the sex offender to Zeldin, who served in Congress from 2015 to 2023.

Zeldin responded to Crockett’s claim in a post on X, writing, “Yes Crockett, a physician named Dr. Jeffrey Epstein (who is a totally different person than the other Jeffrey Epstein) donated to a prior campaign of mine. NO FREAKIN RELATION YOU GENIUS!!!”