Through a DOJ spokesperson, Blanche declined an interview. The spokesperson confirmed Blanche was at the Doral meeting and said, “Todd Blanche didn’t interview or engage with Mr. Markus. He was in the room with many people who were speaking.”
The other people in attendance at the meeting either did not respond to requests for comment or declined to comment.
Markus’ firm ultimately did not represent either the president or Nauta in the classified documents matter. (Both cases were dropped after Trump’s reelection.) Markus regrets it to this day — even if his wife, kids and business partner stand behind it. After all, Markus likes a big stage.
Markus got involved with Maxwell after he wrote an opinion piece in September 2020 for The Hill criticizing the Trump-era Justice Department’s outspoken press strategy in the case. He argued that the Department’s “media machine” prejudges someone’s guilt and effectively destroys a person’s reputation before he gets the chance to defend himself.
According to Markus, Maxwell’s family then enlisted him to help with her appeal after she was forced to await her trial behind bars instead of being granted bail.
While an opinion piece may have gotten him connected to Maxwell in the first place, his loquaciousness has ruffled some feathers. In 2021, the Justice Department accused him of jeopardizing the impartiality of the jury in Maxwell’s trial by making repeated media statements and writing a piece in the New York Daily News comparing Maxwell’s case to Bill Cosby’s. (Cosby’s sexual assault conviction had just been overturned; “Bill Cosby is free; Ghislaine Maxwell should be, too,” Markus’ headline blared.)
“Mr. Markus’s comments to the media—most egregiously, the Op-Ed—were clearly in violation” of a Southern District of New York court rule relating to public statements by attorneys, federal prosecutors wrote in a letter to the judge. “Not only did his statements directly comment on the merits of this case, but they did so in a manner designed to appeal directly to the pool of potential jurors.”
Markus argued the rule didn’t apply to him because he was not currently representing Maxwell in any proceeding. But Judge Alison Nathan sided with the government and put Markus and the other lawyers on notice about the relevant court rule to protect a fair trial.
Maxwell was found guilty later that year of crimes including sex trafficking a minor and sex trafficking conspiracy. Now, almost five years later, “I have to say, I’m surprised it’s still in the news,” Markus said. “I can’t believe the legs this story has.”
Ghislaine Maxwell first got involved with Markus after he wrote an opinion piece in 2020 for The Hill criticizing the Trump-era Justice Department’s outspoken press strategy in her case. | Laura Cavanaugh/Getty Images
In part, what has shot the case back into the public zeitgeist was the decision by the Justice Department and FBI in July to quietly announce there was no so-called client list and it would not release further information in the case. The unsigned memo stirred up outrage among the president’s base and fueled momentum on Capitol Hill to ultimately pass legislation requiring DOJ to release the Epstein files. Lawmakers continue to interview those who knew Epstein as part of their own ongoing investigation.
The Justice Department memo also prompted new questions about Trump’s relationship with Epstein, which the president has maintained ended years before Epstein’s 2019 arrest on new sex crime charges. He has also denied wrongdoing in connection with Epstein. Democrats, however, have alleged that the administration was engaging in a cover-up.
Markus, meanwhile, was helping Maxwell with her appeal before the Supreme Court, in which she had alleged that Epstein’s 2007 federal non-prosecution agreement precluded her indictment.
With the new media attention on the Epstein saga, Markus saw an opportunity. He reached out to Blanche.
“I thought it would be important, because there was so much misinformation going out there about her and about the president and about the former president, Bill Clinton,” Markus said, referencing questions around the relationship between Epstein and Clinton, who borrowed Epstein’s plane on occasion but has denied knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. “I just thought there’s just a ton of misinformation, and she could help.”
The Justice Department moved to set up the meeting between Blanche and Maxwell in July 2025. “[Markus] may have originally reached out to [Blanche], but the communications and logistics on the meeting were handled by others within the Department, including the security detail,” the DOJ spokesperson said.
Source:
www.politico.com
