In resurfaced video testimony, Jeffrey Epstein was asked if he and Donald Trump ever spent time with young girls.

Yet as Trump has backed away from his promises of disclosure on Epstein, Maga commentators have started to turn on him. The disgraced former general Mike Flynn, a sometime ally who has become a political commentator, posted on social media reminding the president – in capital letters – that the “EPSTEIN AFFAIR IS NOT GOING AWAY”.

The First Lady has found herself in the middle of her husband's drama, according to one expert. Michael Wolff, who has written four books about President Donald Trump, said on Saturday that Melania Trump is "very involved" in the Jeffrey Epstein saga.

Here is a timeline of Epstein and Trump’s relationship. Though it is not known when Epstein and Trump first met, Trump told New York magazine in 2002 that he had known Epstein for 15 years, which would date back to the late 1980s. “Terrific guy,” Trump said in the 2002 interview.

With no sign of the political firestorm ending, Trump urges his Justice Department to pursue former President Barack Obama for an alleged, and baseless, scheme to rig the 2016 election. Of the Epstein drama swirling around his presidency, he claimed, “I don’t follow it too much.”

The leading role the former “first buddy” took in stoking the Epstein controversy shows how he remains a potent political risk for Trump months after he publicly left the White House.

The two socialized together frequently in New York City and Palm Beach from the late 1980s to the early 2000s. In 2002, Trump praised Epstein to a reporter as a “terrific guy” — and curiously added that he “likes beautiful women” on “the younger side.”

As Trump continues to spar with parts of his political base over his handling of the Epstein files, attention is turning to the relationship between the two men. John Yang speaks with New York Times White House correspondent Luke Broadwater,

A year ago, we scrubbed the public record. Here are our updated findings. “It’s all been a hoax that’s perpetrated by the Democrats. And some stupid Republicans and foolish Republicans fall into the net.”

Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein appeared to be friends in the 90s and early 2000s, but had not spoken for 15 years before Epstein's death.

The New York Times also published a photo of Trump and the sex offender financier posing with singer James Brown.