MSNBC aired archive footage Wednesday morning showing a newly divorced Donald Trump joking, laughing and dancing with Jeffrey Epstein at a 1992 party at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
Morning Joe host Mika Brzezinski narrated the footage broadcast Wednesday showing the New York City businessman schmoozing alongside Epstein, who years later would later would be forced to register as a sex offender and is currently accused of child sex trafficking. The November 1992 video tape was recorded by NBC producers for Faith Daniels' talk show, A Closer Look. The profile of Trump takes an inside look at his lavish lifestyle in the wake of his recent divorce from Ivana, and at one point, Trump can be seen pointing Epstein's attention toward a woman and saying, "she's hot."
Much of Trump's lengthy television career was affiliated with NBC. It is the same network which recorded Trump's infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which he told host Billy Bush a series of lewd remarks about women in show business.
Earlier this month, Trump acknowledged knowing or having made acquaintance with Epstein, but he greatly diminished any specific interactions between the two billionaires. "Well I knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him," Trump told reporters from the Oval Office on July 9. "He was a fixture in Palm Beach I don't think I've spoken to him in 15 years. I wasn't a fan."
The footage was recorded more than ten years before Epstein would plead guilty to felony prostitution charges in Florida.
The video aired by MSNBC Wednesday shows Trump personally greeting Epstein as he arrives at the party, which featured cheerleaders from the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins NFL teams. "Come on in...Go inside," Trump tells Epstein.
Trump can be seen dancing with several of the cheerleaders in order to show off his newly divorced lifestyle for the NBC cameras, "you're going to get great ratings on your show," he can be heard saying.
A federal indictment against Epstein includes several sex trafficking charges involving "dozens of minors" in Florida and New York between 2002 and 2005.
Epstein's vast financier wealth also drew him into contact over the years with former President Bill Clinton, Harvard professor and Fox News figure Alan Dershowitz and Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
Speaking with New York Magazine in 2002, Trump took on a different tone when discussing his Mar-a-Lago acquaintance: "I've known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy. He's a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it – Jeffrey enjoys his social life."
But a Trump attorney earlier this month told The New York Times that the now-president denies ever having a friendship with Epstein.
Morning Joe co-host Joe Scarborough can be heard scoffing at Trump and Epstein's seemingly cozy interaction at the November 1992 party. Epstein at one point in the footage can be seen doubling over in laughter at something Trump says in his ear. Trump has previously referred to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida as his "Winter White House."