In his own words, why Bill Clinton bitterly regrets his relationship with Epstein. But, asks TOM LEONARD, is he telling the full truth?

'I did not person intersexual relations with that woman.'

Bill Clinton was erstwhile truthful categorical – and truthful categorically incorrect – astir White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

Today, 26 years later, helium is conscionable arsenic forthright astir different narration present casting a shadiness implicit his aboriginal years.

In his caller memoir, 'Citizen: My Life After The White House', the erstwhile US President tackles his arguable transportation with pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein – a transportation that immoderate felt was truthful toxic that it mightiness derail Hillary Clinton's 2016 statesmanlike bid.

In the event, Bill's relationship with Epstein was efficaciously cancelled retired due to the fact that Donald Trump, Hillary's predetermination opponent, had besides been a person and Palm Beach neighbour of the enactment predator.

Clinton present says helium wishes he'd ne'er met Epstein – who died successful jailhouse successful 2019 portion awaiting enactment trafficking charges – which is hardly astonishing successful the circumstances.

In importantly underplaying their relationship, however, Clinton mightiness permission sceptics wondering if determination isn't much helium could person said.

When the privacy-loving Epstein started attracting media curiosity much than 20 years ago, helium was sometimes referred to arsenic 'Clinton's pal'.

Yet the erstwhile president present suggests helium wasn't friends with Epstein astatine each but simply connected done their shared involvement successful philanthropy.

He writes: 'In 2002 and 2003, helium invited maine to alert connected his airplane to enactment the enactment of the [Clinton] Foundation, and successful instrumentality for flying me, my staff, and my Secret Service item who ever accompanied me, Epstein asked lone that I instrumentality an hr oregon 2 connected each travel to sermon authorities and economics.'

Clinton's spokesperson has antecedently said the erstwhile president made 4 trips connected 'Air Epstein' successful those years, doubly to Africa and erstwhile each to Asia and Europe.

Clinton goes on: '[Epstein] had conscionable donated $10 cardinal to Harvard for encephalon probe and helium asked a batch of questions. That was the grade of our conversations.'

Clinton insists that his 'only different interactions' with Epstein were 'two little meetings, 1 astatine my bureau successful Harlem [in 2002] and different astatine his location successful New York.'

Yet determination are photographs of the 2 men unneurotic dating backmost to 1993, smiling warmly to each different erstwhile they met during a VIP circuit of the White House. Perhaps Clinton's representation is failing him.

For that was 1 of galore visits Epstein reportedly made to the Clinton White House.

While Clinton disputes the accuracy of the White House logs, determination are besides formation records logged with the Federal Aviation Administration indicating helium flew connected Epstein's backstage pitchy astatine slightest 26 times.

Clinton continues: 'I had ever thought Epstein was unusual but had nary inkling of the crimes helium was committing. He wounded a batch of people, but I knew thing astir it, and by the clip helium was archetypal arrested successful 2005, I had stopped interaction with him.'

The erstwhile president goes to immoderate lengths successful his memoir to disprove 1 peculiar Epstein-related accusation against him: that helium visited the multi-millionaire's notorious backstage land successful the US Virgin Islands.

Little St James was dubbed 'Orgy Island' arsenic Epstein allegedly hosted underage enactment parties there.

In 2019, it was revealed that Virginia Giuffre, the astir celebrated of Epstein's alleged enactment trafficking victims, had told her lawyers years earlier that she knew Clinton decidedly stayed astatine slightest erstwhile connected the land due to the fact that she and 2 'lovely girls' from New York flew down determination with him immoderate clip aft his presidency.

Giuffre, who alleges she was a teenage 'sex slave' for Epstein and his friends, says they each joined Epstein and his partner-in-crime, Ghislaine Maxwell, for dinner.

Clinton, she said, was teasing the different women with 'playful pokes' and 'brassy comments' earlier leaving with them astatine the extremity of the night.

In an unpublished memoir, she wrote: 'Strolling into the acheronian with 2 beauteous girls astir either arm, Bill seemed contented to discontinue for the evening.'

Giuffre, who ne'er accused Clinton of immoderate wrongdoing but who claimed orgies were 'a changeless thing' connected the island, said that erstwhile she asked Epstein what the ex-president was doing there, the financier laughed and answered mysteriously: 'He owes maine a favor.'

Giuffre added: 'He ne'er told maine what favors they were. I ne'er knew. I didn't cognize if helium was serious.'

She hasn't ever been wholly close successful her recollections, but Giuffre isn't the lone 1 who has claimed Clinton visited the island.

In 2020, Steve Scully, an IT technologist who worked for Epstein connected the island, told a Netflix documentary he'd erstwhile seen Clinton determination with Epstein. Mr Scully claimed determination had been cipher other with the pair, who were allegedly sitting connected the structure of Epstein’s villa. A Clinton spokesperson denied the claim. 

In the same, Doug Band, a erstwhile cardinal aide, confidant and bagman who worked intimately with Clinton for 20 years, made further allegation to Vanity Fair.

Band – who erstwhile had a stormy narration with First Daughter Chelsea Clinton and aboriginal fell retired with her begetter – claimed he'd advised his brag to person thing to bash with Epstein.

That was aft the 2 men had joined Kevin Spacey connected a well-publicized philanthropy travel to Africa successful 2002, aboard Epstein's backstage Boeing 727, notoriously known arsenic the 'Lolita Express'.

Band aboriginal said helium knew thing astir the enactment allegations against Epstein astatine the clip but inactive got 'bad vibes' from him. As reported by Vanity Fair, however, 'Clinton continued to socialize with Epstein and instrumentality his money', including a 2006 donation of $25,000 to the Clinton Foundation.

According to Band, Clinton did sojourn Epstein's backstage Caribbean land successful January 2003 – 1 of the fewer of his trips which Band declined to join.

A Clinton spokesperson told Vanity Fair that the president ne'er went to the land and provided details of his movements astatine the clip specified by Band that did not see specified a visit.

The erstwhile president has present personally addressed Band's allegation, penning successful his memoir astir an unnamed staffer who 'fed the story' to Vanity Fair: 'He knew it wasn't existent erstwhile helium said it.'

Yet determination person been myriad different indications implicit the years that, portion determination was ne'er immoderate proposition of illegality connected Clinton's part, his narration with Epstein was alternatively person than the dry, business-like and precise constricted relation helium present outlines successful his book.

As agelong agone arsenic 1993, Epstein and Maxwell were pictured greeting Clinton wrong the White House astatine an lawsuit for donors to the White House Historical Association aft Epstein stumped up $10,000.

That was 1 of astatine slightest 17 occasions connected which Epstein reportedly visited the White House during Clinton's archetypal word arsenic president.

In 2020, photos emerged showing Clinton getting a cervix massage from different of Epstein's accusers, Chauntae Davies, past 22, during a Lolita Express refueling halt connected the 2002 Africa jaunt.

Then successful January of this year, hundreds of pages of tribunal documents relating to Epstein were released.

They included the grounds of Epstein accuser Johanna Sjoberg, who told lawyers successful 2016 that Epstein erstwhile told her, 'Clinton likes them young, referring to girls'.

Various radical person said that Epstein utilized to play up his connections to almighty radical specified arsenic Clinton successful bid to impressment others. He'd sometimes person telephone calls with them portion women with whom helium was successful a narration listened in.

In 2003, New York Magazine reported that Epstein erstwhile threw a enactment astatine his mansion successful Clinton's honor.

Clinton didn't be but guests included Donald Trump, magician David Blaine and Clinton adjutant Doug Band.

In the aforesaid New York house, Epstein kept a somewhat disturbing representation of Clinton dressed successful Monica Lewinsky's celebrated bluish formal and heels, and reclining successful the Oval Office. Epstein besides had a signed photograph of Clinton.

Odd behaviour for 2 men who – according to 1 of them – hardly knew each other.

'The bottommost enactment is, adjacent though it allowed maine to sojourn the enactment of my foundation, traveling connected Epstein's level was not worthy the years of questioning afterward,' Clinton present writes. 'I privation I had ne'er met him.'

He mightiness person akin feelings astir Monica Lewinsky, with whom helium had an matter erstwhile helium was a 49-year-old person of the Free World and she a 22-year-old intern. Although nowadays he's excessively diplomatic to accidental so.

That wasn't ever the case.

Clinton severely damaged his estimation successful 2018 erstwhile helium gave a disastrous interrogation to NBC's Today amusement successful which – lone months aft the shaming of Harvey Weinstein and commencement of the #MeToo question – helium denied that helium owed Lewinsky an apology arsenic he'd already publically said sorry.

Still smarting from that, helium brings it up successful the caller memoir, complaining that the NBC interviewer had been severely briefed, successful what, surprisingly, is the lone notation to Lewinsky successful the book.

Others volition accidental that it was Clinton who was severely briefed – successful not appreciating the important favoritism betwixt a nationalist mea culpa and a backstage one.

At slightest helium doesn't request to apologize astir Jeffrey Epstein – because, of course, helium hardly knew the man.