Stephen Colbert on Tuesday night criticized Republican lawmakers for standing by President Donald Trump after new revelations from the estate of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, singling out Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) for particular scorn.
The late-night host addressed the release this week of a "birthday book" from Epstein’s estate that contained messages from friends, including one attributed to Trump. Trump this summer sued the Wall Street Journal over its reporting about a bizarre 2003 birthday message to Epstein that appeared inside the doodled torso of a woman; he has denied writing the notation. Many Republican lawmakers, Colbert said, have either dismissed the book as a forgery or simply ignored it.
Colbert rolled a clip of House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan earlier in the day saying, "I haven't seen it," and "Don't buy it." In response, Colbert delivered a biting reminder of allegations surrounding Jordan's past: "If Jim Jordan didn't see it, it didn't happen — especially not in the showers at Ohio State," he said, then encouraged his audience, "Google it."
Jordan, a former assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State University, has long faced accusations that he ignored sexual-abuse allegations against the team's doctor. Jordan has denied those accusations. Several witnesses have publicly corroborated accounts that raise questions about what Jordan knew and when he knew it. Former wrestler Mike DiSabato told reporters in 2018, "I considered Jim Jordan a friend. But at the end of the day, he is absolutely lying if he says he doesn't know what was going on."
Colbert's monologue followed renewed attention to Epstein-related materials after the estate released the birthday book, which prompted fresh scrutiny of the social circles Epstein moved in and the men who associated with him. The juxtaposition of conservative lawmakers' defenses of Trump with those lawmakers' own contested histories was a frequent target of Colbert's remarks.
The exchange underscores the continuing political and cultural fallout from Epstein's crimes and the materials that have surfaced since his death. While some Republicans have dismissed the birthday book's contents as inauthentic, others have not publicly addressed them, and legal disputes over related reporting have already played out in courtrooms. The week’s developments prompted commentary from late-night hosts and renewed public focus on both Epstein's network and how elected officials respond when linked to contested documents or past allegations.
Colbert's segment reused public remarks and archival material in a routine late-night critique of political figures and media coverage; it did not offer new evidence about the contents of the Epstein book or about Jordan's conduct. Jordan's office did not immediately provide a comment on the segment or on the matters discussed during the show.