Hakeem Jeffries responds to claims of Epstein ties

And a third Republican is teasing a run to succeed Elise Stefanik.

Good afternoon — It’s Wednesday and World Toilet Day.

In today’s CapCon:

• U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries responded Wednesday to claims that he solicited campaign contributions from Jeffrey Epstein in 2013.

• The Oswego County Jail was hit with several violations by the state’s oversight entity for correctional facilities.

• U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik said Wednesday that she misspoke in a radio interview last year when she said she opposed access to IVF.

• A third Republican is now teasing a run to succeed Stefanik in Congress.

• Hochul will soon decide the fate of a bill that would require more transparency of the state’s public buildout of renewable energy projects.

Names in today’s CapCon: Hakeem Jeffries, James Comer, Jeffrey Epstein, Kathy Hochul, Elise Stefanik, Mike Lawler, Mike Gianaris, Sarahana Shrestha

---

Today’s Capitol Confidential is sponsored by Food & Water Watch.

Tell Governor Hochul to sign the Legislature’s repeal of the 100-foot rule. New Yorkers shouldn’t have to subsidize new gas hookups. End this outdated giveaway and cut costs for families. — Food & Water Watch

---

U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press)

🗣️ Hakeem Jeffries responds to claims of ties to Epstein

Brooklyn’s own U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries was peppered with questions Wednesday regarding claims from Republicans that he solicited campaign money from the sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.

House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, accused Jeffries of trying to cozy up to Epstein’s coffers as recently as 2013 — five years after he was convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor.

“Democrat fundraisers invited Epstein to attend an event, or meet privately with Hakeem Jeffries as part of their 2013 effort to win a majority,” Comer said on the floor of the House, according to the New York Post.

He was referring to an email unearthed in the trove of files released by Congress in recent days.

The email was sent to Epstein by a consultant, who raved about Jeffries and invited the felon to a fundraising dinner that was being held in support of Democrats.

“He is an impressive guy and who will be a progressive voice in New York politics to come,” wrote Lisa Rossi, the consultant. Jeffries was in his first term in Congress at the time.