The internet erupted this week after the House Oversight Committee released thousands of emails connected to billionaire child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Among the trove of documents was one particularly strange exchange between Epstein and his brother Mark, featuring a reference that immediately captured the attention of social media users: an offhand remark about Donald Trump allegedly performing a sexual act on someone identified only as “Bubba.”
The email, sent in March 2018, showed Mark Epstein urging his brother to ask former Trump adviser Steve Bannon whether Russian President Vladimir Putin “has the photos of Trump blowing Bubba.” Jeffrey Epstein responded dryly: “and i thought- I had tsuris,” invoking the Yiddish word for “troubles.”
Once the email hit the public sphere, the internet had a field day. The term “Bubba” is long associated with former President Bill Clinton, who, like Trump, had known ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
That connection sent social media into overdrive, spawning jokes, memes, and half-serious theories about what (or who) the cryptic reference could be referring to. Users debated whether the line was a serious allegation, a coded message, or simply two brothers engaging in dark humor.
Emails between Epstein and his brother reference Trump and "Bubba", which many believe could refer to Bill Clinton. Credit: Aaron P. Bernstein / Getty Images.
Mark Epstein Insists “Bubba” Is Not Bill Clinton
Amid the uproar, Mark Epstein issued a public statement attempting to tamp down the swirling speculation. His response, shared online Saturday by Business Insider’s Jacob Shamsian, asserted that the email exchange had been misinterpreted and that internet theories tying the remark to Bill Clinton were entirely misplaced.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the reference to ‘Bubba’ in this correspondence is not, in any way, a reference to former President Bill Clinton,” the statement read.
Mark described the messages as “simply part of a humorous private exchange between two brothers”, insisting that any attempts to tie the joke to Clinton “misrepresent both the purpose and the tone of the original correspondence”.
His clarification, however, only shut down one theory while leaving plenty of room for continued guessing. Mark Epstein did not identify who “Bubba” actually referred to, allowing speculation to continue circulating online without any definitive answer.
Public Reaction Fuels Ongoing Questions About Epstein’s Network
Even with Mark Epstein’s statement, the conversation has hardly slowed. The release of the emails has become a major online talking point, reigniting interest in the wider network of powerful individuals who crossed paths with Jeffrey Epstein. The bizarre exchange about “Bubba” added fuel to the fire, becoming one of the most widely discussed elements of the newly-released documents.
Some users treated the exchange as nothing more than a private joke between siblings, while others viewed it as potentially significant in understanding Epstein’s connections and the rumors surrounding his influence. With Mark Epstein declining to clarify the identity behind the nickname, the mystery remains unsolved.
As more material from the Epstein archives continues to emerge, online speculation shows no sign of slowing down, and the question of who “Bubba” truly is remains as open (and as intriguing) as ever.