President Donald Trump expressed his sympathy for the British monarchy as it tries to douse the scandal surrounding the former Prince Andrew's ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“It’s a terrible thing that’s happened to the family,” Trump told reporters Sunday aboard Air Force One.
Trump was responding to a question about King Charles III's decision last week to effectively banish his brother from the royal family over the saga.
“That’s been a tragic situation, and it’s too bad. I mean, I feel badly for the family,” Trump said.
Trump, who is known to be fond of the royal family, was hosted by Charles for an unprecedented second state visit to the United Kingdom in September.
His comments came as Democrats investigating Epstein intensified their calls for Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, as he is now known, to voluntarily testify before Congress about his links with the disgraced financier.
New emails emerged last week showing Andrew suggested a "catch up" just months after Epstein was released from prison.
That revelation was the kind that Charles may have had in mind with his surprise move last week to strip his younger brother of his princely title and evict him from his royal mansion.
No formal subpoena has been issued in the United States against Andrew, who is also facing calls for further action at home.
The British defense minister said Sunday that Andrew would be stripped of his last remaining military title. John Healey told BBC television that moves were underway to remove Andrew‘s position as a vice admiral in the British navy.
Andrew had kept the rank in 2022 when Queen Elizabeth II stripped him of his royal and military patronages, years after he first stepped back from royal duties.
“This is a move that’s right, it’s a move the king has indicated we should take and we’re working on that at the moment,” Healey said Sunday.
Trump's support for Charles and the wider family comes as the president faces renewed scrutiny over his own ties with Epstein.
The message was later projected onto Windsor Castle alongside photos of Trump and Epstein, in an incident that saw four people arrested ahead of the president’s state visit to Britain. In September, Democrats on the Republican-led House Oversight Committee made public a lewd birthday letter that was signed "Donald" as part of a leather-bound birthday book of messages for Epstein in 2003.
Trump has denied having anything to do with the letter.
