Rep. Jasmine Crockett defended her decision to cite donations from “a Jeffrey Epstein” during a House floor speech after CNN host Kaitlan Collins pressed her on-air about the identity of the donor.

Collins questioned why Crockett named Epstein during a debate when the donor she referenced was a different man who shares the same name as the late convicted sex offender.

Crockett appeared on “The Source” shortly after she listed several Republicans she said received contributions from “somebody” named Jeffrey Epstein. She told Collins that her team acted quickly to gather information. “Mitt Romney, the NRCC, Lee Zeldin, George Bush, WinRed, McCain-Palin, Rick Lazio,” she said while recounting the names she found.

Zeldin, now Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, pushed back on X:

 

Crockett said she never intended to suggest the donor was the Epstein tied to sex trafficking cases. Her remarks came during a debate over whether to censure Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands), who previously exchanged texts with the late financier during a 2019 congressional hearing.

Epstein died in 2019 of an apparent suicide while facing sex trafficking charges. He had registered as a sex offender before his death.

Crockett told Collins she did not try to mislead anyone. “Listen, I never said that it was that Jeffrey Epstein,” she said. She argued her team lacked time to research the donor fully. “So my team, what they did is they Googled. And that is specifically why I said, a, Jeffrey Epstein.”

Collins shifted to Plaskett’s messages with Epstein. She asked whether Crockett considered such contact appropriate. Crockett responded by pointing to Republican ties to President Donald Trump. “My deal is this, the Republicans are constantly texting with a 34-count convicted felon,” she said.