Donald Trump and many of his supporters want the Epstein Files controversy to disappear into the ether.
I have bad news for you: it is not going to happen, and that is mainly because the Trump team led everybody to believe that there was a "there" there, and now they are insisting that there isn't.
If it's all a hoax what was the point of the binders? pic.twitter.com/JU4fY72NOo
— Being Libertarian (@beinlibertarian) July 16, 2025
There are several reasons to want the issue to fade into the background, and even plausible reasons why the Justice Department might believe it is barred from releasing more information than it already has.
You are in charge of the US government.
— Cynical Publius (@CynicalPublius) July 16, 2025
You have a "list" of names.
The "list" is of uncertain provenance and may in fact be a fabrication created by your enemies.
The "list" suggests that certain influential Americans and international world leaders were engaged in the most…
You are in charge of the US government.
You have a "list" of names.
The "list" is of uncertain provenance and may in fact be a fabrication created by your enemies.
The "list" suggests that certain influential Americans and international world leaders were engaged in the most heinous crimes imaginable.
However, despite the existence of the "list," there is zero evidence to support any grand jury indictments.
You are a rational, logical person and are not controlled by emotion.
Hundreds of rabid paid "influencers" on X are demanding the public release of the "list."
Publicly releasing the "list" will wreck the reputations of many powerful people (without any evidence of any crimes) and leave open the specter of substantial defamation claims.
What do you do?
And Trump supporters are correct that in no rational world, given the myriad issues Trump is dealing with, the Epstein case should be issue #1 in Washington or the country as a whole. And, in fact, the case doesn't rank high with most people in importance.
Trump ranting about the "Epstein Hoax" while sitting next to the Crown Prince of Bahrain is the content we all crave. Notice Trump doesn't even bother to feign sympathy for the "victims" -- he just calls it a hoax, and tells Republicans worried about Epstein that they're "stupid" pic.twitter.com/ICF31HTgAB
— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) July 16, 2025
Yes, but... It has been 10 days since the soft release of a mealy-mouthed, unsigned memo closing the Epstein case, and the issue persists. I just spent half an hour on a national podcast, much of which revolved around the controversy, and my X feed is still filled with commentary and frustration.
BREAKING: Roughly two-thirds of every political category - 68% of Democrats, 66% of Republicans and 69% of unaffiliated voters - reject the idea that the Epstein case is closed and instead believe that there are dozens of powerful and wealthy offenders who need to face justice. https://t.co/218WFAeaqq
— Rasmussen Reports (@Rasmussen_Poll) July 15, 2025
President Trump has now spoken out several times, both on camera and online, asking people to give it up and even suggesting that people who still care about it were "PAST supporters." He is implying that you cannot support Trump and still want to see the Epstein files.
This is insane. Trump is calling Epstein the "Jeffrey Epstein Hoax"....
— Natalie F Danelishen (@Chesschick01) July 16, 2025
Epstein was sex trafficking children. That was NOT a hoax. Trump wants this to go away. Why? This is disgusting behavior. pic.twitter.com/fNIVh36vhP
Unfortunately for Trump, many of his supporters do care about the Epstein case, and one of the reasons they do is that Trump campaigned on releasing them, and early in his term, he made a big deal about releasing them. Pam Bondi engineered a production along with social media influencers, emphasizing the administration's transparency.
Now? It's boring. Nothing to see there at all, and if you think there is you are a bad person.
Then let's let the people decide. RT if you support my bill to protect the victims and release the Epstein Files. https://t.co/5f3vsaI6IN pic.twitter.com/PSRvbr1zk9
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) July 16, 2025
Even his own daughter-in-law has suggested that more has to come out, and many of his supporters in Congress want to see more as well, if for no other reason than that their constituents are angry that they are not able to.
BREAKING 🚨 Lara Trump said the Trump admin will release more Epstein evidence and there WILL BE more Transparency 🔥
— MAGA Voice (@MAGAVoice) July 14, 2025
"Hes going to set things right. I believe there will be more coming… they hear it and understand it”
DO IT FOR THE CHILDREN ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Q6pCsuu46P
Speaker Johnson knows that this issue isn't going away, and the Democrats in Congress are making Republicans take very painful votes on the issue--reinforcing the idea that there is a coverup.
🚨BREAKING EXCLUSIVE: Speaker Mike Johnson says he supports Ghislaine Maxwell testifying to Congress and demands the DOJ release everything they have on Epstein:
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 15, 2025
"I’m for transparency. We should put everything out there and let the people decide. Pam Bondi needs to come forward… pic.twitter.com/diB5cDQmAk
"I’m for transparency. We should put everything out there and let the people decide. Pam Bondi needs to come forward and explain it to the American people. Let's get this thing resolved."
The people arguing that we should stop discussing Epstein because the issue distracts from more pressing issues we need to address right now have a point, but they miss the mark on the solution.
Trump has decided suddenly, after years of saying the opposite, that the Epstein files are a hoax, boring, they don't matter, and anyone who talks about them is a "bad person" and a weakling. He's entitled to his opinion. But the idea that conservatives are obligated to also…
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) July 16, 2025
Yes, the Epstein case is a distraction. Yes, Trump has more important issues on his plate. And yes, going after the Deep State hoaxers who invented the Russia Collusion hoax needs to be rooted out and punished.
But unless Trump and company deal with this issue, it will be harder for them to deal with any of these others.
IF You have committed horrible sex crimes with Epstein, you are in the clear!
— James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) July 16, 2025
If you manufacture a vaccine you say injures, you are in the clear!
If you are an American journalist, you will be raided by the FBI and spend millions enriching lawyers and see this
This is America! pic.twitter.com/Ivtq1Ks51c
The Epstein case is so riveting to many people in MAGA because it seems to exemplify the two-tier system of justice in America. The rich and powerful can get away with anything, and the rest of us are their playthings. Trump's team, during the campaign and early on in his term, played this theme up, and now they are calling others nuts for believing them.
🚨 MEGYN KELLY: "I blame PAM BONDI."
— The Patriot Oasis™ (@ThePatriotOasis) July 12, 2025
"I was fine with her nomination, she's been loyal...but she’s the reason things are unraveling around this story."
Fire Pam Bondi immediately. pic.twitter.com/HEanDPUB9P
There are all sorts of reasons why getting this issue off the front pages and social media is crucial for Trump to stay on track, but denying its importance is not going to work. Attacking anybody who is angry that a key Trump promise has been swept away is not smart politics.
If there are good reasons why nothing more can be released, then hold a press conference and answer every single question about why that is.
RASMUSSEN POLLSTER: “Only 21% of Americans think that Jeffrey Epstein k*lled himself. That’s less than [the number of people who] believe in space aliens.” pic.twitter.com/ka2mbdCTvX
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) July 14, 2025
When Megyn Kelly and Charlie Kirk are discussing the case in front of 7,000 people, all of whom say they want more information, you have a problem. Turning Point USA is not filled with Democrats--these are Trump's people. He simply can't call them PAST supporters and expect them to fall in line.
This looks bad, and if the Democrats had pulled this, Republicans would be screaming, and rightly so. It looks corrupt.
It may not turn out to be so, but in politics, the optics matter.
