Republicans Are Breaking With Trump Over Epstein Files, Polls Show
Mr. Trump has long engendered unwavering loyalty from his followers, who tend to shrug off even his most extreme controversies.
But recent public polling suggests even such fervent support may have a limit. While 40 percent of Republicans approve of Mr. Trump's handling of the release of the files on Mr. Epstein, more than a third of them — 36 percent — disapprove, according to a poll from Quinnipiac University. That is perhaps the most intraparty discontent Mr. Trump has experienced as president.
Nearly two thirds of Americans overall disapprove of the Trump administration's handling of the case, according to the Quinnipiac poll.
Indeed, the Epstein files have led to one of the most unified moments in recent political history. According to recent polling from CBS News and YouGov, nearly 90 percent of Americans — including 83 percent of Republicans — think the Department of Justice should release all the information it has regarding the case against Mr. Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while in jail awaiting trial on charges that he had sex-trafficked teenage girls.
These polls were conducted largely before an article in The Wall Street Journal detailed a risqué drawing that Mr. Trump was said to have sent Mr. Epstein decades ago. That article seemed to quell an uprising within Mr. Trump's base over his handling of the files, as he tapped into his supporters' deep mistrust of the mainstream news media. There has been little high-quality polling since the article's publication to assess its impact.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 minutes ago
- Yahoo
EXCLUSIVE: James P. Hoffa on his father's disappearance and legacy
Fox News' Eric Shawn digs deep into the 50-year-old mystery surrounding the vanishing and presumed murder of Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa, and discusses the case an Hoffa's legacy with his son, James P. Hoffa.
Associated Press
13 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Muslim leaders increase security after vandalism reports at Texas and California mosques
After a spate of vandalism reports involving graffiti at a few mosques in Texas and California, Muslim leaders there have stepped up existing efforts to keep their sacred spaces and community members safe. The incidents and subsequent hypervigilance add to what many American Muslims say has already been a charged climate amid the fallout in the U.S. from the Israel-Hamas war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and devastated Gaza. The war started in October 2023 with a deadly attack by Hamas on Israel. 'The past two years have been extremely difficult for American Muslims,' said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, national deputy director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization. A constant stream of images showing the death, destruction and ongoing starvation in Gaza has taken a toll, said Mitchell, as has a rise in anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian bigotry in the U.S. He pointed to one of the most egregious examples of that bigotry: After the war started, an Illinois man killed a 6-year-old Palestinian American Muslim boy and wounded his mother in a hate-crime attack. Worry and frustration The recent vandalism reports have left some worried and frustrated — but not entirely surprised. 'Since October 2023, we've definitely seen rise in Islamophobia,' said Rawand Abdelghani, who is on the board of directors of Nueces Mosque, one of the affected mosques in Austin, Texas. 'Anti-Palestinian, anti-immigrant, all of that rhetoric that's being said … it has contributed to things like this happening.' Nueces security footage showed someone, their face partially covered, spray-painting what appears to be Star of David symbols at the property. CAIR Austin said similar incidents were reported at two other Austin mosques. They all seemingly happened on the same night in May, in what the group described as part of 'a disturbing pattern of hate-motivated incidents.' It called for increased security patrols and protective measures. Shaimaa Zayan, CAIR Austin operations manager, called them an intimidation attempt. Less than two weeks earlier, someone had spray-painted graffiti at the Islamic Center of Southern California, including the Star of David on an outer wall there, center spokesperson Omar Ricci said. 'In light of what's going on within Palestine and the genocide in Gaza, it felt like an attack,' said Ricci, who's also a reserve Los Angeles Police Department officer. Some specifics remained unresolved. The LAPD said it opened a vandalism/hate crime investigation and added extra patrols, but added it has neither a suspect nor a motive and noted that nonreligious spaces were also targeted. The Austin Police Department did not respond to Associated Press inquiries. Nueces had already increased its security camera use following three incidents last year, including someone throwing rocks at the mosque, Abdelghani said. After the May vandalism, it also added overnight security, she added. Nueces serves many university students and is considered a 'home away from home,' Abdelghani said. It's where they learn about their faith, meet other Muslims and find refuge, including during tense times, like when some students got arrested amid campus protests last year, she added. CAIR says that in 2024, its offices nationwide received 8,658 complaints, the highest number it has recorded since its first civil rights report in 1996. It listed employment discrimination as the most common in 2024. The group says last year, U.S. Muslims, along with others of different backgrounds, 'were targeted due to their anti-genocide … viewpoints.' Referencing former President Joe Biden, the CAIR report said that for 'the second year in a row, the Biden-backed Gaza genocide drove a wave of Islamophobia in the United States.' Israel has strongly rejected allegations it's committing genocide in Gaza, where its war with Hamas has killed more than 59,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. The initial Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, killed some 1,200 people, while about 250 were abducted. Tensions in multiple spaces The war has fueled tensions in myriad U.S. settings. After it started, Muslim and Jewish civil rights groups reported a surge of harassment, bias and physical assaults reports against their community members. Pew Research Center in February 2024 found that 70% of U.S. Muslims and nearly 90% of U.S. Jews surveyed say they felt an increase in discrimination against their respective communities since the war began. More recently, leaders of U.S. Jewish institutions have called for more help with security after a firebomb attack in Colorado on demonstrators showing support for Israeli hostages in Gaza that left one person killed and others injured, as well as a fatal shooting of two Israeli Embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C. Politically, the conflict loomed over last year's presidential election, leaving many pro-Palestinian U.S. voters feeling ignored by their own government's support for Israel. It has roiled campuses and sparked debates over free speech and where political rhetoric crosses into harassment and discrimination. There've been bitter disagreements, including among some Jewish Americans, about exactly what the definition of antisemitism should cover, and whether certain criticism of Israeli policies and Zionism should be included. That debate further intensified as President Donald Trump's administration sought to deport some foreign-born pro-Palestinian campus activists. The Islamic Center of Southern California has been targeted before, including vandalism in 2023 and separate threats that authorities said in 2016 were made by a man who was found with multiple weapons in his home. Incidents like the latest one cause concern, Ricci said. 'People see that it's not going to take very much to spark something in the city,' he said. 'There's a lot of emotion. There's a lot of passion' on both the pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli sides. Salam Al-Marayati, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, said 'if people think they can get away with graffiti, then the next step is to firebomb a mosque or even go attack worshippers.' Opening doors and receiving support Al-Marayati and others praised how many have shown support for the affected Muslim communities. 'The best preparation is what we did in Los Angeles and that's to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our allies and be there for one another,' he said. In Texas, a gathering at Nueces brought together neighbors and others, including Christians and Jews, to paint over the vandalism, clean up the property and garden, Zayan said. 'It was beautiful,' she said. 'It's really important to open your doors and open your heart and invite people and to rebuild this trust and connection,' she said. 'For non-Muslims, it was a great opportunity for them to show their love and support. They really wanted to do something.' ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Newsweek
14 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Donald Trump Hit By Legal Roadblock
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Trump administration suffered a legal blow on Friday when a New York district court judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking its move to cut National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grants from Authors Guild members on First Amendment grounds. Judge Colleen McMahon issued the injunction which is expected to remain in place until the case is heard in full. Newsweek contacted the NEH and President Trump, via the White House press office, for comment on Saturday outside of regular office hours. The Context With Republicans enjoying slim majorities in both the Senate and House in addition to their control over the White House, the courts have emerged as one of the chief impediments to Trump administration policy. In recent months, courts have struck down punitive measures introduced by President Trump against legal firms previously involved in cases against him, blocked a bid to strip thousands of Haitian migrants of legal protection and struck down sanctions aimed at International Criminal Court employees. What To Know Judge McMahon's preliminary injunction prevents funds previously awarded to Authors Guild members, and subsequently removed by the Trump administration, from being reallocated until a trial is held on the merits of the case itself. The money was allocated by the NEH, a federal agency that funds research and education across the humanities, before some was stripped back by the Trump administration. President Donald Trump speaking to the media as he arrives at Glasgow Prestwick Airport on July 25, 2025 in Prestwick, Scotland, UK. President Donald Trump speaking to the media as he arrives at Glasgow Prestwick Airport on July 25, 2025 in Prestwick, Scotland, UK. Andrew Harnik/GETTY McMahon ruled much of this was politically motivated, with Termination Notices handed to intended recipients making reference to Trump Executive Orders targeting "DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] programs" and "Radical Indoctrination." She said a grant to one academic working on a book about the history of the Ku Klux Klan was flagged by the administration as being connected to DEI, while other intended recipients had grants withdrawn because they were issued under the Biden administration. A class-action lawsuit was filed by the Authors Guild against the NEH and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), formerly led by Elon Musk. What People Are Saying In her judgment McMahon said: "Defendants terminated the grants based on the recipients' perceived viewpoint, in an effort to drive such views out of the marketplace of ideas. This is most evident by the citation in the Termination Notices to executive orders purporting to combat 'Radical Indoctrination' and 'Radical' … DEI Programs,' and to further 'Biological Truth.'" She continued: "Far be it from this Court to deny the right of the Administration to focus NEH priorities on American history and exceptionalism as the year of our semiquincentennial approaches. "Such refocusing is ordinarily a matter of agency discretion. But agency discretion does not include discretion to violate the First Amendment. Nor does not give the Government the right to edit history." What Happens Next A trial on whether the Trump administration has the authority to strip NEH grants from Authors Guild members as it did is expected to take place in due course.
