Latest news with #JeffreyEpsteinHoax
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Loomer: Epstein threatens to ‘consume' Trump presidency
Right-wing activist Laura Loomer, a longtime ally of President Trump's, said in a new interview she's concerned the federal government's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case could threaten to 'consume' the president's second term. In an interview Wednesday with Politico, Loomer compared the latest intrigue to the media's fascination with Russia during the president's first term in office. 'I don't want it to consume his presidency,' she said. She noted there are key differences between the Russia story nearly a decade ago and the case involving the late financier and convicted sex offender. 'Obviously, this is not a complete hoax given the fact that Ghislaine Maxwell is currently serving 20 years in prison in Florida for her crimes and activities with Jeffrey Epstein, who we know is a convicted sexual predator,' she said. 'This is why I said, and I'll reiterate it again, the best thing that the president can do is appoint a special counsel to handle the Epstein files investigation,' she continued. Loomer, who has bashed Attorney General Pam Bondi for her handling of the Epstein documents, previously told Politico's Playbook newsletter that a special counsel should be appointed 'so that people can feel like this issue is being investigated, and perhaps take it out of [Bondi's] hands, because I don't think that she has been transparent or done a good job handling this issue.' A number of prominent Trump supporters, including members of Congress, have similarly called for the administration to release more information around the Epstein files, and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) has joined Loomer's call for a special counsel. The Justice Department and FBI issued a joint memo last week that said Epstein did not have a client list and confirmed he died by suicide — not due to foul play as many suspected — in his New York City jail cell in 2019. The findings incensed members of the MAGA movement, who have for years pushed conspiracy theories about Epstein's death and claims that prominent Democrats would be named on a client list. But Trump has pushed back against the criticism and on Wednesday wrote a lengthy Truth Social post, in which he dismissed the uproar over the Epstein files as a 'scam' perpetuated by Democrats and suggested he no longer welcomed his backers who have called for more transparency around the documents. 'Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this 'bulls‑‑‑,' hook, line, and sinker,' Trump posted. 'They haven't learned their lesson, and probably never will, even after being conned by the Lunatic Left for 8 long years. 'I have had more success in 6 months than perhaps any President in our Country's history, and all these people want to talk about, with strong prodding by the Fake News and the success starved Dems, is the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax,' Trump continued. 'Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work, don't even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don't want their support anymore!' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
MAGA supporters Trump is calling 'weaklings' over Jeffrey Epstein files: Here's a list
President Donald Trump appears at odds with some of his supporters over files on the late sex predator Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein was a Palm Beach resident and convicted sex offender who died while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019. Trump had long accused the Biden administration of hiding a list of Epstein clients. In March, Attorney General Pam Bondi said she had a "truckload" of Epstein files to review and potentially release. On July 7, Bondi's Justice Department said that there was no "client list" and that no further disclosure was needed. The move prompted an outcry for more transparency among Republicans, even as Trump appeared to downplay it as old news. His apparent frustration over the matter reached a new high in a July 16 Truth Social Post. "(Democrats') new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this 'bulls***,' hook, line, and sinker," Trump wrote. "Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work, don't even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don't want their support anymore!" Trump later said the DOJ should release "credible" records related to Epstein, according to a White House pool report. Which Republicans have called for more transparency on the Epstein files? Since Bondi's memo, here are some prominent Republicans who have spoken out against the Trump administration with calls to release the files: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson called for more transparency on the matter. Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump also called for more transparency. Rep. Mike Lee, R-Utah, called for Ghislaine Maxwell to testify to Congress on Benny Johnson's podcast, "The Benny Show." Charlie Kirk, the head of Turning Point USA, listed 10 things he thinks should be done about the files and witnesses. Rep. Lauren Boebert said, "no one is satisfied with what has been received of lack thereof," on "The Benny Show." House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer said, "people want to see accountability," on "The Benny Show." Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky, cosponsored a petition to force a House vote on releasing the files. House Democrats have also introduced legislative measures to release the Epstein files. What was Epstein convicted of? Epstein never sat for trial, but he pleaded guilty to solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of a minor for prostitution in 2008 in Florida. He was also a registered sex offender. He died in 2019, before he could be tried for sex trafficking charges in New York. He was found hanged in a Manhattan jail cell, and the medical examiner ruled it a suicide. When was Epstein caught and first charged? A police investigation into Epstein began in March 2005 after a woman from Palm Beach County said her 14-year-old step-daughter had been molested by a wealthy man. In July 2006, Epstein was indicted by a grand jury on a felony charge of soliciting prostitution, which did not address the 14-year-old victim's age. He was arrested and spent one night in Palm Beach County jail, released the next day on $3,000 bond. The Palm Beach Post sued in 2019 to make public those grand jury transcripts after learning in an investigation that then-Palm Beach County State Attorney Barry Krischer had tanked his own case. When the documents were released in July 2024, they showed prosecutors questioning the only two victims to testify about matters such as what kind panties and bra they wore and even worse, calling them prostitutes and asking whether they knew they had committed a crime. Epstein signed a non-prosecution agreement that was called the "deal of the century." He pleaded guilty in 2008 to solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of a minor for prostitution. He was sentenced to 18 months in jail, where he was allowed work leave privileges six days a week/12 hours a day. He served 13 months. When he was released from jail, he spent a year on house arrest but was allowed to travel anywhere so long as he returned in 24 hours. What is the president up to? Is Donald Trump in the Epstein files? Trump has already appeared in legal documents concerning Epstein's crimes but never in a way that implicates him. In the 1990s, Trump rode on aircraft owned by Epstein, according to flight logs released in two lawsuits. But that was 30-plus years ago. In Palm Beach County state attorney documents, an image of a message pad communication seized in a Palm Beach police search appeared, but there is nothing more than Trump's name and a phone number. Contributing: Aysha Bagchi, Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY Kinsey Crowley is the Trump Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at kcrowley@ Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @ This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: MAGA supporters Donald Trump called 'weaklings' over Jeffrey Epstein files Solve the daily Crossword
Axios
a day ago
- Politics
- Axios
What we know about Trump's relationship with Epstein
President Trump and his allies have bashed Thursday's Wall Street Journal report alleging a "bawdy" birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein bearing Trump's name. The big picture: Amid the headline-grabbing fallout from the Trump administration's conclusion that there was no evidence of an "incriminating 'client list'" of Epstein's, the president's past ties to the disgraced financier have come under renewed scrutiny this month. Trump told reporters in 2019 he and Epstein had a "falling out" and hadn't spoken in 15 years. Now, the president says in a Truth Social post he will be suing the WSJ over what he calls "a false, malicious, and defamatory story" about a note that allegedly included the words, "A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret." Context: Trump spoke fondly of Epstein for a 2002 article, saying he'd known him for over a decade. But several years later, he said the two had a falling out. The president repeatedly dismissed the recent outrage over the notorious sex offender's case, slamming what he has described as the "Jeffrey Epstein Hoax." But the controversy has rattled members of the MAGA world and spilled over onto Capitol Hill. "It's all been a big hoax," he said Thursday. "It's perpetrated by the Democrats, and some stupid Republicans and foolish Republicans fall into the net, and so they try and do the Democrats' work." The latest: On Thursday, he directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to ask a court to release all relevant grand jury testimony in Epstein's case, writing, "[t]his SCAM, perpetuated by the Democrats, should end, right now!" As noted in a Washington Post analysis of public records pertaining to Epstein, there is "no public evidence of inappropriate behavior by Trump related to Epstein." Here is a timeline of what we know about the relationship between the two men: '80s, '90s and early 2000s: A "terrific guy" Trump, speaking to New York Magazine for a story published October 28, 2002, described Epstein as a "Terrific guy" he'd known for 15 years. "He's a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life," he told the publication. Flashback: In 1992, Trump threw a party at Mar-a-Lago, with a guest list that included NFL cheerleaders and Epstein, per the Washington Post. NBC in 2019 aired footage from its archives of the two men socializing at the event, noting it was taken more than a decade before Epstein pleaded guilty to prostitution charges in Florida. The two appeared in photos together multiple times. In 2000, The Washington Post reported, Trump, Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein and the future first lady were photographed together at Mar-a-Lago. Trump's name reportedly appeared seven times in Epstein's flight logs throughout the 1990s, according to evidence released during Maxwell's trial (though his was not the only prominent name in the logs). 2004: A property fight In 2004, according to a detailed 2019 report from The Washington Post, Trump and Epstein went head-to-head over an oceanfront Palm Beach mansion. Trump ultimately outbid him. As noted by the Post, it was unclear whether the two were in contact after the property face-off. In March 2005, police were alerted that a teen girl had allegedly been paid to massage Epstein. He was indicted in 2006 and pleaded guilty to two felony charges. 2019: Trump says he hasn't spoken to Epstein in 15 years After Epstein was arrested and charged in 2019, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office during his first term that he wasn't a "fan" of Epstein. "He was a fixture in Palm Beach. I had a falling out with him a long time ago. I don't think I've spoken to him for 15 years. I wasn't a fan." After Epstein died in 2019, Trump elevated a conspiracy theory on social media falsely linking the Clintons to his death. Following his controversial retweets, Trump told reporters he wanted a "full investigation." July 2020: Trump wishes Maxwell "well" Trump said in a 2020 press briefing that he hadn't been following Maxwell's case "too much." "I just wish her well, frankly," he said. "I've met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach." Feb. 2025: DOJ releases more Epstein documents with few new details After Trump returned to the White House in 2025, his Department of Justice released more than 100 pages of documents related to Epstein. The DOJ said Attorney General Pam Bondi had tasked FBI Director Kash Patel with investigating why the "request for all documents was not followed." July 2025: Trump admin faces MAGA rift The Justice Department and FBI concluded in a memo reported on by Axios in early July that they had no evidence Epstein blackmailed powerful figures, kept a "client list," or was murdered. As scrutiny built, the president urged his base not to "waste [t]ime" over Epstein, "somebody that nobody cares about." On July 16, he disavowed"PAST supporters" who bought into the "Jeffrey Epstein Hoax." Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office Thursday, he said people talking about the "Epstein hoax" are "really doing the Democrats' work" and are "stupid." The following day, the Journal's report dropped.
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Why is Trump so mad about the Epstein story?
So now President Trump is calling the Jeffrey Epstein story a 'hoax.' And — big surprise — he's blaming Democrats and their allies in the media for keeping it alive. He recently took to Truth Social to let us in on a little secret: 'Scams and Hoaxes are all the Democrats are good at … Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this 'bulls—,' hook, line, and sinker. They haven't learned their lesson, and probably never will, even after being conned by the Lunatic Left for 8 long years.' What's eating the president? Why so angry at folks who just want to keep the Epstein story alive? Maybe it's because when people are talking about Epstein, they're not talking about all of Trump's 'unprecedented success' since he was reelected. 'I have had more success in 6 months than perhaps any President in our Country's history,' Trump claimed, before lamenting that 'all these people want to talk about … is the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax.' And here comes the kicker: If his longtime supporters can't let it go, then he doesn't want their support anymore. Trump tossing MAGA overboard? I know — it sounds like satire, but this is real life. 'Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats' work,' he said. 'Don't even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don't want their support anymore!' Right. But before we throw every Epstein conspiracy into the 'Democrat hoax' basket, let's consider a few inconvenient details that Trump conveniently left out. For one, some of the loudest voices hyping the Epstein scandal were inside the Trump camp. The president himself, his vice president, his attorney general, his FBI director — all of them leaned into the Epstein story when it served their agenda. As former federal prosecutor Ankush Khardori wrote in Politico, 'Some of these officials, perhaps all of them, knew that there was no elaborate government conspiracy or cover-up surrounding Epstein's crimes or his death, but they intentionally misled millions of Americans for years to make money, get Trump back in the White House, or both. And now that they're in office, they're dealing with the mess they made.' That's one possibility. Another is that there really is a list — one with names Trump doesn't want the public to see. Could there be a cover up? And if so, who's being protected? The president himself? Or perhaps, as Khardori also suggests, the Trump team believed their own hype. They bought into the conspiracies they peddled and are only now realizing there is no Epstein 'client list,' no evidence of blackmail, no smoking gun. Just smoke. So, let's recap: There's a list, or there isn't. Trump's people lied, or they didn't. They knew what they were doing, or they were duped like everyone else. Clear as mud? For the record, I never had much appetite for the Epstein story — except for one question that barely anyone asked: Where were the parents of all those underage girls? The ones boarding private jets to fly off to a Caribbean island to have sex with adult men they didn't know? Don't misunderstand me — those men are responsible for their actions. But how did this all go on for so long without a single parent asking, 'Hey, where's my daughter?' Now, back to the big question. If there were a client list filled with prominent Republicans, do you honestly believe President Joe Biden wouldn't have made it public during his four years in office? And if the list were full of Democrats, Trump would have turned it into a campaign bumper sticker. Which brings us to the obvious: There probably is no list. There never was. Trump and company pushed the Epstein story because they knew the MAGA base wanted it to be true. They wanted to believe powerful Democrats were implicated. And now, the people who fed that narrative are stuck cleaning up the mess they made. So will Trump's most devoted followers do what he's now demanding — drop the Epstein story and move on? In the past, when Trump told MAGA to jump, the only question was, 'how high?' But something has changed. Many MAGA loyalists are refusing to budge. They want answers. They're not ready to pretend the whole story was cooked up by left-wing media. Of course, they won't blame Trump for any of this. That's a bridge too far for true believers who think the man walks on water. But Attorney General Pam Bondi? She might not be so lucky. Trump, as always, is probably waiting for the next shiny object — a fresh distraction to steer everyone's attention away from Epstein and back to where he wants it. And liberal journalists? They'll ride the Epstein train for as long as it's hurting Trump with his own base. Eventually, they'll move on — either when the story stops pulling ratings or when the next scandal drops. Stay tuned.
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
The government does have an Epstein list — here's the proof
Out of all the things President Trump has done, I would never have imagined it would be the late Jeffrey Epstein that finally dented his political armor and turned his conspiracy-minded base against him. I confess I feel a little cheap writing about this. So I have to remind myself that this is really the opposite of a conspiracy theory. And just so I don't keep you in suspense, there is a list of clients related to the billionaire sex offender's underage trafficking charges, and its existence is a matter of public record. For those of you lucky enough not to know all the details already, Trump has been talking up Epstein conspiracy theories for years. His base is now hooked on the idea that the case files contain a huge amount of mud-slingable dirt on the rich and famous. During the 2024 campaign, Trump promised to make the files public and, in February, he even held a public event at the White House to release the ' first phase ' of the information. Attorney General Pam Bondi — the official Trump tasked with the release — when asked about the Epstein client list and when it would be released, responded, 'It's sitting on my desk right now.' Now, suddenly, Trump and Bondi are telling everyone to move along, there is nothing to see here. In a memo closing the case, released on Sunday of the July 4 holiday weekend, Bondi said there was no so-called 'client list,' that no more information would be released, and that the case was closed. Trump's subsequent reactions have been equally inexplicable. He has gone from promising his followers amazing things to shouting at them for asking questions. He even published a post on Truth Social 'firing' his supporters for refusing to drop the inquiry. 'Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this 'bulls—,' hook, line, and sinker,' the president posted Wednesday. 'Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work, don't even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don't want their support anymore!' Trump is also now claiming that Barack Obama and James Comey ' made up' the Epstein files. That's complete nonsense. Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019, and his New York mansion was raided on the same day. Obama had been out of office for more than two years, and Trump himself was president — the same president, in fact, who had fired Comey on May 9, 2017, for his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election on Trump's behalf. If Trump believes Obama and Comey had anything to do with the Epstein files, he's an idiot. If Trump believes his supporters will buy this excuse, then he thinks they are. We know that Bondi's carefully crafted memo claiming that there is no Epstein 'client list' — the quotation marks are in the memo— is also nonsense. There might not have been a 'client list' in the FBI's Epstein files, but the FBI certainly has compiled a list of clients. When the FBI raided Epstein's New York mansion, they seized a vast amount of material. In a court memo filed on July 8, 2019, two days after his arrest, the Department of Justice outlined some of the evidence they had seized. This included stacks of compact disks labeled 'Young [Name] + [Name].' In short, Epstein kept a carefully curated library of videos showing various people having sex with underage women. Even if Epstein was not actively blackmailing anyone, he sure seems he had plenty of insurance at the ready. But that's not the only reason Bondi's claim is nonsense. There's also the question of math. Bondi admits that 'Epstein harmed over one thousand victims.' But we also know that, once a part of Epstein's 'system,' his victims were trafficked several times. Virginia Giuffre, for example, described being sexually trafficked multiple times over two years in New York, Palm Beach, the U.S. Virgin Islands and London. Let's say that each victim was involved, on average, in five incidents. That's over 5,000 sexual encounters. It's safe to assume this wasn't all Epstein. And with over a thousand victims to interview and piles of DVDs labeled with perpetrators' names, the FBI and Pam Bondi know exactly who was involved. So the question remains: Why has Trump suddenly turned on his followers on this issue and gone from being a champion of transparency to engaging in one of the clumsiest coverups in American political history? Why is Trump willing to die on the Epstein hill? Make no mistake, Trump has a lot to lose from protecting Epstein's clients. His base is furious. If nothing else, he's now going to get booed at his own rallies. It's even likely to be a potent issue in the 2026 midterms. House Democrats are already pushing Republicans to subpoena witnesses. You can almost hear them now — 'Give us control of Congress and we'll conduct proper hearings and get to the bottom of the Epstein mess!' I can only assume that Bondi discovered something in the Epstein evidence that is much more dangerous for Trump than the wrath of his base. I'd be surprised if it's evidence that Trump himself was one of Epstein's clients. Having sex with a 14-year-old at a friend's house is the kind of thing you would remember — if Trump knew he might be 'on the list,' I doubt if he would have made so many promises to release the information. Nonetheless, something in those files has Trump running scared in a way he never has before. Does someone on the Epstein list have some sort of hold over Trump? I won't speculate — I'm just asking questions.
