Trump's Plans: Texas, Iran, Ukraine, Tariffs Discussed Before Dinner With Netanyahu
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The Trump administration is stumbling as it seeks to unwind new details about the Jeffrey Epstein case, infuriating its key boosters with a memo concluding the deceased financier was not murdered and did not keep a list of clients. Figures in the Trump administration have long embraced and even promoted various conspiracy theories, including those swirling around Epstein's death. And they've actively courted influencers and voters who have peddled such matters. But the administration's pledges to release details about the case that some have suggested were held back by authorities — only to backtrack and conclude he died by suicide — have failed to satisfy those who fervently believe Epstein was killed to cover up his connections with high-powered figures. Critics say the Trump administration is in a mess of its own making. 'You couldn't try to hurt yourself worse, you couldn't try to discredit the FBI worse than what they've done — Pam Bondi, all of it,' said commentator and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, referring to the attorney general — and nearly coming to tears in a video discussing the matter on Monday morning. 'The current DOJ under Pam Bondi is covering up crimes — very serious crimes, by their own description,' former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said on his show released Tuesday. The interest in the case has dovetailed with Trump's selection of numerous figures who have fanned the flames of intrigue around his death. Vice President Vance has mused about how he 'died mysteriously in a jail,' and referenced Epstein's alleged client list, asking in 2021, 'What possible interest would the US government have in keeping Epstein's clients secret? Oh…' Meanwhile, FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, in his past life as a conservative commentator, fueled speculation about his death, saying 'that Jeffrey Epstein story is a big deal, please do not let that story go. Keep your eye on this.' And at his confirmation hearing, FBI Director Kash Patel vowed to release the Epstein files, saying he would 'make sure the American public knows the full weight of what happened.' Epstein, accused in several cases of sex trafficking young girls, ran in high-powered circles with figures that included President Trump, former President Clinton, Britain's Prince Andrew and a number of other celebrities and ultra-wealthy individuals. His associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, has been convicted of sex trafficking. But while Epstein and Maxwell were accused of abusing the victims themselves, the government did not accuse them of supplying victims for others. The files and evidence under court-ordered seal, the FBI memo released Monday said, 'served only to protect victims and did not expose any additional third-parties to allegations of illegal wrongdoing.' That assertion enraged those convinced that the duo ran an operation trafficking young girls to high-powered elites. 'So Jeffrey Epstein went to jail for trafficking kids to no one…. BS,' Newsmax host Carl Higbie posted on the social platform X. And they bristled at Bondi saying Tuesday she has 'no knowledge' of Epstein being a spy or intelligence agent, with provocateur Laura Loomer fuming: 'This is a lie. FBI documents from 2008 prove that Epstein PROVIDED INFORMATION FOR THE FBI 'AS AGREED UPON,'' though the FBI document Loomer quoted and shared did not say Epstein was an intelligence agent. The quiet rollout of the Monday memo stood in contrast to actions taken by the administration in February, when it invited social media influencers to the White House and gave them binders labeled 'The Epstein Files.' That move sparked backlash because the binders did not contain new revelations, but rather information that has long been public, such as pages from Epstein's address book. And then in May, Bongino changed his tune, telling Fox News the files were conclusive. 'I've seen the whole file. He killed himself,' Bongino said. Officials like Bongino are in the awkward position of backtracking after years of highlighting the case and lobbying for the release of information from the sidelines — riling up their viewers and supporters in the process. Now within the arena, the information on hand doesn't back their assertions — and they also have different considerations they didn't have to weigh when outside of government, such as not accusing people of wrongdoing without bringing charges. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), who is leading a task force in the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on 'Declassification of Federal Secrets,' such as on the assassination of former President Kennedy, called on the administration to do more. 'The American people deserve to know [the] truth [regarding] Epstein, regardless of who it impacts,' she wrote, adding that there is 'plenty of evidence' Bondi and Patel could release without disclosing information about victims. 'The American people should be free to come to their own conclusions. The Truth will always come out one way or another.' Bondi sought to play cleanup Tuesday during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, where she was asked about some of the fresh theories spawned by Monday's memo. She explained a one-minute gap in a video from outside Epstein's prison cell released by the Justice Department, saying it was a standard issue where 'every night the video is reset, and every night should have the same minute missing.' The attorney general defended an interview she did in February in which she said documents were on 'sitting on my desk' to be reviewed related to the Epstein case, asserting she was referring to a variety of files that needed to be reviewed pertaining to Epstein, John F. Kennedy Jr.'s assassination and Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, rather than just simply Epstein's client list. Bondi added that the thousands of hours of video that were part of the Epstein case turned out to be child pornography and would not be released. Trump himself expressed exasperation with the focus on Epstein when it came up during the Cabinet meeting. 'Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? This guy's been talked about for years. You're asking — we have Texas, we have this, we have all of the things. And are people still talking about this guy? This creep? That is unbelievable,' Trump said. One source close to the White House argued Bongino, in particular, has built up significant goodwill with the MAGA movement, giving him more credibility than figures like Bondi when he speaks about the Epstein case. 'If it were anyone other than Dan saying it, I think there would be a lot more distrust with it,' the source said. The source downplayed that the frustration on the right over the administration's handling of the issue could be a political liability. 'I don't think it's going to make people go, 'Oh, well, we're not voting for Republicans in the midterm because of what the DOJ has done,'' the source said. But the incident marks one of the biggest fractures between Trump and his rabid MAGA base — and one they are pledging they will not forget. 'We will continue asking about Epstein,' filmmaker and commentator Mike Cernovich posted in response to Trump scolding a reporter for asking about the disgraced financier. 'Trump is massively misreading his base on this,' conservative commentator Liz Wheeler added.
