Trump's Scotland visit is 'distraction' from Epstein association, says professor
Fabian Hilfrich, a senior lecturer at the University of Edinburgh, said the visit is 'in Trump's interest' because it will take him away from the United States, where he said the US President's involvement in the Epstein case 'doesn't seem to be going away'.
Less than 24 hours ahead of the US President's visit, the White House downplayed reports that Trump's name appears in Justice Department files about the convicted sex trafficker.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump's Attorney General Pam Bondi told the President that his name appeared in documents related to the Epstein case in May. Getty Images
The White House denies this, saying it is another example of 'fake news stories'.
Trump had previously been friends with Epstein, who was arrested in 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges.
Epstein killed himself in his cell in New York City while awaiting trial.
His former girlfriend, the British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, was later convicted at trial and sentenced to 20 years in prison for sex trafficking, conspiracy and transportation of a minor for illegal sexual activity.
President Trump filed a lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and media mogul Rupert Murdoch a day after the newspaper published a story reporting on ties to wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The newspaper described a sexually suggestive letter that it said bore Trump's name and was included in a 2003 album for Epstein's 50th birthday.
On Thursday, a subcommittee in the US House of Representatives voted to subpoena the Department of Justice for the files relating to the Epstein investigation.
Dr Hilfrich said the question is whether or not the Justice Department will release the files and what they might contain.
He called Trump 'the ultimate Teflon president' – a convicted felon and who has had many cases run against him that have all been dismissed by his base.
However, Dr Hilfrich said the Epstein case feeds into far-right conspiracy theories about historic child abuse rings propagated by some of the President's closest allies.
'Now that there is potential that their own hero is involved or implicated with cases having to do with historic child abuse, it is, for some of them, a bridge too far,' Dr Hilfrich said.
Dr Hilfrich said Trump will spin his Scottish visit as a 'slightly nostalgic, romantic, and certainly business-related trip' to open his newest golf course in Aberdeenshire.
'I think quite broadly, this [visit] is very much at the moment in Trump's interest because it will certainly be nice for him to be away from the US where his involvement in the Epstein case doesn't seem to be going away,' Dr Hilfrich said.
'If he can find any way of distracting from it at the moment, he'll be glad to do so.
'I don't think we can expect any big policy pronouncements or anything like that. Although Trump being Trump, he's always good for a surprise. So we'll have to wait and see.'
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