Why the rumour of the Epstein client list won't die

Telegraph

6 hours ago

Elon Musk had clearly kept his parting shot in reserve, ready to deploy when relations with the president soured. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: Donald Trump is in the Epstein files,' the Tesla owner wrote in a since-deleted X post amid his dramatic falling out with Trump in June. 'That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!'
To a significant sub-section of the Maga machine, this was the equivalent of a red rag to a bull. Musk's allegation, which he later rowed back on, is that Donald Trump is one of a litany of VIPs named in a supposed list of clients kept by the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein (and used to blackmail co-conspirators).
The claim poured fuel on the fire of rumours that have swirled ever since Epstein died by suicide in his prison cell in Manhattan in August 2019, awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. That conjecture speculates that Epstein's death was not a suicide, but a homicide, and that he harboured a secret list of government officials, celebrities and business figures, who also abused his teenage victims.
The so-called 'client list' has become the subject of particularly fevered speculation among parts of Trump's base, not least because the president and a string of senior figures in his administration, have indulged the idea of its existence and repeatedly promised to make public as of yet unreleased files related to Epstein.
Ultimately, Musk's allegation failed to land as intended – the president survived relatively unscathed. But now, in the wake of new findings from the FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ), which refute the idea such a list ever existed, Trump finds himself in a political minefield after all.
The president is facing a Maga backlash after investigators from the two agencies concluded there is 'no credible evidence' any such client list exists, and ruled out any probe into 'uncharged third parties'.
A joint two-page memo, first obtained by US news website Axios, said that 'no further disclosure is appropriate or warranted'. The investigation also found no evidence that someone entered the area of the Manhattan prison where Epstein was kept on the night he died, seemingly dispelling the theory that he was murdered.
While these conclusions should have put paid to the Epstein theories, they have in fact had the opposite effect, ramping up the speculation.
Some have claimed, without providing any supporting evidence, that the US federal government is partaking in a cover up aimed at protecting a cabal of powerful sex offenders.
Musk himself was quick to weigh in, saying the findings were the 'the final straw'. He shared a meme depicting a clown applying make-up, designed to mock the Trump-appointed US attorney general, Pamela Bondi who, just months earlier, had said the so-called client list was on her desk.
🤬 pic.twitter.com/Oe9jPGoQRR
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 7, 2025
Trump's press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, appeared to backtrack on her behalf on Monday, telling reporters that Bondi was referring to all the investigatory files on the Epstein case, rather than specifically to a list of names.
Leavitt added the administration 'wants anyone who has ever committed a crime to be held accountable.'
On numerous occasions, Trump himself has implied that there are fresh revelations on the Epstein case to come. While campaigning to retake the White House, he said he would have 'no problem' releasing more files related to the disgraced financier and, when asked why a so-called 'list of clients' had not been released to the public, replied that it 'probably' would be should he be re-elected.
His vice-president, JD Vance, has also been vocal on the issue in the past. 'We need to release the Epstein list. That is an important thing,' he said in October 2024.
JD Vance demands transparency on the list of Jeffrey Epstein associates.
Theo Von: "Release the list!"
JD Vance: "Seriously, we need to release the Epstein list. That is an important thing."
Who do you think is on it? pic.twitter.com/BGw9zYwZY6
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) October 23, 2024
Other senior figures in the Trump administration have seemingly fanned the flames of the theories about Epstein too, FBI director Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, among them.
Bonigo, who hosts a popular conservative podcast, has previously gone so far as to suggest Epstein was killed as part of an elaborate cover-up. Since their appointment to the FBI, both have retreated and rowed in behind the official version of events, stating that Epstein died by suicide.
The president and his inner circle, then, appear to be in something of a trap of their own making. 'The Maga movement had a deep prior expectation, set by Trump and others, that there were going to be files released, that there was going to be transparency with the Epstein case,' explains Sander van der Linden, professor of social psychology at the University of Cambridge.
Some documents related to the case have been made public by Trump's administration.
In late February, Bondi announced the release of what she described as 'bombshell' new evidence about Epstein's connections.
But the so-called 'Phase 1' disclosure of the Epstein files proved a flop. A range of Maga influencers and Right-wing political commentators were invited to the White House for a preview of the evidence, much of which, it eventually materialised, was already in the public domain. Dissatisfaction with the event fuelled yet further rumours of a cover-up.
It is unclear when – or whether – 'Phase 2' will be released to the public, as Bondi has previously promised.
Indeed, the DOJ and FBI's memo seemingly sought to curtail any expectations of further disclosure.
'One of our highest priorities is combating child exploitation and bringing justice to victims,' it said. 'Perpetuating unfounded theories about Epstein serves neither of those ends.'
The nature of the case involving Epstein – a high-profile figure with links to an array of politicians, celebrities, and royals, many of whom have already been named in court documents – has meant it is particularly susceptible to speculation, van der Linden says.
'Whenever you have a suspicious death, it's a breeding ground for conspiracy theories,' he says. 'There's the concept of an information void. Where there's a lack of information, people fill it with unverified rumours. When they think about Epstein, they think of a master manipulator, so obviously he had dirt on the 'elites.'
'There are people who strongly believe that Trump is on that list, that there are other prominent politicians on this list, that this is a deep state cover-up, and that its release has been blocked to protect themselves,' he adds.
Indeed, some on the Left have embraced a different variant of the theories surrounding the Epstein list, suggesting that Trump himself is blocking the release of the purported document because he may be personally implicated. Democrats in Congress have sent a letter to Bondi questioning whether the White House is deliberately withholding certain files in an effort to prevent potentially damaging disclosures.
The president had known Epstein for decades prior to his death. In a New York magazine article published in 2002, Trump said: 'I've known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy. 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.' He later distanced himself from Epstein, saying he was 'not a fan'.
'A lot of factors are all tangled up here into one interesting cocktail,' says van der Linden.
Ultimately, Trump now finds himself in a position where the DOJ and FBI's conclusions appear to contradict the position he and a number of his close political allies have taken in the past.
And those supporters who had long since grown frustrated with his administration's handling of the Epstein case are now openly venting their fury.
'Assuming this leaked Epstein files memo is true, then we all know this is a shameful cover-up to protect the most heinous elites,' Rogan O'Handley, a prominent Right-wing influencer known to his two million followers on X as DC Draino, posted on the social media platform. 'We were told multiple times the files would be released and now it looks like backroom deals have been made to keep them hidden.'
Lindell TV, the online outlet of businessman and prominent Trump ally Mike Lindell, was also unsparing in its criticism. 'As trusted voices like [Bongino, Kash and Bondi] align with the official story, many are asking: Who's still willing to demand real answers? Why are so many high-profile names never mentioned? Why seal everything if there's nothing to hide?,' it said on X.
'The DOJ says the case is closed,' the outlet's post continued. 'But for millions of Americans, it's anything but.'