Topline
President Donald Trump on Tuesday said “it’s time” for the Justice Department “to go after people” and accused former President Barack Obama of treason, among a series of moves widely viewed as efforts to distract from the Epstein backlash.
President Donald Trump calls on a reporter during a meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand ... More
Trump said “I don’t follow it too much” when asked Tuesday about the Epstein backlash, and claimed he “didn’t know” about the Justice Department’s announcement earlier in the day that it would seek an interview with Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell.
Trump said the public should instead focus on findings from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard released Friday claiming Democrats includingObama staged a “yearslong coup” to manufacture Russian interference in the 2016 election she claims didn’t exist, contradicting bipartisan findings.
Among other apparent Epstein deflection efforts: On Monday, the Justice Department released files related to its probe into the death of Martin Luther King Jr. and said it had amended findings in its probe of Hillary Clinton’s private email server.
Trump on Sunday went on a Truth Social posting spree that did not mention the Epstein documents controversy, but touched on several issues that appeal to his base, including artificial intelligence images and videos of Obama being arrested and a threat to block construction of the Washington Commanders football stadium in Washington, D.C., if the team doesn’t change its name back to the Redskins.
The Justice Department has announced a series of moves in recent days stopping short of Trump supporters’ demands to release the Epstein documents: Earlier Tuesday, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced his office was seeking an interview with Maxwell, and the GOP-led House Oversight Committee also voted to advance a subpoena to depose Maxwell.
Last week, Trump instructed the Justice Department to release grand jury testimony in its Epstein probe as he sought to quell the backlash to the agency’s decision announced earlier this month not to release any additional documents on its Epstein investigation.
King’s daughter, Bernice King, called out Trump for releasing files related to his administration’s investigation into her father’s death in a tweet that said “Now, do the Epstein files.” Some Republicans in Congress have also accused Trump of a diversion attempt. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., on Monday, without mentioning Trump, warned “the base will turn and there’s no going back” in a tweet that also said “dangling bits of red meat no longer satisfies. They want the whole steak dinner and will accept nothing else.” Greene, along with several other Republican co-sponsors, is also charging ahead with an effort to compel Congress to vote on whether to release the Epstein files, prompting House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to call an early recess to avoid voting on the motion. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., accused Republican House leadership of “stalling” on the bill, tweeting “the American people deserve action, not excuses.”
Trump’s personal life has been the latest casualty of the fallout surrounding his administration’s handling of the Epstein files, with a series of new reports about his ties to the convicted sex offender. The Wall Street Journal last week revealed Trump allegedly sent Epstein a sexually suggestive birthday card in 2003 that referenced a “wonderful secret,” prompting Trump to sue the paper and deny he wrote the letter. The New York Times unearthed new details about accusations Epstein accuser Maria Farmer made against Trump to the FBI, alleging she had a disturbing encounter with Trump in Epstein’s Manhattan office in 1995.
Here’s Every Known Link Between Trump And Epstein: From ‘Little Black Book’ To Plane Rides (Forbes)