President Trump on Wednesday berated his backers for demanding more documents related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, calling allegations of a client list a “hoax” made up by his political opponents.
In a lengthy Truth Social post, Mr. Trump dismissed the furor over the Epstein files as a “scam” kept in the spotlight by Democrats and slammed his supporters who have sought more transparency in the case as “weaklings.”
“Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax and my PAST supporters have bought into this ’bull-,’ hook, line and sinker,” Mr. Trump said. “They haven’t learned their lesson and probably never will, even after being conned by the Lunatic Left for 8 long years.”
“I’ve 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,” he 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.”
Mr. Trump also blamed the Democrats for keeping the Epstein files in the news, comparing the issue to the debunked Steele Dossier and allegations that his 2016 campaign had ties to Russia.
“These scams and hoaxes are all the Democrats are good at — it’s all they have — They are no good at governing, no good at policy and no good at picking winning candidates,” he posted.
SEE ALSO: What we know about Trump’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein
A number of steadfast Trump supporters have called on the administration to release more information around the Epstein files. Right-wing activist Laura Loomer and Rep. Lauren Boebert, Colorado Republican, have called for a special counsel to investigate the matter.
Others haven’t gone that far but still have called for the administration to release more files.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, said Tuesday that Attorney General Pam Bondi “needs to come forward to explain” the inconsistencies in some of her statements.
When asked in February during a Fox News interview about Epstein’s client list, Ms. Bondi said it was on her desk awaiting her review. She later clarified that she was talking about the Epstein files in general, not specifically a client list.
Podcaster Joe Rogan, who offered a crucial endorsement of Mr. Trump in last year’s election, blasted the administration’s insistence that there is no client list or video footage of Epstein’s clients.
“They’ve got videotape, and all [of] a sudden they don’t. … You have the director of the FBI on this show saying, ’If there was [a videotape], nothing you’re looking for is on those tapes,” Mr. Rogan said Tuesday, referring to FBI Director Kash Patel’s interview on his show last month.
Mr. Trump has appeared frustrated in recent days over the firestorm ignited after Ms. Bondi last week released a memo detailing her department’s review of the Epstein files. The two-page document said the Justice Department found no evidence of an Epstein client list and that no additional files from the probe would be made public.
The memo also confirmed that Epstein died by suicide in his New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. MAGA supporters were outraged by the findings after years of pushing theories that Epstein was murdered and prominent Democrats would be named on a client list.
Some of those theories were peddled by Mr. Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, before they joined the Trump administration.
Mr. Trump urged his base to move on, saying Tuesday, “I don’t understand it, why they would be so interested. [Epstein has] been dead for a long time. He was never a big factor in terms of life. I don’t understand what the interest and what the fascination is. I really don’t. And the credible information has been given.”
Epstein was accused of sex trafficking underage girls. The wealthy financier had several high-profile connections, including former President Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Prince Andrew and other celebrities and rich individuals. One former friend was Mr. Trump, who threw him out of Mar-a-Lago. Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former lover, was convicted of sex trafficking.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.