With Epstein conspiracy theories, Trump faces a crisis of his own making
[July 16, 2025]
By ALI SWENSON and NICHOLAS RICCARDI
NEW YORK (AP) — As his supporters erupt over the Justice Department’s
failure to release much-hyped records in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex
trafficking investigation, President Donald Trump’s strategy has been to
downplay the issue.
“I don't understand what the interest or what the fascination is,” Trump
told reporters Tuesday.
His problem? That nothing-to-see-here approach doesn’t work for those
who've learned from him they must not give up until the government’s
deepest, darkest secrets are exposed.
Last week, the Justice Department and the FBI abruptly walked back the
notion there's an Epstein client list of elites who participated in the
wealthy New York financier’s trafficking of underage girls. Trump
quickly defended Attorney General Pam Bondi and chided a reporter for
daring to ask about the documents.
The online reaction was swift, with followers calling the Republican
president “out of touch” and demanding transparency.
Trump's comments to reporters Tuesday while returning to Washington from
a brief Pittsburgh trip were just the latest in a days-long campaign to
quell the uproar. He called the Epstein case “pretty boring” and said
"the credible information has been given."
“I don’t understand why the Jeffrey Epstein case would be of interest to
anybody.” he said.
Trying to ‘put the genie back in the bottle’
Over the weekend, Trump used his Truth Social platform to attempt to
call supporters off the Epstein trail amid reports of infighting between
Bondi and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino over the issue. He suggested
the turmoil was undermining his administration — “all over a guy who
never dies, Jeffrey Epstein.”
That did little to mollify Trump's supporters, who urged him to release
the files or risk losing his base.
The political crisis is especially challenging for Trump because it’s
one of his own making. The president has spent years stoking dark
theories and embracing QAnon-tinged propaganda that casts him as the
only savior who can demolish the “deep state."
Now that he's running the federal government, the community he helped
build is coming back to haunt him. It's demanding answers he either
isn’t able to or doesn't want to provide.
Asked Tuesday whether Bondi had told him his name was in the Epstein
files, Trump said no. He praised her handling of the case and said she
should release “whatever she thinks is credible." But he also claimed
there were credibility issues with the documents, suggesting without
citing evidence they were “made up” by former FBI Director James Comey
and former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, both Democrats. Bondi
declined to discuss the Epstein files Tuesday during a press briefing
about drug trafficking.
“The faulty assumption Trump and others make is they can peddle
conspiracy theories without any blowback,” said Matt Dallek, a political
scientist at George Washington University. “The Epstein case is a neat
encapsulation that it is hard to put the genie back in the bottle.”
A problem that’s not going away
Last week’s two-page statement from the Justice Department and the FBI
saying they had concluded Epstein didn't possess a client list roiled
Trump’s supporters, who pointed to past statements from several
administration officials that the list ought to be revealed.
Bondi had suggested in February such a document was sitting on her desk
waiting for review, though last week she said she'd been referring
generally to the Epstein case file, not a client list.
Conservative influencers have since demanded to see all the files
related to Epstein’s crimes, even as Trump has tried to put the issue to
bed.
Far-right commentator Jack Posobiec said at Turning Point USA’s Student
Action Summit on Saturday he wouldn't rest “until we go full Jan. 6
committee on the Jeffrey Epstein files.”
Trump's weekend post called on supporters to focus on investigating
Democrats and arresting criminals rather than “spending month after
month looking at nothing but the same old, Radical Left inspired
Documents on Jeffrey Epstein.” His first-term national security adviser,
retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, pleaded with him to reconsider.
“@realdonaldtrump please understand the EPSTEIN AFFAIR is not going
away,” Flynn wrote.
Other Trump allies continue to push for answers, among them far-right
activist Laura Loomer, who has called for Bondi to resign. She told
Politico’s Playbook newsletter on Sunday a special counsel should be
appointed to investigate the handling of the files on Epstein, who was
found dead in his federal jail cell in 2019 weeks after he was arrested.
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Daniel Bongino speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on
proposed changes to police practices and accountability on Capitol
Hill, June 10, 2020, in Washington. (Greg Nash/Pool via AP, File)
House Speaker Mike Johnson told right-wing influencer Benny Johnson
in an interview released Tuesday that he is “for transparency,” and
wants Bondi to “put everything out there and let the people decide.”
He said the Justice Department needs to focus on crime and other
priorities, including elections and investigating ActBlue, the
Democrats' top fundraising platform.
Experts who study conspiracy theories warned more sunlight doesn't
necessarily make far-fetched narratives disappear.
“For some portion of this set of conspiracy theory believers, no
amount of contradictory evidence will ever be enough,” said
Josephine Lukito, who studies conspiracy theorists at the University
of Texas at Austin.
Trump and his colleagues set their own trap
The president and many figures in his administration — including
Bondi,Bongino and FBI Director Kash Patel — earned their political
capital over the years in part by encouraging disproven conspiracy
theories.
Now, they’re tasked with trying to reveal the evidence they’d long
insisted was there — a challenge that’s reached across the
government.
Last week, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin
posted on X what seemed like an endorsement of a conspiracy theory
that the contrails left by aircraft are releasing chemicals for
potentially nefarious reasons. But a second post from Zeldin
underscored the fine line the Trump administration is trying to walk
by linking to a new page on the EPA website that essentially
debunked the theory.
The value of conspiratorial fabrications is they help people get
political power, said Russell Muirhead, who teaches political
science at Dartmouth College. He said Trump has been skilled in
exploiting that.
But the Epstein case brings unique challenges, he said. That's
because it's rooted in truth: A wealthy and well-connected financier
did spend years abusing large numbers of young girls while escaping
justice.
So, Trump needs to come forward with truth and transparency on the
topic, Muirhead said. If he doesn't, “large segments of his most
enthusiastic and devoted supporters are going to lose faith in him.”
A potentially costly distraction
Trump's rivals have been taking advantage of right-wing fissures
over Epstein.
Democrats sought to capitalize on the controversy, with several
lawmakers calling for the release of all Epstein files and
suggesting Trump could be resisting because he or someone close to
him is featured in them.
The Democratic House Majority PAC on Tuesday emailed a memo that
called out some House Republicans by name. It said they are
“complicit” with the Trump administration because they had called
for the Epstein files to be made public but then voted against a
Democratic amendment to force their release.
Conservatives expressed concerns Trump’s approach on Epstein could
hurt them in the midterms.
"For this to go away, you’re going to lose 10% of the MAGA
movement," right-wing podcaster Steve Bannon said during the Turning
Point USA Student Action Summit on Friday.
There's also the challenge of governing.
Bondi and Bongino had a tense exchange last week at the White House
over a story about Epstein, according to a person familiar with the
matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a private
conversation.
And Loomer, who's close to Trump, said Friday she was told Bongino
was “seriously thinking about resigning.” The FBI declined to
comment.
Dallek, the George Washington University professor, said it’s
alarming that the country’s top law enforcement officials are
feuding over a conspiracy theory.
“It’s possible at some time voters are going to notice the things
they want or expect government to do aren’t being done because the
people in charge are either incompetent or off chasing rabbits,” he
said. “Who is fulfilling the mission of the FBI to protect the
American people?”
___
Riccardi reported from Denver. Associated Press writers Eric Tucker,
Melissa Goldin and Gary Fields in Washington contributed to this
report.
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