Despite repeated calls from the public and some political figures for the complete release of files related to Jeffrey Epstein, including those containing a rumored "client list," the Donald Trump administration refuses to release all such documents fully.
Trump Defends Administration Amid Epstein Files Controversy, Blames Predecessors
Trump addressed internal tensions within his administration regarding the Epstein files in a lengthy rant on Truth Social Saturday, defending Attorney General Pam Bondi and urging his supporters to focus on the MAGA agenda.
Here are some excerpts:
What’s going on with my ‘boys’ and, in some cases, ‘gals?’ They’re all going after Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is doing a FANTASTIC JOB! We’re on one Team, MAGA, and I don’t like what’s happening.
For years, it’s Epstein, over and over again. Why are we giving publicity to Files written by Obama, Crooked Hillary, Comey, Brennan, and the Losers and Criminals of the Biden Administration?
LET PAM BONDI DO HER JOB — SHE’S GREAT! The 2020 Election was Rigged and Stolen, and they tried to do the same thing in 2024 — That’s what she is looking into as AG, and much more.
One year ago our Country was DEAD, now it’s the ‘HOTTEST’ Country anywhere in the World. Let’s keep it that way, and not waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about.
But, despite Trump's attempts to downplay the Epstein case and shift blame to previous administrations, and questioning why the Epstein files had not been released earlier if they contained damaging information, renewed scrutiny and speculations surround the undisclosed documents.
Internal Tensions Rise in Trump Administration Over Epstein Case
The dispute within the Trump administration follows the Justice Department and FBI’s announcement last week that they found no evidence supporting claims that Epstein possessed a list of high-profile clients or was murdered in prison. Epstein died by suicide while in custody in 2019.
During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump suggested he would release files related to Epstein, with a first batch publicized in February by Bondi, but that didn't happen.
Last week, NewsNation reported that FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino and FBI Director Kash Patel wanted to unseal evidence months ago and release "every single piece of evidence they could, while protecting victims."
Patel changed his tune, posting on X: The conspiracy theories just aren't true, never have been. It's an honor to serve the President of the United States @realDonaldTrump — and I'll continue to do so for as long as he calls on me.
On Friday, CNN reported that Bongino was considering quitting his post over the dispute. Multiple sources told the cable news outlet that Bongino did not show up to work on Friday, fueling rumors that he is considering walking away.
Trump's MAGA followers seem unconvinced. Newsweek reports that for the first time, the Republican has been "ratioed" on his own social media platform, Truth Social. The term "ratioed" refers to when a social media post receives more replies than likes or shares, often signaling more disagreement or criticism than support.
Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) announced plans to force a vote in the House of Representatives, demanding the full, unredacted release of all documents related to Epstein. On X, Khanna wrote:
Why are the Epstein files still hidden? Who are the rich & powerful being protected? On Tuesday, I'm introducing an amendment to force a vote demanding the FULL Epstein files be released to the public. The Speaker must call a vote & put every Congress member on record.
Pay Attention
Jeffrey Epstein, the financier and convicted sex offender who died in prison in 2019, had associations with numerous high-profile figures, including politicians, business leaders, and royalty.
While authorities ruled his death a suicide, persistent conspiracy theories allege he was murdered to prevent the exposure of a supposed "client list" containing names of powerful individuals—including Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, as well as Britain's Prince Andrew.
Recently, billionaire Elon Musk claimed that the government has withheld Epstein-related records because Trump "is in the Epstein files." Though Trump has denied this assertion, Musk's comments have fueled further public interest in the unreleased documents.
((Read: The Trump and Musk Flameout))
Last year, author Michael Wolff — who wrote one of the most well-known insider tell-alls about Trump’s first term — revealed that he had roughly a hundred hours’ worth of interview recordings of Epstein talking about “his long-standing, deep relationship with Donald Trump," according to Jacobin magazine. Epstein bragged that he was the one who introduced Trump to First Lady Melania.
The Justice Department has not confirmed the existence of such a list, and investigations have found no evidence supporting claims of foul play in Epstein's death.
The Trump administration faces the herculean challenge of reuniting a fractured base ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Hugo Balta is the executive editor of the Fulcrum and the publisher of the Latino News Network.
A golden tray sits on the Resolute Desk as President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement on American nuclear innovation in the Oval Office at the White House on July 24, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Trump is signing multiple executive orders targeting the nuclear energy sector and easing rules for new reactors and nuclear fuel supply chains.
Trump’s hubris rivals the fallen heroes of ancient Greek mythology
In January, the New York Times asked President Donald Trump if there were any limits on his global powers.
“Yeah,” the president responded, “there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.”
That was eight months ago, but fortunately Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster adaptation of “The Odyssey” has made ancient Greek literature newly relevant. Before that window closes, I’d like to talk about hubris.
Today, the term mostly means excessive pride or arrogance. That’s part of what the Greeks meant by it too, but the meaning was a bit richer and more specific. Hubris was an insolent or outrageous act that offended the gods, often because the transgressor was claiming abilities or authorities that solely belonged to supreme beings.
Nolan renamed and slightly modified the concept of xenia for the film, calling it “Zeus’ law.” In the director’s telling, mortals should follow the rules laid out by the gods, specifically the requirement to treat strangers with respect lest they be gods in disguise.
In a sense, hubris is the opposite, or at least the rejection, of xenia. The hubris of the suitors, and at times Odysseus himself, invites punishment by the gods and their mortal instruments.
Which brings me back to Donald Trump. His claim that there are no constraints on his personal power to dictate events on the global stage was one of the greatest expressions of hubris ever uttered by a political leader.
Trump’s claim was obviously false when he made it.
He vowed that he could end the Russia-Ukraine war in 24 hours. He’s proved powerless to make that happen. If he had divine powers to work his will, why would he have balked at implementing his tariffs so often that Wall Street adopted the “TACO trade” term for his deals? “TACO” stands for “Trump always chickens out.”
And why would Trump have made so many embarrassing concessions to China — from rescinding tariffs on Chinese goods to allowing them to buy crucial and incredibly valuable computer chips?
But Trump saw his success at capturing Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro as proof of his ability to launch missiles to the same effect as Zeus’ lightning bolts. Trump believed he was the most powerful man who ever lived.
This is no exaggeration. In March, when the Iran invasion seemed successful, Trump gave a document penned by“Presidential Historian David King” to New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan purporting to prove that Trump was “the most powerful person to have EVER walked this planet.” King was, in fact, a businessman and occasional caddy for legendary golfer Gary Player.
King compared Trump favorably to many of history’s most powerful, and often heinous, figures: Alexander the Great, Attila the Hun, William the Conqueror, Napoleon Bonaparte, Joseph Stalin, Genghis Khan, Mao Tse Tung, Adolf Hitler and Vladimir Lenin. Many of these men thought they were the most powerful person in the world, too. And many were defeated precisely because they believed it.
At least Napoleon and Hitler had a string of truly impressive victories before they learned the folly of hubris. The limits on Trump’s power have been exposed by far less august forces than the combined might of the allies in World War II or the fearsome Russian winter.
Iran is a comparatively middling power. But the regime’s ability to absorb punishment while imposing its will on the Strait of Hormuz has proved to be a greater constraint on Trump’s power than his morality or mind. We should note that, at least rhetorically, his morality has not proved much of a constraint. He has repeatedly promised to destroy Iranian “civilization” if the regime refuses to capitulate.
But they haven’t — and won’t anytime soon — because the regime’s tolerance for pain far outstrips Trump’s. The combined fear of skyrocketing oil prices, outrage of Gulf state potentates, diminishing weapon supplies and domestic unpopularity is doing the work that international law, congressional oversight and the collective opinion of foreign policy experts can’t or won’t do.
If I considered Trump more heroic than reason and facts could allow, I would say his Sisyphean predicament has the whiff of Greek tragedy to it. Trump is vexed by the fact that the Iranians won’t honor deals or ratify his countless premature claims of victory — giving new meaning to his vow that his presidency would make people tired of winning. It’s almost like they’re out-Trumping Trump.
Things might have gone better if he’d heeded that great Greek tragedian Sophocles: “For Zeus utterly abhors the boasts of a proud tongue.”
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Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and the host of The Remnant podcast. His Twitter handle is @JonahDispatch.