Trump urges MAGA to move on from Epstein – but why the rush?

Donald Trump talking with Jeffrey Epstein at a party in Mar-A-Lago from 1992 (Image from NBC)

Yesterday, I wrote about how the Epstein scandal has fractured the MAGA movement. Today, I want to look at how President Trump is trying to heal that fracture – using his signature approach: deflect, dismiss, and move on.

As anger brews among his own base, Trump isn’t offering answers or transparency. Instead, he’s telling his supporters to drop it. But with his own name tied to Epstein, the question remains: is he protecting the movement – or protecting himself?

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As fresh headlines surrounding Jeffrey Epstein and his notorious network of associates continue to surface, one voice urging Americans to “move on” has grown louder: Donald Trump’s.

The Epstein case – long a lightning rod for conspiracy theories – returned to the spotlight after Trump’s own Justice Department and FBI declared that no incriminating “client list” exists. This directly contradicted earlier statements from Attorney General Pam Bondi, who, in February 2025, claimed the list was “on her desk.” The reversal has infuriated parts of the MAGA movement, who see it as a betrayal of Trump’s promises to declassify Epstein-related documents.

Trump and several of his high-profile allies have downplayed the significance of Epstein’s renewed presence in public debate. “It’s old news,” one Trump adviser said on Truth Social. “Let’s focus on the border, not on distractions from the past.” Naturally, the revived interest in Epstein is just a media hoax and supporters should be urged to ignore what is framed as Democrat smear tactics.

Frustration is palpable online. One user on X, @Vincinnatus, lamented:

But Trump’s insistence on burying the conversation has only deepened suspicion – even among some of his supporters. Critics argue that his push to move on may be motivated less by principle than by self-preservation.

Trump’s name has appeared in Epstein-related court documents and flight logs over the years. While no criminal accusations have been levelled against him, his social and personal ties to the convicted sex offender are well-documented. Trump was photographed with Epstein multiple times in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and once described him as a “terrific guy,” noting that “he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”

His response in recent months has been to dismiss the Epstein story as a political hit job, orchestrated by familiar adversaries: Barack Obama and Joe Biden. In a recent statement, Trump expressed exasperation:

“Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein?! This guy’s been talked about for years… Do you want to move along?”

But such remarks have only intensified speculation. Yesterday he added more spark:

“I don’t understand it. I don’t know why they would be so interested,” said Mr Trump.

“He’s dead for a long time. He was never a big factor in terms of life. I don’t understand what the interest or what the fascination is. I really don’t. And the credible information’s been given.

“Don’t forget, we went through years of the Mueller witch hunt and all of the different things, the Steele dossier, which was all fake. All that information was fake.

“But I don’t understand why the Jeffrey Epstein case would be of interest to anybody. It’s pretty boring stuff. It’s sordid, but it’s boring. And I don’t understand why it keeps going. I think, really, only pretty bad people, including fake news, want to keep something like that going.”

Trump has previously claimed that he cut ties with Epstein and banned him from Mar-a-Lago after a falling out. Yet questions remain. And with renewed public interest in Epstein’s circle – including the release of previously sealed documents – it needs to be asked whether Trump’s calls to “move on” are part of a calculated deflection.

The Epstein scandal casts a long shadow over figures across the political spectrum. But Trump’s aggressive efforts to suppress the conversation – rather than confront it directly – may attract more scrutiny, not less.

As long as Epstein’s crimes remain unresolved in the public’s mind, and questions about his connections unanswered, attempts to shut down discussion will be seen not as leadership – but as evasion.

In the end, it raises a fundamental question: When a president tells the public to stop asking questions, should we trust him – or ask twice as many?

As the controversy persists, Trump’s call to move on appears to be an attempt to refocus his base on more comfortable territory. But without full transparency, doubts surrounding his connection to Epstein – whether real or imagined – are unlikely to fade. What began as a fringe conspiracy has evolved into a self-inflicted political scandal, one that Trump now struggles to control.

 

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About Michael Taylor 106 Articles
Michael is a retired Public Servant. His interests include Australian and US politics, history, travel, and Indigenous Australia. Michael holds a BA in Aboriginal Affairs Administration, a BA (Honours) in Aboriginal Studies, and a Diploma of Government.

11 Comments

  1. It has always, to me at least, seemed strange that of all the criminal activities that were being linked to Epstein only one person was ever charged and convicted and that was his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, who was jailed for twenty years : Epstein who was in pre-trial detention and under surveillance somehow allegedly committed suicide although strangely sections of the CCTV monitoring data have gone missing.

    It was alleged that Epstein supplied and groomed underage girls for his elite group of clients, none of whom have been prosecuted. Now we are told by AG Bondi that the list of Epstein clients does not in fact exist. So why was Maxwell convicted and sentenced to twenty years in jail and why does Trump want to move on in such a hurry?

    Something stinks !

  2. Plainly and simply, he’s terrified of what’s in the files (written, and possibly visual evidence) about himself getting out into the public sphere.

  3. Everything Taco Trump does or says is about himself.It’s only a matter of when, not if, the towering pile of lies will crush him and his flunkies.The cracks are already showing, and we can expect more.The only thing that might save him, is if he drops dead beforehand.If only.

  4. That image of Trump & Epstein is a clip from a video… he’s pointing to a woman on the dance floor and saying something like ‘she’s hot,’ while Epstein, no doubt, is fantasising about what he would like to do to her.

    As for the alleged suicide of the pedophile, har de har de har and pull the other one; of course he was murdered. Narcissists, particularly of the ilk that he was, think too highly of themselves to ever contemplate pulling the plug. America has no shortage of murderers for hire… the CIA & FBI likely have a Rolodex of names they can call for the next hit job on the list.

    And given that country’s long history of protecting crooks with means, it’s unlikely Trump will ever have to face the full force of the legal system for his multiple malfeasances. Slippery as a greased pig. He was, as is well-known, mentored in his early days by Roy Cohn, the notoriously homophobic & self-hating nasty piece of work, gay on the side (he died of AIDS) but never pubicly acknowledging the truth of the matter, and it’s that man who taught Trump how to go about his business; lie always, never apologise, attack at will, repeat, repeat, never surrender.

  5. Watch out! Trump and his Sickos will be looking for a diversion like bombing something or arresting detractors.

  6. There was an interesting tid bit or key question that emerged from Tim Miller on The Bulwark yesterday, after summarising what is known.

    Where did the funds to support Epstein’s enterprise come from? Pimping, extortion etc. would not be sufficient, suggesting some big fish in the background for financing?

    Coincidentally and unrelated, Trump was at the World Club Football Championship in a box with Bondi et al and who else, Rupert Murdoch.

    The latter is Orwellian in claiming to support immigrants and freedom, while saying in past that Trump was a f’ing moron. Yet FoxNews helped create the Trump ‘Frankenstein’ and promote the anti-immigrant agitprop of dec. white nationalist John ‘passive eugenics’ Tanton; only about ratings and revenue……

    PS Cangaro, Cohn was also Murdoch’s ‘fixer’; allegedly Italian then Russian mafia’ attorney.

  7. Speaking of s’s, slowly but surely T-Rump is realizing that the vast majority are not only NOT on his side, but are actively working against him. He has plenty to hide and much to lose.

    They won’t be wishing him well as they wave him goodbye.

  8. Every now and then a conspiracy theory comes along that I’m right on board with, and Epstein’s death is one; evidence now coming out – such as the missing 2mins 53secs from the cell video – support that.
    How much of the current schemozzle is to give time to try to cobble up convincing documents for the base that somehow do not incriminate Trump? They’ve certainly had long enough to do it, and the also definitely have the expertise. In fact, I’ve been expecting that ever since his inauguration.

  9. Trump’s notorious, sick, twisted close friendship with that horrific, child-molesting predator, the late misanthropist, Jeffrey Epstein, PROVES that Trump is an unconscionable, remorseless paedophile as well as being an internationally-condemned misogynistic predator, a totally corrupt SIX TIMES’ BANKRUPT, a callously inhumane political sociopath, a devious pathological liar, a rusted-on racist white supremacist, a born-to-rule fascist AND an unapologetic CONVICTED CRIMINAL! My God, can Trump possibly get worse? There is absolutely NOTHING GOOD one can find to say about Trump – he is a demonic psychopath without one iota of integrity, zero credibility, not a drop of compassion and no foresight! FFS, America DUMP TRUMP before he destroys EVERYTHING democratic, fair minded and egalitarian Americans value! Electing that internationally-reviled, monstrous aberration in haste has ensured you will REPENT AT LEISURE!

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