The Epstein case has become a nightmare for Donald Trump and his government. The worst crisis since returning to power. After Trumpism fueled conspiracy theories for five years about the death of the pedophile financier in 2019, and about a possible secret list of powerful clients extorted for having relationships with minors, the tables have turned against the president, after dismissing all speculations as nonsense and fantasies and reproaching his most loyal followers for believing in them and turning against his leadership.
Last week, the Department of Justice and the FBI tried to put an end to the matter once and for all, stating that there were no secret client lists, no evidence that Epstein was blackmailing anyone. That his death was a suicide and there is no evidence to the contrary, and that speculations only harm the victims. But, of course, this has only fueled even more theories about the power of the "deep state". And the president, nervous and wanting to close this because it is politically damaging, could lead to a hemorrhage of votes, and because the more his past relationship with Epstein is talked about, the more support he loses, he can't find the right approach.
Over the past week, he has complained half a dozen times about being asked about this issue and has said that it only serves to try to tarnish his successes. And he has demanded that his followers leave the Attorney General, the equivalent of a Minister of Justice, alone, who has become the scapegoat, as all MAGA ideologues and conspiracy theorists are calling for her head for "covering up".
To try to appease this anger, quell the ongoing rebellion, the president has taken four steps this Thursday. The first, announcing through his spokesperson that he will not appoint a special prosecutor to take charge of the case, something common when it comes to very big issues. He does not want more investigations.
The second, ordering Bondi to make some documents public in return. "Due to the ridiculous attention given to Jeffrey Epstein, I have asked the Attorney General to present all relevant testimonies to the Grand Jury, subject to court approval. This SCAM, perpetuated by the Democrats, must end now!," he wrote on his social media.
These papers are somewhat minor in the universe following the case. Not directly related to the investigation into his friends, parties, and clients, no photos or videos, but part of the Grand Jury process, the mechanism used by the American justice system in some cases to decide if there is enough basis to prosecute a suspect. When Prosecutors are in that gray area, they can convene a Grand Jury, a panel similar to the one that makes decisions in a trial, which hears the arguments of the prosecution and witnesses.
"President Trump, we are ready to go to court tomorrow to make the grand jury transcripts public," the Attorney General quickly responded. The outcome, however, is uncertain because it does not depend on her. The secrecy of the grand jury transcripts is highly restricted to protect witnesses and victims, so there is no guarantee that the courts will allow it. This would further fuel speculations, fueled daily by Elon Musk on his social media and the main conservative podcasters and YouTubers in the world.
That information, controlled and at best partially censored, would not be enough in any case to satisfy the demands of the most radical believers, as this year dozens of FBI agents and prosecutors from the Department of Justice's national security division were reassigned to reviewthousands of documents and videos from the Epstein case, including prison camera recordings. There are many papers, and Bondi herself, in an interview that is now haunting her, said a few weeks ago that the alleged pedophile's "client list" was on her desk, and they were analyzing it name by name. That is what millions of people are demanding now.
The publication of some papers, like the pressure on the President of the Federal Reserve this week, could, however, help change the public narrative a bit, as all media, both favorable and critical, are inevitably addressing the case 24 hours a day.
The third decision, precisely in that line, is the announcement that he will sue and demand millions of dollars from his friend Rupert Murdoch, an old ally who traveled on Air Force 1 with him last week. The reason, an article published yesterday by The Wall Street Journal, the country's main economic newspaper. In it, the relationship between Epstein and Trump, who were friends, neighbors in Florida, and occasional party companions, is explored. According to that information, the current president sent a letter to Epstein for his 50th birthday as part of a surprise gift coordinated by the financier's right-hand woman, Ghislaine Maxwell, who is now serving a sentence for assisting him in his human trafficking scheme.
That letter, the New York newspaper says, "is obscene, like others in the album. It contains several lines of typewritten text framed by the silhouette of a naked woman, seemingly hand-drawn with a thick marker. A couple of small arcs mark the woman's breasts, and the future president's signature is a 'Donald' scribble below her waist, imitating pubic hair. The letter concludes: 'Happy birthday, and may every day be another wonderful secret'."
The article has been the news of the day in Washington, a highlight on television talk shows, which has infuriated the president, a big consumer of them. "The Wall Street Journal and, personally, Rupert Murdoch were directly warned by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they published to Epstein was FALSE and that if they published it, they would be sued. Mr. Murdoch claimed he would take care of the matter, but obviously did not have the authority to do so. The director of the Wall Street Journal, Emma Tucker, was directly informed by Karoline Leavitt and President Trump that the letter was FALSE, but Emma Tucker did not want to hear that. Nevertheless, they are pursuing a false, malicious, and defamatory story. President Trump will soon sue the Wall Street Journal, NewsCorp, and Mr. Murdoch. The press must learn to be truthful and not rely on sources that probably do not even exist," he wrote in a message on his social media.
"The Wall Street Journal published a FALSE letter, supposedly addressed to Epstein. Those are not my words, that is not how I speak. Also, I do not draw. I told Rupert Murdoch it was a scam, not to publish this false story. But he did, and now I am going to sue him and his rag of a newspaper," he insisted hours later, still angry.
The fourth and final move of the day has been to try to mobilize all Republican congressmen to vote against a resolution demanding the publication of all documents at the meeting of the House Rules Committee. The measure, a non-binding resolution, has not been scheduled for a vote, but it is not clear if the Republicans will be able to dodge it. Conservative members of the Committee, one of the most relevant, had to bend under the pressure from the Democrats, who threatened to multiply votes on each Epstein document, which would have forced conservative lawmakers to take a stand time and time again, a very delicate situation since their voters are demanding transparency on the case and the publication of all existing documents.