Trump’s “Epstein files” problem
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 15 July 2025
⏱️ 26 minutes
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Summary
Jeffrey Epstein, a well-connected financier, was found dead in his jail cell in 2019 following his arrest on child sex-trafficking charges.
The circumstances around his death, which was ruled a suicide by hanging, and crimes have spurred fringe conspiracy theories, mostly on the far right. Some believe Epstein was actually killed as part of a cover-up; they also believe the “deep state” is hiding information about Epstein’s rich and powerful friends, who they say could also be implicated on sex trafficking charges
Trump did nothing to tamp down his base’s Epstein fixation during his reelection campaign. He even hinted he might release secret government documents that his supporters hoped would validate their conspiracy theories. But the Department of Justice said recently that there’s nothing more to reveal.
Host Colby Itkowitz speaks with White House reporter Natalie Allison about how Trump’s conflicting messages about Epstein are unsettling his base and causing strife within his administration.
Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff and Thomas Lu. It was edited by Ariel Plotnick with help from Reena Flores and mixed by Sam Bair.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | President Donald Trump's most ardent MAGA supporters are enraged over his administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. |
| 0:09.3 | Tonight, growing fallout over the Trump administration, effectively closing the case of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. |
| 0:16.2 | There has been a tremendous backlash among some of the president's MAGA supporters about the DOJ's |
| 0:22.0 | decision not to release the Jeffrey Epstein files. |
| 0:29.3 | Epstein was a well-connected financial tycoon. He was charged with child sex trafficking |
| 0:34.0 | back in 2019. He then died by suicide in jail before his trial. The |
| 0:39.6 | circumstances of his death and crimes spurred fringe conspiracy theories, mostly on the far |
| 0:44.4 | right. Some believe Epstein was actually murdered as part of a cover-up. They also accused the so-called |
| 0:50.0 | deep state of hiding information about Epstein's rich and powerful friends, who they say may |
| 0:55.3 | have also had sex with minors. Trump did nothing to tamp down the far-rights Epstein fixation |
| 1:01.1 | during his reelection campaign. He even hinted he might release secret government documents |
| 1:05.7 | that his supporters hoped would validate their conspiracy theories. But recently, his Justice |
| 1:10.5 | Department said, there's nothing more to reveal. |
| 1:13.4 | Trump now wants his base to move on. |
| 1:16.2 | At a cabinet meeting last week, he said this to reporters. |
| 1:19.3 | Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? |
| 1:22.0 | This guy's been talked about for years. |
| 1:24.3 | Are people still talking about this guy, this creep? |
| 1:32.7 | That is unbelievable. From the newsroom of The Washington Post, this is Post Reports. I'm Colby Ickowitz. It's Tuesday, July 15th. |
| 1:40.2 | Today, how the Trump administration's efforts to close the book on Epstein has enraged his base. |
| 1:46.5 | We talk with White House reporter Natalie Allison about why this has Maga Loyalists so upset |
| 1:51.6 | and what it means for the future of Trump's movement. |
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