The Epstein Saga: Why Trump’s Decision Makes Sense
There is nothing more dramatic in American politics than watching a big tree fall from prominence. There is an old saying in the US that the media likes to build people up only to tear them down, and when a member of the elite is disgraced, the culture in the press is usually quick to circle. The disgusting saga of Jefferey Epstein’s story had every element of a sensational story, from sex and violence to power and privilege. Bill Clinton, Stephen Hawking, Prince Andrew, and many other prominent elites were all linked in various ways to the disgraced sex trafficker.
President Trump has not made a clear and convincing statement as to why he does not want to release all the Epstein files, but his decision should be understood for what it was: an act of mercy. When Pam Bondi went on Fox News and implied that she had a specific list on her desk of Epstein’s clients, an internet rumor that had never been confirmed before, the accomplished and successful attorney general committed a cardinal error in politics.
She overpromised and underdelivered.
The reality is that there was no client list, and worse, there is a lack of actionable evidence with which to prosecute any of Epstein’s alleged sex-trafficking clients, and the misstatement set the Administration up badly when the time came to disclose more details on Epstein’s life and death.
The likely true reason Trump did not release the files is that, as he himself said, the people linked to Epstein have all already been disgraced. Prince Andrew was stripped of most of his titles and dignity in England, Maxwell is in jail, and Clinton’s reputation has taken a significant hit as well. There have already been many civil and criminal court cases filed against Epstein that included thousands of documents that have been made public; there is simply no logical reason to believe that Bondi or the Justice Department hold files with significant information that has not already been disclosed.
While certainly, Epstein’s link to the intelligence community and even banks like JP Morgan have not been fully investigated, many of his victims, such as Virginia Guiffre, have already named the people she had contact with.
The real mistake made by the Trump administration was the handling of the case, not the failure to disclose a nonexistent list.
Again, many of Epstein’s victims have both spoken out publicly and filed cases in court that have been made available to the public as well. There is no logical reason to think there are celebrities who frequented his island or spent significant time with him that have not been disclosed yet. Pam Bondi is a good Attorney General, but she has only recently been on the national scene, while Bongino had a huge following with his podcast and appearances on Fox News for years. The Deputy Director of the FBI understood how to handle this issue much better than the former Florida Attorney General.
Bondi’s decision to play up the Epstein files, by having journalists come to the White House to get special copies containing nothing substantive, and then to go on Fox and imply some secret client list existed, ultimately backfired with the MAGA movement. Bondi built up a story that did not exist; she overpromised and underdelivered, and the Attorney General should be accountable for her actions, which in this case were carefully curated.
Pam Bondi has done an excellent job running the Justice Department, but she committed an unforced error here, and the former top law official in Florida should not deflect by blaming Bongino or others. The MAGA movement is smart and sophisticated; these individuals keep receipts as well, and they remembered the attempt by Bondi to build this story up, only to disappoint later. The Attorney General certainly can recover from this misstep, but Bondi should release more documents and be more transparent about why she is taking these actions.
Still, Trump’s decision not to further disgrace individuals who have already, in most cases, lost everything was primarily an act of mercy, not a cover-up, and while the administration should communicate better with the public about decisions on this case, his choice is understandable even though many, including myself, do not fully agree with it.
