Trump’s distraction methods fall flat against Epstein uproar

Reuters :

President Donald Trump’s super powers as a public figure have long included the ability to redirect, evade and deny.

But the Republican’s well-worn methods of changing the subject when a tough topic stings politically are not working as his White House fends off persistent unrest from his usually loyal base about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his associates.

Trump has scolded reporters, claimed ignorance and offered distractions in an effort to quash questions about Epstein and the suspicions still swirling around the disgraced financier’s case years after his 2019 death in prison. The demand for answers has only grown.

“For a president and an administration that’s very good at controlling a narrative, this is one that’s been harder,” said Republican strategist Erin Maguire, a former Trump campaign spokeswoman.

Unlike political crises that dogged Trump’s first term, including two impeachments and a probe into alleged campaign collusion with Russia, the people propelling the push for more transparency on Epstein have largely been his supporters, not his political foes.

Trump has fed his base with conspiracy theories for years, including the false “birther” claim that former President Barack Obama was not born in the United States. Trump’s advisers fanned conspiracies about Epstein, too, only to declare them moot upon entering office.

That has not gone over well with the president’s right-leaning base, which has long believed the government was covering up Epstein’s ties to the rich and powerful.

“Donald Trump’s been running a Ponzi scheme based on propaganda for the better part of a decade and it’s finally catching up to him,” said Geoff Duncan, a Republican former lieutenant governor of Georgia and Trump critic. “The far right element is just dug in. They’re hell bent on getting this information out.”