Trump faces a revolt from his MAGA base over the Epstein files

Tampa, Florida – On the weekend, President Donald Trump has decided to choose his biggest political fight to date with the Maga database that he has created in his own image, thousands of his members have been gathered.

And everything they wanted to talk about here at the Student Action Summit organized by the group of conservative activists Turning Point USA was the “Epstein files”.

“I think these people – and I do not know, for any reason, there could be reasons – but I do not think they tell us the truth about Epstein,” the Podcastor Brandon Tatum told the crowd assembled to the Tampa Convention Center. “I think this guy was involved in something harmful that involves many people. And I guess everyone can have, maybe some of our allies and some people with whom we don’t want to have a bad relationship. “

Trump withdrew the carpet from his base on Saturday evening when he published a long position of social media which completely rejected the importance of the problem that consumed the right for last week – and longer.

“For years, it’s Epstein, again and again,” Trump posted on Truth Social, blaming the files on Democrats. “Why do we give advertising to the files written by Obama, Crooked Hillary, Comey, Brennan and the losers and criminals of the Biden administration.”

Trump supporters accompanied it through each scandal and change of policy. When he made a decision, his base supported him. But Epstein’s problem defies this alliance like never before.

This week, the Ministry of Justice said that it would not publish any additional file linked to the deceased financial and sexual offender condemned Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein died in 2019 when he was in detention, and a medical examiner tried his death a suicide. He faced charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy.

The Attorney General Pam Bondi published a two -page memo saying that the department’s examination did not reveal any “list of customers” of powerful men who would have participated in the Epstein regimes, and there was no “credible proof revealed that Epstein made eminent individuals sing”.

The memo raised Trump supporters, who quickly turned to Bondi, a feeling clearly felt at the top of the action of students. For years, some best figures from the Trump administration had pushed the theories not based on Epstein files, and Bondi herself told Fox News in February that the Epstein client “was sitting on my desk.” Trump has also said on several occasions that he would release Epstein files.

And in February, Bondi kept the question alive by bringing influencers from right to the White House and giving them Epstein documents. But even this release was not enough, because the influencers – and even leaps itself – insisted that the FBI had more documents than it shared.

There was no exhaust of the subject of Epstein files this weekend in Tampa, many participants and speakers calling for Bondo to be dismissed – even if Trump sent the clear message that he wanted his supporters to advance.

“This is not even a pam bondi for me. It’s like, look, Trump, we elected you because you were supposed to be different,” said Sharon Allen, a 24 -year -old participant. “So you have to prove to us that you are different…. You can dismiss her [Bondi]Do anything, but in the end, Trump, you are president. We trusted you to get rid of these people and exhibit these people. »»

The former representative of the state of Florida, Anthony Sabatini, who was one of Trump’s greatest supporters during the state legislature and was present at the event, called Trump’s social position “disconnected”.

“Trump loses his contact,” said Sabatini. “The bad staff sap on the left and right. We need complete reset.”

Trump’s message on Truth Social also defended Bondi. Participants at the Summit almost universally taken on the side of the director of the FBI Kash Patel and the deputy director Dan Bongino, who, both, said NBC News and other points of sale, were frustrated by the management of Bondi of Epstein documents.

Bongino and Patel used their considerable conservative media platforms before joining the Trump administration to amplify the idea that the Epstein affair was part of a concealment orchestrated by the government to protect powerful political actors.

“What’s going on with my” boys “and, in some cases,” Gals? “” Wrote Trump on Saturday evening. “They all continue the Attorney General Pam Bondi, who does a fantastic job!”

But it is not clear that Trump’s post will be enough to suppress the fury.

Friday evening, on the main stage of the student action, Megyn Kelly, a high -level conservative commentator and supporter of Trump, asked a simple question: Bondi or Bongino?

“Bongino!” The crowd shouted in unison on Friday evening.

“It is 7,000 to 0,” replied Charlie Kirk, an eminent conservative militant and chief of USA Turning points, who was the master of ceremonies for the weekend.

Trump’s position came after a day of attempted White House to encroach the rage at the base of the base.

Patel posted on Saturday on X according to which rumors on him considering resignation were “conspiracy theories”. The White House also published a statement on Friday saying that all the involved players continue to benefit from Trump’s support.

“President Trump brought together a highly qualified and experienced order team dedicated to the protection of the Americans, the holding of those responsible and justice to the victims,” said White House spokesman Harrison Fields. “This work is in progress in a transparent manner and with unity. Any attempt to sow the division within this team is baseless and distracted real progress made in the restoration of public security and the pursuit of justice for all. ”

These attempts did not do much to reduce the temperature in Tampa.

“Epstein is a key that chooses the lock on so many things, not only individuals, but also institutions, intelligence institutions, foreign governments, and who worked and who worked with him on our intelligence apparatus and in our government,” said Steve Bannon, a vocal Trump supporter at a crowd at the summit.

Bannon said he will plead with the Trump administration to appoint a special lawyer to deal with the issue.

“I support WFP as an act, but I think that a special lawyer must be appointed to take over the Epstein case; whatever the feeling of audience during our live shows at the 100% conference against Bondi remaining in AG-never seen anything like it,” he told NBC News in a statement.

Other influencers from Maga World in the lead also continued to hammer the problem on Saturday afternoon, even though the White House was trying to project the unit.

“I will not rest before I go on full-fledged on January 6 on Epstein files. Each client involved should have an FBI agent at their door who spoke them in the same way that they went after the 6ers of January 6,” said Jack Psobiet, a supporter of Vocal Trump Online, at the conference on Saturday afternoon. “This is how we have to go after everyone on the list of Epstein customers.”