President Donald Trump’s latest viral post has critics calling it one of his most desperate moves yet. What was meant as a show of strength instead read like panic, with Trump lashing out and dismissing renewed pressure on him to release the files on sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as nothing more than a political hoax.
The timing only fueled suspicions that the heat is closing in—and Johnson’s intervention didn’t help. In an effort to defend Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson went so far as to suggest the former president “was an FBI informant to try to take this stuff down.” A claim that stunned reporters on Capitol Hill and poured gasoline on the fire.
Within days, Johnson was backtracking, insisting he was merely echoing an old talking point about Trump’s role years ago. But the reversal underscored how frantic the scramble has become, turning the fight over the files into full-blown political theater.
“The Speaker is reiterating what the victims’ attorney said, which is that Donald Trump — who kicked Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago — was the only one more than a decade ago willing to help prosecutors expose Epstein for being a disgusting child predator,” the statement from Johnson’s office read.
While Johnson attempted to soften his comments, Trump has only escalated. The president has branded recent demands for more disclosures in the case as a “Democrat hoax that never ends.”
In a sprawling Truth Social post last week, Trump dismissed Democratic efforts to spotlight the Epstein case as a partisan witch hunt.
“The confused and badly failing Democrat Party did nothing about Jeffrey Epstein while he was alive except befriend him, socialize with him, travel to his Island, and take his money!” Trump wrote, steering clear from his own involvement with Epstein.
He accused Democrats of ignoring victims during Epstein’s lifetime, saying, “Where were they during his very public trials, and for all of those years before his death? The answer is, ‘nowhere to be found.’”
It’s not clear what Epstein trials Trump is referring to. The disgraced financier was given a highly unusual plea deal that included immunity for accomplices in exchange for his 2008 guilty plea to federal charges in connection with sex trafficking minors. Epstein died in jail in 2019 before he could stand trial on new federal charges for many of the same crimes.
Trump insisted the Justice Department had already complied with subpoenas and suggested Democrats had revived the issue only to distract from their low poll numbers. “This is merely another Democrat HOAX, just like Russia, Russia, Russia,” he said, ending with: “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
This latest effort to deflect lands a little differently for critics who’re convinced Trump is breaking under pressure.
“This is pure panic,” one critic wrote on X. Another added: “It reeks of desperation, and involvement. Which means it’s working and we need to push harder.”
One user surmised, “The Epstein files must be basically life in prison for Trump. based on the way he is reacting”
“Trump’s desperate attempt to label the Epstein scandal a ‘Democrat Hoax’ reeks of panic from a man whose own name litters the flight logs and court docs, release the files and face the music, you coward!,” another critic piled on.
Critics accuse Trump of obfuscating his ties to the convicted sex offender while refusing to release the entirety of the FBI files on the case — documents that legal experts say Trump has the authority to declassify and disclose at any time. Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel all previously vowed to release entirety of the Epstein-related files but have since drawn intense criticism for not following through.
Johnson, who just weeks ago blocked a vote that would have forced the release of the files, added fuel to the fire when he defended Trump and floated the FBI informant claim.
“What Trump is referring to is the hoax that the Democrats are using to try to attack him,” Johnson told reporters. “I’ve talked to him about this many times, many times. He is horrified. It’s been misrepresented. He’s not saying that what Epstein did is a hoax. It’s a terrible, unspeakable evil. He believes that himself.”
Johnson then went further: “When he first heard the rumor, he kicked him out of Mar-a-Lago. He was an FBI informant to try to take this stuff down,” Johnson said.
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Critics seized on the remark. “In today’s episode of ‘You Can’t Make This Sh-t Up’ ~ Mike Johnson Speaker Mike Johnson’s response to Epstein question referred to Trump as an ‘FBI informant,’” one post read.
The controversy has widened divisions inside Trump’s own orbit. Steve Bannon and Tucker Carlson have joined calls for the Epstein files to be made public, breaking with Trump’s reluctance. Legal experts note Trump has the authority to release the documents but has not done so, despite past promises from him, Bondi, and Patel.
The fight over the Epstein files has also split Republicans in Congress. Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie have joined Democrats such as California Rep. Ro Khanna in demanding the full release of the documents. Massie is pressing the issue with a discharge petition — a rarely used maneuver that forces a floor vote if it gathers 218 signatures. With full Democratic support, he would need just six Republicans to sign on.
So far, four Republicans have attached their names: Massie, Greene, Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert, and South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace. Greene’s involvement stands out given her status as one of Trump’s most loyal allies on Capitol Hill.
Momentum, however, appears to be stalling. Several Republicans who initially backed Massie’s legislation now say they won’t sign the petition, pointing to the Oversight Committee’s release of more than 30,000 Epstein-related records. Both Johnson and the White House have urged GOP lawmakers to stay off the petition. A White House official told CNN that siding with Massie and Democrats would “be viewed as a very hostile act to the administration.”
Even if Massie reaches the 218 mark, the rules require at least seven legislative days before the measure can be brought to the floor, and House leaders have up to two days after that to schedule a vote.
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