{"id":3811,"date":"2026-03-08T19:10:06","date_gmt":"2026-03-08T19:10:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/?p=3811"},"modified":"2026-03-08T19:38:01","modified_gmt":"2026-03-08T19:38:01","slug":"trumps-changing-stance-on-epstein-files-is-testing-the-loyalty-of-his-maga-base","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/trumps-changing-stance-on-epstein-files-is-testing-the-loyalty-of-his-maga-base\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s changing stance on Epstein files is testing the loyalty of his Maga base"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Robert Dover, Professor of Intelligence and National Security & Dean of Faculty, University of Hull<\/strong><\/a> <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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During his 2024 US presidential election campaign, Donald Trump repeatedly said he would declassify and release the files<\/a> related to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting his sex trafficking trial. <\/p>\n

The so-called Epstein files are thought to contain contacts, communications and \u2013 perhaps most crucially \u2013 flight logs. Epstein\u2019s private aircraft was the means by which to visit what has been later termed \u201cpaedophile island\u201d<\/a>, where he and his associates allegedly trafficked and abused children. <\/p>\n

Conspiracy-minded Trump supporters, many of whom believe Epstein was murdered<\/a> by powerful figures to cover up their roles in his child sex crimes, think the Epstein files will provide them with a who\u2019s who of the supposed elites involved in child-sex exploitation<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n

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Get your news from actual experts, straight to your inbox.<\/strong> Sign up to our daily newsletter<\/a> to receive all The Conversation UK\u2019s latest coverage of news and research, from politics and business to the arts and sciences.<\/em><\/p>\n\n

During his campaign, Trump hinted that<\/a> the Epstein files would compromise powerful people \u2013 suggesting he knew their identities and what they had done. It was simultaneously a warning shot to these individuals and a way to energise his \u201cMake America Great Again\u201d (Maga) support base. It also validated part of the so-called QAnon conspiracy theory around a \u201cdeep-state\u201d cover-up of an elite child sex abuse network.<\/p>\n

But the justice department recently announced that its review of these papers revealed no client list of politically important men, and also that Epstein had died by suicide<\/a>. This struck down two of the most important beliefs of Trump\u2019s base. For a large section of the Maga movement, this somewhat dull set of conclusions has felt like a betrayal. <\/p>\n

Musk smells opportunity<\/h2>\n

Trump\u2019s former close ally, funder and adviser, Elon Musk, has used the Epstein files imbroglio to go on the attack via social media. Musk has, without offering evidence<\/a>, repeatedly insinuated that Trump\u2019s name is in the files. Trump has responded by accusing Musk of \u201closing his mind\u201d and used evidence<\/a> from Epstein\u2019s former lawyer, David Schoen, to refute Musk\u2019s accusations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Musk\u2019s allegations could be toxic for Trump. A good portion of the Maga movement think the QAnon conspiracy has some truth to it. So being potentially tied to a child sex exploitation ring would damage Trump\u2019s reputation with his base on a subject they care about strongly<\/a>. Musk has caused some Maga activists to wonder if Trump is part of a cover up.<\/p>\n

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\"Musk<\/div>
\n Musk and Trump have been embroiled in a public fallout after the Tesla owner stepped back from his White House role in May.<\/span>
\n Will Oliver \/ EPA<\/a><\/span>
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The Maga base largely remains loyal to Trump. But this loyalty has required considerable pragmatism since Trump was reelected. A key position supported by Maga voters, Trump\u2019s opposition to foreign military adventures, was reversed by his attack on Iranian military sites in June. <\/p>\n

Maga-aligned spokespeople justified these actions<\/a> on the grounds they were limited and a response to exceptional provocation. They are portrayed as a counterpoint to the near open-ended commitment of former US president George Bush in Afghanistan and Iraq in the early 2000s. <\/p>\n

Further Maga pragmatism has been required over the so-called Big Beautiful Bill Act, which will add trillions of US dollars to national debt, as well as the cuts to healthcare and food stamp funding. These latter actions have removed coverage and aid from a good portion of Maga-aligned voters. <\/p>\n

Despite the personal financial pain, Maga loyalists have couched their support in terms of reducing waste and shrinking the size of the government. These loyalists have faith in Trump\u2019s word that they will ultimately not be disadvantaged \u2013 though the implementation phase will be the test of this. <\/p>\n

Trump has also stretched the patience and loyalty of corn farmers in mid-western states, a natural base for him. He has called for Coca-Cola to use cane sugar rather than corn syrup in the full-sugar version of its drink. Trump and his controversial health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, have argued that<\/a> cane sugar is healthier \u2013 which is open to question \u2013 and will \u201cmake America healthy again\u201d. <\/p>\n

While the question of which sweetener is used in Coke is marginal, supporting something that damages mid-western farmers will be difficult for Maga loyalists to reconcile. In having to find a way of overcoming the tensions in the policy, they may begin to question Trump\u2019s wisdom. <\/p>\n

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\"A<\/div>
\n A Trump supporter sporting a red \u2018Keep America Great\u2019 hat at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa.<\/span>
\n Aspects and Angles \/ Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The arguments surrounding the Epstein files might be uniquely dangerous for Trump and his relationship with his Maga base. The QAnon paedophile ring conspiracy is core to a great number of Maga loyalists, and Trump was their man to reveal \u201cthe truth\u201d. <\/p>\n

But the justice department has now effectively rejected that part of their world view. And the response of some has been to question whether Trump is also part<\/a> of a cover up. <\/p>\n

Worse still, Trump has gone on the attack. He has said the Epstein conspiracy was never real and has described some<\/a> of his supporters as \u201cgullible weaklings\u201d for continuing to believe in it. For some supporters this has been too much, and they have aired their frustration on Trump\u2019s Truth Social media platform as well as on right-leaning blogs and podcasts<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Trump has begun to soften his critique of those believing in the Epstein conspiracies, saying he would want to release any credible information. He has also returned to a campaigning tactic of whataboutery<\/a>, pointing at what he says is the unfair treatment<\/a> he receives compared to his predecessors Barack Obama and Joe Biden.<\/p>\n

The Epstein files episode might well pass. But the question of whether Maga is now bigger than Trump will not. For a president who once joked<\/a> that his support was so strong he \u201ccould stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody\u201d without losing voters, the loyalty and pragmatic flexibility of his supporters is important. <\/p>\n

Maga is not a uniform group in belief or action. But if Trump loses either the loyalty of some or they refuse to flex their beliefs as they have done before, it will be politically dangerous for him. From beyond the grave, Epstein might have helped begin a new era in American politics.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

This article written by Robert Dover, Professor of Intelligence and National Security & Dean of Faculty, University of Hull<\/strong> and is republished from The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Robert Dover, Professor of Intelligence and National Security & Dean of Faculty, University of Hull During his 2024 US presidential election campaign, Donald Trump repeatedly said he would declassify and release the files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting his sex trafficking trial. The so-called […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":3764,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"inline_featured_image":false,"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[117],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3811","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorials"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3811"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3811\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3764"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3811"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranians.global\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}