Donald Trump has lashed out at his own supporters, calling them gullible “weaklings” for questioning the transparency of a secretive government inquiry into the late socialite and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In a lengthy post on his Truth Social platform, the US president accused his voters of falling for a “radical left” hoax designed to discredit him.
“Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this ‘bullshit,’ hook, line, and sinker,” Trump wrote. “Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work.” In an interview with far-right network Real America’s Voice, he doubled down, calling for the FBI to investigate what he termed a criminal conspiracy against him.
The outburst marks a sharp departure from Trump’s earlier attempts to placate his Make America Great Again (Maga) base. On Tuesday, he described the Epstein inquiry as “boring” and dismissed those interested as “pretty bad people”, though he said he would back the release of any “credible” files. The Justice Department and FBI last week confirmed that Epstein killed himself in federal custody in 2019 and that no client list would be made public.
Republican allies, including House Speaker Mike Johnson and Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump, have called for greater transparency. Conservative anger has focused on Attorney General Pam Bondi, who had previously claimed Epstein’s client list was “sitting on my desk”. Trump’s social media post prompted a backlash from his followers, with some accusing him of protecting paedophiles.
