9 h. ago Trump requests release of Epstein court documents but says ‘nothing will be enough for the troublemakers’ – as it happened

This liveblog is now closedAs Donald Trump tries to claim he was “not a fan” of Jeffrey Epstein, photos, videos and anecdotes paint a picture of their relationship, writes Adam Gabbatt:Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, has called for Barack Obama and former senior US national security officials to be prosecuted after accusing them of a “treasonous conspiracy” intended to show that Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election win was due to Russian interference. Continue reading...

Events

11 h. ago Trump requests release of Epstein court documents but says ‘nothing will be enough for the troublemakers’ – US politics live

Move seeks to quell controversy that has engulfed the administration since it said it would not release more files from Epstein’s sex trafficking caseAs Donald Trump tries to claim he was “not a fan” of Jeffrey Epstein, photos, videos and anecdotes paint a picture of their relationship, writes Adam Gabbatt:Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, has called for Barack Obama and former senior US national security officials to be prosecuted after accusing them of a “treasonous conspiracy” intended to show that Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election win was due to Russian interference. Continue reading...

Politics

18 h. ago Trump cannot dispel the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein | Sidney Blumenthal

Trump’s grooming of his followers is impossible to undo. Now he is bedeviled by a conspiracy theory gapSome enchanted evening, Donald Trump saw a stranger across a crowded room.It is likely that there is hardly anyone living who knows exactly under what glowing lights Donald Trump met Jeffrey Epstein, except perhaps Trump himself and Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend who is serving a 20-year prison term for helping to procure minors for sexual abuse. Trump said in an interview in 2002, when his Epstein relationship was still tight, that it had been a 15-year mutual admiration society. Epstein was “a terrific guy” and “a lot of fun to be with,” and “likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side”. Epstein described himself as “Donald’s closest friend for 10 years”. Continue reading...

Politics

29 h. ago Tulsi Gabbard calls for Obama to be prosecuted over 2016 election claims

Trump intelligence chief accuses ex-president and others of ‘treasonous conspiracy’ for alleging Russian interferenceUS politics – follow liveTulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, has called for Barack Obama and former senior US national security officials to be prosecuted after accusing them of a “treasonous conspiracy” intended to show that Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election win was due to Russian interference.She said Obama and senior officials in his administration had “[laid] the groundwork for a years-long coup” against Trump after his victory over Hillary Clinton by “manufacturing intelligence” to suggest that Russia had tried to influence the election. That included using a dossier prepared by a British intelligence analyst, Christopher Steele, that they knew to be unreliable, Gabbard claimed. Continue reading...

Politics

34 h. ago The Guardian view on Maga and Jeffrey Epstein: the truth about Donald Trump and conspiracy theories | Editorial

The US president is struggling to close down speculation about the case that those close to him have promotedDonald Trump has thrived on conspiracy theories – “birtherist” lies that Barack Obama was born outside the US; the lunacies of the Q-Anon movement; false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him. All centred on the idea that the “deep state” was lying to, and thus cheating, ordinary people. Mr Trump was their tribune.It’s hard not to feel schadenfreude now that he’s at the sharp end of a theory that he at times encouraged and allies eagerly pushed: claims that the prison death of the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein might not be suicide after all, and that wealthy and well-connected associates were trying to hush up connections to the financier. Mr Trump’s attorney general, Pam Bondi, promised that “truckloads” of documents would help reveal the truth and claimed that a client list was “sitting on my desk right now”.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this ...

Politics

40 h. ago Listen up, weaklings: there’s no Epstein client list – and definitely no cover

It’s the bonfire of the Maga hats. The real mystery is where their wearers got the idea of a paedophile conspiracy from in the first placeYou have to feel for Donald Trump’s Maga base. The one huge secret they didn’t want disclosed was that he actually really hates them. All populists despise their people, obviously – but please, Mr President, respect the playbook! You’re supposed to do it quietly. Regrettably, no one could accuse Trump of hiding his spite under a bushel after a week in which he described those of his supporters who want him to simply do what he repeatedly promised, and release the so-called Epstein files, as “weaklings” and “stupid people”. This is quite the (public) volte face from the guy who originally swept to office declaring “I love the poorly educated”.Most of you are unlikely to need a recap at this stage, but Jeffrey Epstein is the sex-trafficking financier and socialite, who conveniently died in jail while awaiting trial, apparently by suicide. A woman, G...

Politics

40 h. ago Listen up, weaklings: there’s no Epstein client list. Why are you so obsessed? Yours, Donald J Trump | Marina Hyde

It’s the bonfire of the Maga hats. The real mystery is where their wearers got the idea of a paedophile conspiracy from in the first placeYou have to feel for Donald Trump’s Maga base. The one huge secret they didn’t want disclosed was that he actually really hates them. All populists despise their people, obviously – but please, Mr President, respect the playbook! You’re supposed to do it quietly. Regrettably, no one could accuse Trump of hiding his spite under a bushel after a week in which he described those of his supporters who want him to simply do what he repeatedly promised, and release the so-called Epstein files, as “weaklings” and “stupid people”. This is quite the (public) volte face from the guy who originally swept to office declaring “I love the poorly educated”.Most of you are unlikely to need a recap at this stage, but Jeffrey Epstein is the sex-trafficking financier and socialite, who conveniently died in jail while awaiting trial, apparently by suicide. A woman, G...

Politics

3 d. ago Rep. Lauren Boebert wants Matt Gaetz to lead special counsel investigation into Epstein files

Lauren Bobert suggested that Matt Gaetz was an appropriate figure to deliver the ‘truth’ about Jeffrey Epstein

Events

5 d. ago Jeffrey Epstein's accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell is ready to reveal 'truth' of the pedophile client list, say insiders. So, why are Republicans blocking her?

'Despite the rumors, Ghislaine was never offered any kind of plea deal. She would be more than happy to sit before Congress and tell her story,' sources tell the Daily Mail.

Politics

6 d. ago Trump faces MAGA revolt on his own social media platform after defending Pam Bondi amid Epstein files debacle

Supporters of President Donald Trump have let him know they do not approve of how he and Attorney General Pam Bondi handled the Jeffery Epstein files.

Politics