Trump Backs Release of ‘Credible’ Epstein Files Amid MAGA Backlash

U.S. President Donald Trump has backed the release of “credible” data on the Jeffrey Epstein case as his administration faces pressure from his own political base on the handling of the investigation.

Talking to reporters at the White House, Trump said it’s up to Attorney General Pam Bondi to decide what to make public from the government’s files on Epstein, the disgraced financier who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

“She’s handled it very well, and it’s going to be up to her,” Trump said. “Whatever she thinks is credible, she should release.”

His remarks come in response too recent frustration among Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters, many of whom were outraged by a recent report from law enforcement that said Epstein killed himself and that there was no real proof of a ‘client list’ or any blackmail scheme on powerful figures.

Despite his previous calls to “move on” from the case, Trump now seems to have changed tone on the situation in the wake of the growing backlash. He repeated his stance later on Tuesday, telling reporters:

“Credible information – let them give it. I would say anything that’s credible, let them have it.”

Still, Trump downplayed a wave of attention on the Epstein scandal, describing of the public interest as “sordid” and “boring.” He also accused former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, as well as ex-FBI Director James Comey, of inventing what he described s the “so-called Epstein films.”

Epstein’s death in a Manhattan jail cell more than five years ago has remained a source of speculation and conspiracy theories, with many thinking he was murdered for the sake of protection of influential individuals.

With input from Al Jazeera