Trump accuses Democrats of reviving “Epstein hoax” to distract from shutdown fallout

• Trump dismissed renewed calls to expose Epstein’s alleged network as a partisan "hoax."
• He accused Democrats of using the issue to distract from internal political troubles.
• The president criticized Republicans supporting the push for document releases.

US President Donald Trump pushed back on Friday against renewed demands for the release of additional documents linked to Jeffrey Epstein, characterizing the pressure campaign as a politically motivated fabrication by his opponents.

In a post on his Truth Social account, Trump argued that Democratic leaders were attempting to revive what he labeled a distraction from their own political troubles. "The Democrats are doing everything in their withering power to push the Epstein Hoax again, despite the DOJ releasing 50,000 pages of documents, in order to deflect from all of their bad policies and losses, especially the SHUTDOWN EMBARRASSMENT, where their party is in total disarray, and has no idea what to do."

He went on to fault members of his own party, claiming that some Republicans had aligned themselves with Democrats in demanding the publication of remaining files. Trump described them as "soft and foolish" for joining the effort.

The president also reiterated his longstanding claim that Epstein’s ties were primarily to Democratic figures, stating: "Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrat’s problem, not the Republican’s problem! Ask Bill Clinton, Reid Hoffman, and Larry Summers about Epstein, they know all about him, don’t waste your time with Trump. I have a Country to run!"

Trump’s remarks come as lawmakers from both parties continue to push for fuller disclosure of records related to Epstein’s network and his connections to influential political and business figures.