Democrats pounce on Trump's blowup over Epstein
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Democrats in Congress are scrambling to take full advantage of President Trump's about-face on releasing documents related to Jeffrey Epstein by driving a lasting wedge between him and his MAGA base.
Why it matters: Democrats have struggled to satisfy their liberal base's growing demands to take the gloves off with Trump. Now, finally, they feel they have found their opening.
- Several Democratic lawmakers have already introduced long-shot measures to either demand the Justice Department release all the Epstein files or force them to do so.
- "The average voter, who sees powerful people being protected by powerful people, and saw Donald Trump as a vehicle to break that cabal, are reckoning with the fact that maybe it was all a lie," said Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
- The Senate Democratic leadership member added: "When your opponent is making a mistake, try not to interfere."
State of play: Trump is being besieged by MAGA faithful both outside and inside his administration after the Justice Department concluded last week that Epstein died by suicide and had no "client list."
- Attorney General Pam Bondi's announcement was met with a cries of betrayal from many of Trump's supporters.
- Some Democrats are eagerly jumping into the conflict by accusing Trump of trying to cover up the extent of his own associations with Epstein.
The latest: Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas) introduced a resolution demanding the DOJ release all the Epstein files, while Republicans blocked a measure on Monday from Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) that would force them do so.
- On the Senate side, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) won unanimous support last week in the Appropriations Committee for his amendment requiring Bondi to preserve the Epstein files and report the findings to Congress.
What they're saying: Khanna told Axios that homing in on Trump and Epstein is a good way to satisfy the base's demand for more bare-knuckle tactics "in a smart, constitutional way."
- The California Democrat said he will keep trying to force Republicans to vote on his measure "again and again and again just like the Republicans did with the repeal of the Affordable Care Act."
- "This is where the average voter is: They want someone fighting for them," Sen. Ruben Gallego (R-Ariz.) told Axios on Monday. "When Donald Trump comes out and proves that he's not fighting for them, he's continuing his fight for the elite, we should really be out there pushing."
