Trump's latest bid to end Epstein storm: Weaponizing the federal government

Source: CNN

Trump’s latest bid to end Epstein storm: Weaponizing the federal government

Analysis by Stephen Collinson, CNN
8 min read
Published 12:00 AM EDT, Wed July 23, 2025

(CNN) — Donald Trump’s bid to smother the uproar over accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein shows that he’s already achieved one goal his critics most feared from his second presidency.

The Justice Department and the head of the US intelligence community are now openly operating as fully weaponized tools to pursue the president’s personal political needs in a degradation of a governing system meant to be an antidote to king-like patronage.

This new dynamic underpinned a wild Oval Office press appearance by Trump on Tuesday, his latest attempt to put out the Epstein fire that had only the now-familiar effect of feeding the flames.

The extent of the president’s capture of two key agencies that are vital to keeping Americans safe was revealed when a reporter asked a question about his administration’s refusal to open all files related to the Epstein case.

The president pivoted to a tirade against Barack Obama, ...

-snip-

Read more: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/23/politics/trump-epstein-maxwell-justice-department-analysis