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      Trump news at a glance: president wants Murdoch deposed in Epstein libel case within two weeks

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      Donald Trump has asked a US court to order a swift deposition for billionaire Rupert Murdoch in the president’s defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal.The US president sued the publication and its owner over a 17 July article asserting that Trump’s name was on a 2003 birthday greeting for Jeffrey Epstein, who was later a convicted sex offender.Trump’s lawsuit called the alleged birthday greeting “fake” and said the Journal published its article to harm the president’s reputation. In a court filing on Monday, Trump’s lawyers said Trump told Murdoch before the article was published that the letter referenced in the story was fake, and Murdoch told Trump he would “take care of it”.“Murdoch’s direct involvement further underscores Defendants’ actual malice,” Trump’s lawyers wrote, referring to the legal standard Trump must clear to prevail in his lawsuit.His lawyers asked US district judge Darrin Gayles in Miami to compel Murdoch, 94, to testify within 15 days. Dow Jones, the Journal’s publisher, has previously said the paper stood by its reporting and would vigorously defend against the lawsuit.Here are the key Trump stories of the day:Ghislaine Maxwell asks US supreme court to overturn convictionGhislaine Maxwell, the convicted sex trafficker and associate of Jeffrey Epstein, has requested that the US supreme court overturn her conviction, saying she was unjustly prosecuted.Maxwell’s submission to the supreme court comes days after she met justice department officials, as discussions began to see whether she would turn into a US government cooperator. Observers have suggested Maxwell may be able to expose new information about Epstein’s sex trafficking and the wealthy individuals who may have also been involved. It is not clear if Maxwell will become a US government cooperator and what she may receive in return.Read the full storyTrump acknowledges ‘real starvation’ in Gaza Donald Trump told Israel to allow “every ounce of food” into Gaza as he acknowledged for the first time that there is “real starvation” in the region.During a visit to Britain, the US president contradicted Benjamin Netanyahu after the Israeli prime minister claimed it was a “bold-faced lie” to say Israel was causing hunger in Gaza.Trump is under increasing pressure to intervene in the humanitarian crisis, with dozens of Palestinians having died of hunger in recent weeks in a crisis attributed by the UN and other humanitarian organisations to Israel’s blockade of almost all aid into the territory.Read the full storyJustice department sued over legal memo on Qatar’s luxury jet giftThe US Department of Justice is facing a federal lawsuit for refusing to release a legal memorandum that reportedly cleared the way for Donald Trump’s acceptance of a $400m luxury aircraft from Qatar’s government.Read the full storyTrump’s tariffs to face major court test from US small business ownersDonald Trump’s strategy of imposing sweeping tariffs on America’s main trading partners will face a major test in the US courts on Thursday, four days after the president hailed the “powerful deal” reached with the EU and just hours before a new round of punishing import duties is set to come into effect.Trump has underpinned his tariff policy with an emergency power that is now being challenged as unlawful in the federal courts. On Thursday the US court of appeals for the federal circuit will hear oral arguments in the case, VOS Selections v Trump.Read the full storyUS-EU trade deal is a ‘dark day’ for Europe, says French PMThe French prime minister, François Bayrou, said the EU had capitulated to Donald Trump’s threats of ever-increasing tariffs, as he labelled the framework deal struck in Scotland on Sunday as a “dark day” for the EU.“It is a dark day when an alliance of free peoples, brought together to affirm their common values and to defend their common interests, resigns itself to submission,” Bayrou wrote on X on Monday.Read the full story Trump cuts deadline for Putin to reach Ukraine peace deal to ‘10 or 12 days’Donald Trump’s timeline for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine has sped up, the president said while visiting Nato ally Great Britain on Monday.“I’m going to make a new deadline of about 10, 10 or 12 days from today,” Trump said in response to a question while sitting with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer.Read the full storyTrump told to keep funding Planned Parenthood with Medicaid moneyThe Trump administration must continue reimbursing Planned Parenthood clinics for Medicaid-funded services, a federal judge ruled on Monday, in an escalating legal war between the reproductive health giant and the White House over Republican efforts to “defund” Planned Parenthood.Read the full storyWhat else happened today:

      The US cannot sell any Virginia-class nuclear submarines to Australia without doubling its production rate, because it is making too few for its own defence, the navy’s nominee for chief of operations has told Congress.

      Twenty-one Senate Democrats are demanding Donald Trump immediately cut funding to a controversial Gaza aid organization they say has resulted in the killings of more than 700 civilians seeking food and violated decades of humanitarian law.

      Republican congresswoman Nancy Mace has claimed she cruises the web for videos of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) agents dragging people into custody, saying she “can think of nothing more American”.
      Catching up? Here’s what happened 27 July 2025. More

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      Democrats demand Trump cut funding for controversial Gaza aid organization

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      Twenty-one Senate Democrats are demanding Donald Trump immediately cut funding to a controversial Gaza aid organization they say has resulted in the killings of more than 700 civilians seeking food and violated decades of humanitarian law.The letter, led by senators Chris Van Hollen of Maryland and Peter Welch of Vermont, comes as international criticism mounts over the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s operations, arguing that its model “shatters well-established norms that have governed distribution of humanitarian aid since the ratification of the Geneva conventions in 1949” by blurring the lines between aid delivery and military security operations.“According to reports and eyewitness accounts, civilians have been fired at by tanks, drones, and helicopters, as well as soldiers on the ground, as they attempt to get food and humanitarian supplies,” the senators wrote.The Trump administration authorized a $30m grant to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in late June, with $7m already disbursed according to documents seen by the Guardian. The organization, which is backed by both Israeli and US interests, has been given preferential access to operate in Gaza through coordination with the Israeli military and private US security contractors.However, the rollout of the new scheme has been marked by death and destruction from the outset. Jake Wood, the founding executive director and former US marine, resigned on 25 May, saying: “It is not possible to implement this plan while also strictly adhering to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, which I will not abandon.”Boston Consulting Group, the US firm handling some of the foundation’s logistics, also withdrew shortly after.Since launching in May, the foundation’s four distribution sites have become killing fields. UN human rights officials report 766 people were killed trying to reach GHF sites specifically, with nearly 5,000 more injured in the chaos. More than 1,000 have been killed trying to go to food aid sites in general, according to UN figures, and 100 are believed to have died of starvation.The senators also highlighted concerns about the US security contractors involved in the operation. Safe Reach Solutions and UG Solutions have reportedly been contracted to provide security at distribution sites, with Associated Press reporting: “American contractors guarding aid distribution sites in Gaza are using live ammunition and stun grenades as hungry Palestinians scramble for food.”According to the AP report they cite, “bullets, stun grenades and pepper spray were used at nearly every distribution, even if there was no threat,” despite many contractors lacking combat experience or proper weapons training.UG Solutions, one of the North Carolina-based contractors, is reported to have recently hired the crisis communications firm Seven Letter, whose leadership includes former Biden and Obama administration spokespersons, bringing in former Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh in June, according to a press release on a now taken-down website.Anthony Aguilar, a US Army veteran and former contractor for the foundation, told BBC News over the weekend that he witnessed Israeli forces “shooting at the crowds of Palestinians” and firing “a main gun tank round from the Merkava tank into a crowd of people”. He described the operation as “amateur” and said he had “never witnessed the level of brutality and use of indiscriminate and unnecessary force against a civilian population”.The senators criticized the Trump administration for exempting the foundation from standard oversight procedures, including comprehensive audits usually required for first-time USAID grant recipients. They noted that USAID officials had raised “critical concerns” about the proposal, citing “operational and reputational risks and lack of oversight”.The foundation has maintained that it has distributed more than 95m meals to civilians across Gaza and denies that violence has occurred at its sites, attributing reports to Hamas misinformation.While on a presidential visit to Scotland, Trump on Sunday claimed that Hamas was stealing food aid sent to Gaza, parroting a similar allegation by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu which is being used to justify restrictions on humanitarian deliveries, despite Israel’s own military officials admitted to not having any evidence to substantiate it..In recent weeks, the organization has become increasingly aggressive in its social media responses, with posts claiming the UN “can’t successfully move their aid to Palestinians” and that “they’ve simply stopped trying.” The foundation’s executive chairperson, the Rev Johnnie Moore, also dug in, publishing an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal proposing to take over delivery of all UN aid sitting idle in Gaza. Moore wrote that there were hundreds of UN trucks loaded with food in Gaza, and offered to “deliver all of this aid, for free, on behalf of the U.N”.However, the senators argue that the foundation’s model, with only four militarized distribution sites, cannot replace the UN-led network that previously operated more than 400 aid distribution points during temporary ceasefires.The letter also lands as two prominent Israeli human rights groups, B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights – Israel, declared on Monday that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Their assessment, citing “coordinated action to intentionally destroy Palestinian society”, marks the first time major Israeli rights organizations have publicly reached this conclusion.The senators gave Secretary Rubio two weeks to respond to a series of detailed questions about civilian casualties, funding mechanisms, contractor operations, and compliance with humanitarian principles.“There should be no American taxpayer dollars contributing to this scheme,” the senators wrote.Also on Monday, independent senator Angus King from Maine said he would oppose providing additional US support to Israel until the country addresses the humanitarian crisis, saying Israel’s conduct has been “an affront to human decency”.King, who caucuses with Democrats, said in a statement: “I am through supporting the actions of the current Israeli government and will advocate – and vote – for an end to any United States support whatsoever until there is a demonstrable change in the direction of Israeli policy.“My litmus test will be simple: no aid of any kind as long as there are starving children in Gaza due to the action or inaction of the Israeli government.” More

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      Trump cuts deadline for Putin to reach Ukraine peace deal to ‘10 or 12 days’

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      Donald Trump’s timeline for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine has sped up, the president said while visiting Nato ally Great Britain on Monday.“I’m going to make a new deadline of about 10, 10 or 12 days from today,” Trump said in response to a question while sitting with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer. “There’s no reason in waiting. There’s no reason in waiting. It’s 50 days. I want to be generous, but we just don’t see any progress being made.”Russian and Ukrainian diplomats met in Istanbul last week, agreeing on little more than a prisoner exchange. Ukraine proposed a summit by the end of August between the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, but Russia’s reply was that such a meeting would only be appropriate if it were to sign an agreement. The meeting was the third negotiation in Istanbul. Putin has not attended any of the talks, despite Trump’s exhortations.Trump’s comments in recent weeks reflect the continuing change from his almost-conciliatory posture. US diplomats asked China to stop exports of dual-use goods that the Washington says contribute to Russia’s military industrial base.Trump said he was “disappointed” in Putin earlier on Monday. “We thought we had that settled numerous times, and then President Putin goes out and starts launching rockets into some city like Kyiv and kills a lot of people in a nursing home or whatever. You have bodies lying all over the street, and I say that’s not the way to do it. So we’ll see what happens with that.”Two weeks ago, Trump promised a punishing round of new sanctions against Russia if Putin did not begin a ceasefire period for negotiations. An agreement for European allies to purchase billions of dollars in additional armaments for Ukraine, including Patriot missile defense systems, accompanied the 15 July statement during a meeting with Nato’s secretary general, Mark Rutte.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionTrump hosted Starmer and the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, at his Turnberry golf course in Scotland, where ending the war in Ukraine and trade issues have been at the top of the agenda. Before leaving Washington on Friday, Trump said that he was considering secondary sanctions on Russia amid the war in Ukraine. More

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      How do we lead moral lives in an age of bullies? | Robert Reich

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      We are living in an age of bullies. Those with power are less constrained today than they have been in my lifetime, since the end of the second world war.The question is: how do we lead moral lives in this era?Vladimir Putin launches a horrendous war on Ukraine. After Hamas’s atrocity, Benjamin Netanyahu bombs Gaza to smithereens and is now starving to death its remaining occupants.Trump abducts thousands of hardworking people within the US and puts them into detention camps – splitting their families, spreading fear. His immigration agents are accused of targeting people with brown skin.He usurps the powers of Congress, defies the courts, and prosecutes his enemies.He and his Republican lackeys cut Medicaid and food stamps – lifelines for poor people, including millions of children – so the wealthy can get a tax cut.Hate-mongers on rightwing television and social media fuel bigotry against transgender people, immigrants, Muslims, people of color and LGBTQ+ people.Powerful men abuse women. Some of the abused are children.Powerful male politicians make it impossible for women to obtain safe abortions.CEOs rake in record profits and compensation while giving workers meager wages and firing them for unionizing.Billionaires make large campaign donations – legalized bribes – so lawmakers will cut their taxes and repeal regulations.Each such abuse of power encourages other abuses. Each undermines norms of civility.Every time the stronger bully the weaker, the social fabric is tested. If bullying is not contained, the fabric unwinds. Those who are bullied – who feel powerless, vulnerable, bitter and desperate – become fodder for “strongmen”, demagogues who lead them into violence, war and tyranny.This is hardly new. Throughout history, the central struggle of civilization has been against brutality by the powerful. Civilization is the opposite of brutality. A civil society doesn’t allow the strong to brutally treat the weak.Yet in my lifetime, I’ve witnessed a breakdown. I’ve seen a change occur – from support of decency and constraints on brutality, to tolerance of indecency and support for unconstrained cruelty.Trump is not the cause. He’s the culmination.So how do we lead moral lives in this age of bullies?We do everything we can to stop the brutality, to hold the powerful accountable, and to protect the vulnerable.Putin and Netanyahu are war criminals whose criminality must be stopped. Trump is a dictator who must be deposed.Rightwing politicians who encourage white Christian nationalism must be condemned and voted out of office. Pundits who amplify racism and xenophobia must lose their megaphones.Powerful men who sexually harass or abuse women or children must be prosecuted.Women must have full control over their bodies, including access to safe abortions.Police who kill innocent people of color must be brought to justice. Immigration agents must be prohibited from abducting people off the street or from their homes or court houses or places of work.CEOs who treat their employees like manure must be exposed and penalized. Billionaires who bribe lawmakers to cut their taxes or exempt them from regulations must be sanctioned, as should lawmakers who accept such bribes.This isn’t a matter of “left” or “right”. It’s a matter of what’s right.Living a moral life in an age of bullies requires collective action; it cannot be done alone. Each of us must organize and participate in a vast network of moral resistance.This is what civilization demands. It’s what the struggle for social justice requires. It’s why that struggle is so critical today, and why we all must be part of it.

      Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com. His next book, Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America, will be out on 5 August More

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      Donald Trump to meet UK prime minister Keir Starmer in Scotland with trade deal on the agenda – US politics live

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      Discussions are continuing regarding any tariff exemptions for the wines and spirits sectors in the framework trade deal between the European Union and United States, a senior European Commission official said on Monday.The official added that talks in this regard were more advanced in the spirits sector, as opposed to the wines sector.Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. I’m Tom Ambrose and will be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.We start with the news that president Donald Trump will host the British prime minister Keir Starmer at his golf resort in western Scotland on Monday for talks ranging from their recent bilateral trade deal to the worsening hunger crisis in Gaza, the two governments said.Trump, riding high after announcing a huge trade agreement with the European Union late on Sunday, said he expected Starmer would also be pleased, Reuters reported.“The prime minister of the UK, while he’s not involved in this, will be very happy because you know, there’s a certain unity that’s been brought there, too,” Trump said. “He’s going to be very happy to see what we did.”Starmer had hoped to negotiate a drop in U.S. steel and aluminium tariffs as part of the talks, but Trump on Sunday ruled out any changes in the 50% steel and aluminium duties for the EU, and has said the trade deal with Britain is “concluded”British business and trade minister Jonathan Reynolds told the BBC the talks with Trump offered Britain a good chance to advance its arguments, but he did not expect announcements on the issue on Monday.Trump and Starmer were expected to meet at 12pm BST (7am ET) at Trump’s luxury golf resort in Turnberry, on Scotland’s west coast, before travelling on together later to a second sprawling estate owned by Trump in the east, near Aberdeen, where he is due to arrive at 5.25pm.Hundreds of police officers were guarding the perimeter of the Turnberry course and the beach that flanks it, with a helicopter hovering overhead, although there was no sign of protesters outside the course.Starmer was arriving from Switzerland, where England on Sunday won the women’s European football championship final.In other developments:

      Donald Trump has announced a tariff deal with the European Union to end months of difficult negotiations between Washington and Brussels after meeting the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen, at his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland. “This is really the biggest trading partnership in the world so we should give it a shot,” the president said before the private meeting started.

      US House speaker Mike Johnson said he would have “great pause” about granting a pardon or commutation to Ghislaine Maxwell while Kentucky Republican representative Thomas Massie said a pardon should be on the table for the jailed Epstein confidante if she were to give helpful information around the Epstein case.

      A top US medical body has expressed “deep concern” to Robert F Kennedy Jr over news reports that the health secretary plans to overhaul a panel that determines which preventive health measures, including cancer screenings, should be covered by insurance companies. The letter from the the American Medical Association comes after the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Kennedy plans to overhaul the 40-year old US preventive services task force because he regards it as too “woke”, according to sources.

      Thai and Cambodian leaders will meet on Monday for talks to end hostilities, Thailand said, after pressure from Donald Trump to end a deadly border dispute. More

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      Is Trump building a political dynasty? – episode two

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      The United States has had its fair share of political dynasties – The Bushs, the Cheneys, the Kennedys… but has Donald Trump been quietly moulding his own family to become a political force long after he leaves office? Who from within the family fold could be a successor to the president? Or does Trump simply see the presidency as an opportunity to enrich himself and promote the family brand?In this episode, Ashley Parker, a staff writer for The Atlantic, explains why Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner stepped away from politics. The reporter Rosie Gray introduces us to Donald Trump Jr, the louder Trump child, who has enjoyed his unofficial role as spokesperson for his father. And Eric Cortellessa, Time magazine’s senior political correspondent, brings us up-to-date on how Eric Trump is being useful by growing the Trump family brand … and its wealth.Archive: ABC News, ABC11, CBS Mornings, CBS Philadelphia, CNBC, CNN, Fox News, NBC News, PBS Newshour, Skinny Confidential podcast, Tucker Carlson, Sky News Australia, WFAA
      Listen to The Audio Long Read on the Albanian island bought by Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner
      Send your questions and feedback to politicsweeklyamerica@theguardian.com
      Help support the Guardian. Go to theguardian.com/politicspodus More

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      Trump news at a glance: president hails US-EU trade deal as House speaker weighs in on Epstein controversy

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      Donald Trump has hailed what he called “a powerful deal” on tariffs with the European Union to avert a damaging transatlantic trade war after months of tough negotiations between the two sides.“It solves a lot of stuff and was a great decision,” the US president said of the agreement after meeting the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen, in Scotland. The “important” partnership involved the EU agreeing to spend tens of billions of dollars more on US energy products, Trump said.US House speaker Mike Johnson, meanwhile, said he would have “great pause” about granting a pardon to Ghislaine Maxwell while another House Republican said it should be considered as part of an effort to obtain more information about Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.Here’s more on this and the day’s other key Trump administration stories:Trump and von der Leyen announce US-EU trade dealDonald Trump has announced a tariff deal with the European Union to end months of difficult negotiations between Washington and Brussels after meeting the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen, at his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland.“This is really the biggest trading partnership in the world so we should give it a shot,” the president said before the private meeting started.Von der Leyen described it as “a huge deal” that would bring “stability” and “predictability” to both sides.Read the full storyMike Johnson would have ‘great pause’ about a Ghislaine Maxwell pardonUS House speaker Mike Johnson said he would have “great pause” about granting a pardon or commutation to Ghislaine Maxwell while Kentucky Republican representative Thomas Massie said a pardon should be on the table for the jailed Epstein confidante if she were to give helpful information around the Epstein case.On Sunday – after deputy attorney general Todd Blanche met with Maxwell last week –Johnson was asked on NBC about the possibility of a pardon and said: “I think she should have a life sentence at least … That she orchestrated it and was a big part of it, at least under the criminal sanction, I think is an unforgivable thing. So again, not my decision, but I have great pause about that, as any reasonable person would.”Read the full storyTop medical body concerned at RFK Jr’s reported plans to cut preventive health panelA top US medical body has expressed “deep concern” to Robert F Kennedy Jr over news reports that the health secretary plans to overhaul a panel that determines which preventive health measures, including cancer screenings, should be covered by insurance companies.The letter from the the American Medical Association comes after the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Kennedy plans to overhaul the 40-year old US preventive services task force because he regards it as too “woke”, according to sources.Read the full storyWhat else happened today:

      Thai and Cambodian leaders will meet on Monday for talks to end hostilities, Thailand said, after pressure from Donald Trump to end a deadly border dispute.

      UK prime minster Keir Starmer will recall his cabinet from their summer break for an emergency meeting on the Gaza crisis this week as cross-party MPs warned his talks with Donald Trump provided a critical juncture in helping to resolve the conflict.
      Catching up? Here’s what happened on26 July. More

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      ‘Get over it’: some middle America Trump supporters remain unfazed over Epstein files tumult

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      It has united luminaries of the far right, from media personality Tucker Carlson to activist Laura Loomer, from tech billionaire Elon Musk to congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. Typically unwavering in support of Donald Trump, all have criticised his administration’s handling of files about the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.But in towns and cities across the US, a more complicated and nuanced picture emerges, serving as a reminder that – like any other political constituency – Trump voters are not a monolith.Some of the US president’s supporters are undoubtedly animated by the Epstein issue and urging Congress to push for greater transparency. “It’s the number one phone call that we get. By far,” Eric Burlison, a Republican congressman from Missouri, told CNN this week. “It’s probably 500 to one.”But others seem to be shrugging off the crisis as they have so many others that seemed to threaten Trump’s political career. They remain fiercely loyal to a president they believe is delivering low inflation, strong border security and sweeping reversals of progressive policies. They are willing to take White House advice to “trust in Trump”.That was the prevailing mood this week in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a former steel town and Democratic stronghold that swung heavily for Trump in last November’s election.“Trump is right about everything, no matter what he does,” was the blunt take of Teddy, 55, wearing a Stars and Stripes hat and sitting on a bench in Central Park in downtown Johnstown. “Epstein – he’s dead, that’s it, it’s over.”Did he have no concern that Trump’s name is reportedly listed in the Epstein files which have yet to be made public? “That’s a bunch of bullshit,” said Teddy, who didn’t want to give his last name. “The world should move on, get over it.”Curt, 51, another Trump supporter in Central Park, who was recently released from state prison, expressed similar views. The only people who were in a nervous state about Trump’s relationship with Epstein were Democrats, he said.“Epstein was a piece of shit and got what he deserved. As for Trump, they haven’t come up with any evidence that he actually did anything,” he said.Pennsylvania was crucial in tipping Trump over the line of 270 electoral college votes needed to win the White House. Rural areas in the west of the state responded especially favourably to his promises to bring back manufacturing, reduce living costs and drive out immigrants. Trump won Cambria county, which includes Johnstown, by 69% to Kamala Harris’s 30%.View image in fullscreenAt the local Walmart, Pam, who also asked not to give her last name, said she didn’t believe that Trump’s name was in the files. “Trump has morals – it may not seem like he does, but deep down he does. He wanted to protect the United States when nobody else did.”As for media coverage of the story, she said: “My uncle was in the Secret Service. He used to tell me that everything you see on TV is what they want you to believe, not what is actually happening.”Trump has been under growing pressure from political friends and foes alike to release more information about the justice department’s investigation into Epstein, a disgraced financier who officials ruled died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.After Pam Bondi, the US attorney general, promised to disclose additional materials related to possible Epstein clients and the circumstances surrounding his death, the justice department reversed course this month and said there was no basis to continue investigating and no evidence of a client list.That sparked an outcry from some of Trump’s base of supporters who have long believed the government was covering up Epstein’s ties to the rich and powerful. On Friday, Trump denied reports that he was told by Bondi in May that his own name appeared in the Epstein files.Yet interviews by the Guardian in multiple states found Republicans generally willing to give Trump the benefit of the doubt – and suspicious that he is the victim of a double standard.Gavin Rollins, a lawyer from Orlando, Florida, acknowledged disappointment in the way the administration’s initial communications raised expectations but praised Trump for doing a “phenomenal job” overall.“I think on the Epstein thing, I wish things had been handled a little bit differently,” he admitted. “I think the rollout was less than smooth. I would say that it’s important but I also believe in giving grace to people and he’s gotten so many things right.”Jeff Davis, the Republican party chair in Greenville county, South Carolina, accused the media of using the Epstein controversy to falsely portray a divide in the Maga (Make America great again) movement.He said: “I think the Epstein issue is obviously critical and important but I think what most people care about is that the Trump agenda – the Maga ‘America first’ agenda – is being promoted. I think [Epstein is] being used as a distraction.”Davis added: “We can walk and chew gum at the same time. They need to pursue the Epstein thing to the nth degree but I think most people are interested in the results of the things that the Trump administration is doing, as opposed to analysing this issue from the old days.”skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionMary Smith, the party chair in Dickson county, Tennessee, said: “If Donald Trump’s name is linked to something, it’s like a shark fest, whereas if it’s somebody else’s name attached, ‘Oh, it’s no big deal,’ and it’s swept under the rug. I get so tired of that whole focus on Trump.”Despite Democrats’ efforts to keep attention focused on the Epstein saga, some are ready to move on. James Bennett, who runs a lumber company and is Republican party chair in Calhoun county, Alabama, said: “As far as I’m concerned with Trump, it’s about run its course. I know the Democrats are the ones out there trying to put gas on the fire, but you know, the fire’s about out.”That may prove wishful thinking. Just 17% of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the Epstein case, a weaker rating than the president received on any other issue in a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll last week. Among Republicans, 35% approve and 29% disapprove, while the rest said they are unsure or did not answer the question.Whit Ayres, a Republican consultant and pollster, draws a distinction between Trump voters who identify as part of the Maga movement and those attracted by his pledges to bring down inflation, juice the economy, close the southern border and tackle “woke” culture.“For the Maga group, this is a very big deal,” Ayres said. “Many of them bought into all the conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein, whether it was the fact that he abused a bunch of kids and then covered it up or symptomatic of a widespread deep state conspiracy protecting elites and the privileged in general.“For the other people who voted for Trump, it is disturbing but not as compelling as it is for the Maga crowd. They are more interested in whether he is going to be able to bring inflation down than they are in Epstein. That’s not to say that Epstein is not a disturbing story for them, but it’s more a matter of perspective.”Yet another survey published this week again challenged the conventional wisdom. An Economist/YouGov poll found that Republican voters who identify as “Maga” were more likely to approve of how the president is dealing with the Epstein investigation (56%) than those who do not (38%). Overall among Republicans, 45% approve and 25% disapprove, with the remaining 30% unsure.One such Maga voter is Mike Boatman, 57, who has attended about a hundred Trump campaign rallies, including the one last year in Butler, Pennsylvania, where the then Republican nominee survived an assassination attempt. His faith remains unshaken.“I’m backing President Trump,” said Boatman, an independent contractor from Evansville, Indiana. “He knows more than what we know about the situation. There’s more important concerns for me than the Epstein files.“There’s so much that President Trump needs to get done. He’s got three and a half years to get it done. Don’t get me wrong, I’m against paedophiles and whoever has done that with Epstein should be punished. But there’s more important things.”Still, the story continues to dominate headlines and put heat on Republicans in the House of Representatives. They went on recess a day early to avoid holding a vote on releasing Epstein material. Mike Johnson, the House speaker, insisted the Epstein case is “not a hoax” despite Trump using that very word.The president has been defiant, describing supporters hung up on the issue as “weaklings” who were helping Democrats. “I don’t want their support anymore!” Trump said in a social media post.This week, he sought to distract his followers by making the baseless claim that Barack Obama and his officials fabricated intelligence reports to assert that Russia interfered in the 2016 election, accusing his predecessor of treason. Next he might try something even more extreme to change the narrative.Reed Galen, president of the Union, a pro-democracy coalition, said: “My real fear is that he gets us into some sort of Wag the Dog thing where all of the distraction isn’t working so he decides to throw up some gigantic bright, shiny object that gets us all in trouble.”But otherwise Galen is sceptical that the Epstein scandal will have far-reaching political implications. “To me, the flip side of this is: what difference does it make? I shouldn’t say that as a means of diminishing the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein or the pain of his victims. I’m looking at this from a purely electoral perspective.“He’s not going to leave office. The midterms are 15 months, 16 months away. Do I think this is fodder for the left and the media and even the true Magas who are like, ‘What’s happening?’ Yeah. Do I think that ultimately, a year from now, we’ll be talking about this? Hard to believe.”

      This article was amended on 27 July 2025. Trump won Cambria county by 69% to Kamala Harris’s 30%, not by 68% to Joe Biden’s 31% as an earlier version stated. More