President Donald Trump has been hit with negative polling regarding the U.S. government’s response to the so-called Jeffrey Epstein files.
According to two polls, the majority of Americans think the government is covering up evidence about the late wealthy financier and convicted sex offender.
Mark Mitchell, head pollster at Rasmussen Reports, called the polling “brutal.”
Why It Matters
The Trump administration has come under increasing pressure in recent days, most notably among the president’s supporters, following the Department of Justice’s announcement that it would not release the promised Epstein client list, with Attorney General Pam Bondi accused of a lack of transparency.
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
What To Know
According to a The Economist/YouGov poll of 1,680 adults, 79 percent of Americans want all documents pertaining to Epstein to be released. Meanwhile, 67 percent believe the government is covering up evidence related to Epstein, including 59 percent of Trump voters.
The poll was conducted between July 11 and July 14 and had a margin of error of +/- 3.4 percent.
Another poll of 1,164 likely voters, conducted by conservative-leaning Rasmussen Reports, found that 56 percent of likely voters don’t believe the FBI and DOJ are telling the truth about Epstein, while 21 percent do believe the government.
This poll was conducted between July 8 and 10. The margin of error was +/- 3 percentage points.
Mitchell called the Rasmussen polling “thermonuclear” in a YouTube video explaining the poll results. He said Trump could lose the House and Senate over the polling, which he described in the title of the video as “brutal,” followed by “America doesn’t trust Trump on Epstein.”
Other polls conducted after the DOJ made its call on the Epstein affair suggest Trump’s approval rating has declined as a result of this backtrack.
The White House had initially ordered a review of the case and said it would publish names and evidence about associates of Epstein, who died by suicide in jail in August 2019, weeks after his arrest on sex trafficking charges.
However, a memo from the Department of Justice and the FBI, released on July 7, stated that there is no “client list,” and no further charges will be brought.
What People Are Saying
Head pollster at Rasmussen Reports, Mark Mitchell, said in a YouTube video on Tuesday: “Today, you are going to see some absolutely thermonuclear polling…[Americans] are super p***** right now because they do not like what is happening.”
Richard Johnson, a senior lecturer in U.S. politics and policy at Queen Mary University of London in the U.K, told Newsweek: “As I understand it, Trump has instructed Pam Bondi to release credible files relating to Jeffrey Epstein. From what I have read, the issue is that there are affidavits from a range of accusers, and there is some concern that innocent people might be accused of terrible things, with no legal basis. We had a situation in Britain about a decade ago where a spurious individual claimed there was a portfolio containing the names of pedophiles in the British government, destroying reputations and lives, only to find out later (after some of the accused had died) that the accuser had made it up. So, there is a responsibility from the U.S. government, whoever might be in charge, to ensure that they do not release information that lacks credibility. I presume that is the issue which the DOJ is currently faced. How can they be sure that the accusations are true? I would infer that the Biden administration faced similar dilemmas, about which Trump and other Republicans were less understanding during the presidential campaign. Now in government, they see the complications.”
Mark Shanahan, who teaches American politics at the University of Surrey, previously told Newsweek: “The Epstein backlash has the power to hurt Trump badly and will be far and away the largest factor in his latest polling slip. Releasing the Epstein Files is the Holy Grail for the MAGA base.”
What Happens Next
The backlash over the Epstein memo is likely to continue. On Tuesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson urged full transparency and public disclosure related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
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