Donald “grumpy” Trump has again lashed out at a reporter over questions on his Epstein investigation. Sadly, attacking journalists isn’t a new tool in his political kit to escape accountability.
At Palm Beach on Monday, Trump snapped at a reporter asking whether his newly launched Epstein investigation is legit. “Massie says he’s concerned that the Epstein probe you’re calling for could be a smokescreen to block the release of more files. Is that the case?” the reporter asked. Just hours ago, Trump had publicly ordered a broader inquiry into Epstein’s ties to prominent Democrats.
In response, Trump called the journalist “a terrible reporter,” accusing the media of deflecting from his “tremendous success.” He also attacked Rep. Thomas Massie, suggesting his criticism of the probe is driven by weak polling and disloyalty to the Republican Party. “A guy like Massie, his poll numbers are showing he has a 6% approval rating right now. We call him Rand Paul Jr. because he never votes for the Republican Party,” Trump remarked.
Well, I don’t want to talk about it because fake news like you, you’re a terrible reporter and fake news like you, they just keep bringing that up to deflect from the tremendous success of the Trump administration.
Massie recently raised doubts about Trump’s directive to Pam Bondi and the FBI to probe Epstein’s connections to figures such as Bill Clinton. He questioned whether the investigation would result in real transparency and called it a way to delay document releases. But Trump’s frustration isn’t new. During a Cabinet meeting four months ago, he interrupted a reporter, saying, “Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein? … this guy, this creep … that is unbelievable.”
When the reporter pressed Bondi about the alleged missing jail-cell video, Trump told her she was “wasting time.” He asserted the question was a “desecration” of more important tragedies, which are being overshadowed by the Epstein obsession. This reveals a clear pattern. Whenever reporters press Trump on Epstein, his answers become angry and dismissive.
On social media, people were quick to note this pattern. One remarked, “When he’s boxed into a corner by a good reporter, he insults them.” Another hoped that a reporter would give Trump a befitting reply at least once. “Someone needs to reply to him one of these times,” they said. “President Trump, you call me a terrible reporter, and I respect your opinion. The American people believe you are a terrible president. What would your response be to your plummeting polling?”
One pointed out the irony how Trump “bleats about the Epstein files constantly,” but growls when reporters ask about it. Users also said that immediately going on an attack mode raises more questions about Trump than he dodges. The bottom line is, Trump’s repeated dismissal of Epstein questions, calling them irrelevant or “desecrating,” reeks of evasion. And it’s funny coming from a leader who once promised to make the Epstein files public.
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