They’re having a meltdown over at r/conservative, the principle political hub for right-wing customers on Reddit. In thread after thread after thread after thread, pro-MAGA customers are shedding their minds over President Donald Trump’s gaslighting on convicted intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein.
On Wednesday, a livid Trump called his personal supporters “weaklings” for demanding his administration launch the Epstein case recordsdata. He mentioned his “PAST supporters have purchased into this ‘bullshit,’” and declared, “I don’t need their assist anymore!”
Daaaamn. Epstein has been a central fixation of right-wing conspiracy theorists for years—one Trump himself has gleefully exploited. He repeatedly promoted the concept that Democrats, particularly former President Invoice Clinton, had been implicated. And whereas the overwhelming majority of the conspiracy ecosystem is nonsense, there is a respectable core query: Who had been the highly effective individuals who abused the underage ladies Epstein trafficked? If his co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted of serving to site visitors the ladies, who had been the shoppers?
That hole in public data—i.e., verifiable crimes however only a few named perpetrators—has lengthy fueled the Epstein conspiracies. And now Trump is pretending it’s all a “Hoax”? Even his base isn’t shopping for it.
For the primary time in reminiscence, a big chunk of Trump’s on-line base is taking off the blinders. They’re not simply livid that Trump is looking the Epstein recordsdata a Democratic smear job—they’re seeing it within the context of broader betrayals:
There are numerous feedback like that one: Trump mentioned he’d finish the battle in Ukraine and lower the debt however now he’s arming Ukraine and signed a spending invoice that provides trillions to the deficit. I need him to support Ukraine (assuming he doesn’t flip-flop), nevertheless it’s enraging his fanbase that loves Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. And the finances deficit? His base doesn’t but understand how badly this invoice will gut rural America—however they do realize it explodes the deficit.
And but … none of that made them waver a lot. Not till now. Not till Epstein.
And Trump is so rattled by the backlash that he’s pretending to dump them earlier than they’ll dump him. “I don’t need their assist anymore!” he wrote in Wednesday’s Reality Social submit.
What occurs subsequent is anybody’s guess. By no means underestimate the cult’s capacity to rationalize themselves again into his arms. However this time? This break feels actual. It’d lastly be too deep to fix.
