FBI, DOJ Epstein memo sparks right-wing outrage

The joint memo from the FBI and Department of Justice was meant to provide transparency and increase trust. Unfortunately for the administration, it drew only rampant criticism and distrust that has spread like a wildfire.

On Sunday, the Trump administration released a memorandum that powerfully explained there was nothing to see or hear about the death of infamous financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The memo claimed that after a full investigation where every nook and cranny was searched, there was no “blackmail list,” no sign of co-conspirators, and certainly no evidence of wrongdoing in his death.

This sparked a flurry of negative reactions across social media, with only one prominent conservative backing the administration’s fumble.

‘Was she lying then or is she lying now?’

On Monday, BlazeTV’s Liz Wheeler immediately called for Attorney General Pam Bondi to be fired.

“If I’m President Trump, I would not tolerate this behavior anymore. She has become a LIABILITY to his administration,” Wheeler told host Glenn Beck.

Wheeler added that if the Epstein memo is indeed telling it like it is, the attorney general should not have assumed “its veracity and publicize[d] it for clicks.”

Missouri Republican Rep. Eric Burlison made a series of similar remarks in which he called for releasing any missing documents.

“The DOJ can’t just say ‘case closed’ on Epstein and expect the American people to move on. Full transparency is not optional. This won’t cut it,” Burlison wrote on X.

The congressman even boldly claimed the administration could be concealing information.

“Nobody is believing this. Either they’re hiding something, or they’re inept. Or incompetent,” he added.

With such harsh criticisms being levied at the Trump administration, there were only a few willing to step in and defend them.

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So far, the Daily Wire’s Ben Shapiro is the only prominent conservative to come out in defense of the administration, seemingly taking the facts presented in the memo at face value. Shapiro also insisted that any critics who are dissatisfied with the DOJ and the FBI’s findings ought to produce their own evidence supporting their theories on Epstein.

“Does this put to bed all inquiries? Of course not,” Shapiro said on his show Monday. “People can continue to speculate as much as they want, and I think there are still open questions here regarding how did Epstein make his money. That’s a very serious open question, and the speculation for a long time was he made his money from blackmail.”

Shapiro admitted that some major questions remained unanswered, but he also felt that FBI Director Kash Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino are telling the truth.

“But the DOJ and the FBI, again, run by people like Dan Bongino and Kash Patel and Pam Bondi … people you elected and put into these positions to get you the truth on this matter are telling you that he was not murdered, he did not keep a client list, and he did not blackmail powerful figures,” Shapiro said.

“If you are willing to throw that over and claim they’re lying, then I’d like to see you present your evidence that they are in fact lying because I know Dan. I don’t think Dan Bongino is lying to me,” Shapiro added. “I know Kash Patel a little bit. I don’t think Kash Patel is lying to me. I don’t think these people are lying to me.”

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Despite Shapiro’s defense of Bondi, Bongino, and Patel’s findings, others have noted that certain discrepancies remain unaddressed.

Critics point to Bondi’s previous remarks about the Epstein files being on her “desk” as evidence that the administration is not being as transparent as they claim.

“Sorry but this is unacceptable,” investigative reporter Robby Starbuck wrote on his X page. “Was she lying then or is she lying now?” he asked.

Similarly, commentator and actor Russell Brand asked what happened to Trump supporters’ aggression toward “deep state obfuscation.”

“We were promised the Epstein client list and flight logs — now we’re being told they don’t even exist,” Brand wrote on X.

Political pundits like Tucker Carlson have gone even further, accusing the FBI and the DOJ of fully participating in a cover-up.

“So let’s just assess this logically,” Carlson said on his show Tuesday. “The current DOJ under Pam Bondi is covering up crimes. Very serious crimes by their own description.”

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