Trump Team Thinks JD Vance Is Conspiracy Theorist After Epstein Saga

Other members of President Trump’s Cabinet began to consider Vice President JD Vance a “conspiracy theorist” as he pushed for the release of the Epstein files and an interview with Ghislaine Maxwell in the midst of their panicked attempt to snuff out the biggest controversy of Trump’s second term.

New reporting from The New York Times reveals that while the Cabinet remained staunch in their public defense of Trump, there was chaos behind the scenes last year over Trump’s deep connections to the sexual predator. Vance played a large role in the internal discord, as he seemed to be the loudest voice pushing “the darkest theories about Epstein and a cabal of predators hidden within the country’s ruling class”—leading White House chief of staff Susie Wiles to call him a major conspiracy theorist.

When Trump’s Cabinet learned that The Wall Street Journal was set to publish its story on Trump’s birthday letter to Epstein, the team met in the Situation Room to discuss their options. Vance pushed for the administration to fully release the files quickly, suggesting that they have Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell either do an interview with Tucker Carlson or testify before Congress. In Vance’s mind, this would solidify Trump’s alibi and secure confidence with their MAGA base—which happened to care very much about the Epstein files. Both plans were struck down, and the team pointed out that Maxwell would want something in return.

“Pardoning Maxwell, a trafficker of young girls, would create a huge P.R. problem,” communications director Steven Cheung argued.

“We can’t offer Ghislaine Maxwell anything,” said White House deputy chief of staff James Blair. “A, I don’t know why we would. And B, if we give Ghislaine Maxwell any sort of break whatsoever and then she turns around and says nice things about us, or says nice things about us and we give her a break, it will undermine the entire point of her saying good things. That will feed the conspiracy theory, period. If there’s nothing for her to say that hurts us, we shouldn’t have to offer her anything.”

The report makes it abundantly clear that there was no consensus on how to handle the political tsunami of the Epstein files, as it also details the falling out between former Attorney General Pam Bondi, former FBI Co–Deputy Director Dan Bongino, and FBI Director Kash Patel. The drama between them came to a head after a tumultuous few months in which Bondi went from claiming she had Epstein’s client list sitting on her desk to handing out big white binders to MAGA influencers, to then claiming there was essentially nothing new in the files.

“You fucked this thing up from the start,” Bongino screamed at her, a day after the DOJ memo claiming there was nothing more in the files to be released. “The way you’ve been talking about this—that dumb fucking charade with the Epstein files, the ‘They’re on my desk’ nonsense, all the promises to the folks out there.”

While it’s unclear where Vance stands among Trump and the rest of the Cabinet now, it’s clear that he’ll have to answer for the internal decisions made last summer for the entirety of his political career.

Possible Republican cuts to Social Security was too controversial of an issue for one member of Congress to handle. 

Republican Representative Rob Wittman of Virginia was asked by Meidas Touch outside of the Capitol Tuesday about House Speaker Mike Johnson’s rumored plans to cut Social Security, and he immediately tried to pretend he couldn’t answer the question. Wittman grabbed his phone and started an imaginary conversation, with his phone screen clearly showing that he wasn’t on a call.  

Wittman fully committed to his bit, ignoring follow-up questions and pretending to discuss a fictional appointment while walking by cars for over a full minute. When his “call” ended, he proceeded to leave the Capitol grounds. It’s not the first time Wittman has faked a phone call to avoid speaking with reporters, as he did the same thing to Drop Site News reporter Julian Andreone last week. 

On Monday, Johnson said in a radio show appearance that “entitlement programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and things like Social Security” need to be “adjusted and fixed,” which appears to indicate that cuts are coming. 

Ken Martin, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, attacked Johnson on X, saying, “Republicans have a plan to cut Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid—after already passing the largest healthcare cut in history. Higher costs, less healthcare. That’s what Republicans are running on this November.” 

In response, Johnson accused Democrats and the media of fearmongering, claiming that Republicans are the only ones doing anything about fraud and abuse. But the GOP’s record, particularly during President Trump’s second term, shows that they have no misgivings about cutting programs like Medicare or Social Security. If they retain control of Congress after November, those cuts are almost certainly coming. 

President Donald Trump posted a humiliating economic statistic Tuesday that revealed his kindergarten-level understanding of economics.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that the U.S. trade deficit had “widened by the most in nearly 34 years,” linking an article from six months ago that said that the trade gap had increased 94.6 percent to $56.8 billion after exports tumbled in November. As of April, the trade deficit is even wider at $55.9 billion.

A widening trade deficit is not a good sign for Trump’s economy, especially considering the president’s vow to erase it altogether. So how did the post end up on Trump’s timeline?

It’s not clear where the mistake was made, but Trump’s previous statements suggest that he doesn’t understand what a trade deficit is.

The president has described the trade deficit as a “loss,” even though it simply indicates that one country spends more on goods from another country than that second country spends on goods from the first. Economists say that having a trade deficit is not an inherently bad thing, because the U.S. simply can’t and shouldn’t make everything. But Trump has insisted that a wide trade deficit means the U.S. is being taken for a ride.

It appears this misunderstanding may be more widespread throughout the administration. Last month, the DOJ suffered a resounding legal loss because it misrepresented Section 122 of the Trade Act: It claimed that the phrase “balance-of-payments deficits” in the law is the same as a “trade deficit.” It is not, a court ruled.

There’s also a simple explanation for Trump’s post: The president is days away from turning 80 years old, prone to having senior moments, and may have gotten confused.

If that’s the case, then the post is still concerning. Trump uses his social media to speak to Americans on a global stage, make wild threats against foreign countries, manipulate the stock market—and apparently also post outdated information about the U.S economy.

In either case, someone take this old man’s phone away, please.

The president’s $60 million, made-for-TV birthday brawl isn’t drawing any prominent names.

The UFC is hosting its America 250 celebration on Sunday, June 14—Donald Trump’s 80th birthday. It will be the first ever cage match on the White House lawn, but even the organization’s biggest celebrity fans seem to be backing out of the historic event.

So far, the guest list includes first lady Melania Trump, Donald Trump Jr. and his new wife Bettina Trump, Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner, and Eric and Lara Trump, according to insiders that spoke with the New York Post.

Ringside seats for nonmilitary personnel are exclusively invite-only. The president has reportedly invited 1,000 guests to the event, while UFC CEO Dana White and TKO CEO Ari Emanuel have been allocated 200 tickets each.

But A-listers are reportedly skipping this card. Many of White’s famous invitees, such as Adam Sandler, Jared Leto, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and Mario Lopez, are reportedly dodging the visual, reported Vanity Fair. White also invited Guy Ritchie, Tom Brady, and Jason Statham, though their representatives have not responded to inquiries about their possible attendance.

Part of that could boil down to cost. While watching the fight from screens at the White House Ellipse will be free to some 85,000 members of the viewing public, ringside attendance is exclusive to military and VIP tickets. And invitees might not want to shell out for it.

That latter category has been bundled into “ultra-premium” packages that cost as much as $1.5 million. The deal includes access to multiple UFC events, reserved seating on the White House lawn, VIP receptions, and floor tickets to UFC 329, which pits Conor McGregor against Max Holloway for the second time on July 11.

Luck does not seem to be on the president’s side for his multimillion-dollar birthday extravaganza, either. The whole kit and caboodle could get rained out: Washington is expecting showers Sunday evening.

The U.S. annual inflation rate is the highest it’s been in three years—a clear consequence of President Trump’s widely unpopular, very expensive war on Iran, which drags on even as he constantly claims that he’s close to a deal.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday that the consumer price index rose 0.5 percent last month, with energy costs accounting for 60 percent of that increase. The annual inflation rate is at 4.2 percent—the highest since April 2023.

“Americans are getting squeezed financially by inflation that’s back at a three-year high,” Navy Federal Credit Union chief economist Heather Long told CNBC. “The frustration for many Americans is that so many of the basics are up in price right now—gas, food, electricity, and medical care are all clear pain points that are above 3 percent inflation. Ending the war in Iran will help to moderate inflation, but the worst is likely still to come for rising food prices.”

Trump, for his part, has claimed that Iran will “pay the price” for not making a deal. But it’s clear at this point that Iran is willing to draw this conflict out so that American’s pockets hurt more and more every day. It’ll be a difficult sell to midterm voters with inflation at a three-year high and a cost-of-living crisis that was already dire—two issues Trump ran on solving. And it’s entirely his fault.