Americans sceptical of Trump on Epstein, poll finds
Americans are deeply skeptical of President Donald Trump’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, but Trump is growing support among his core Republican followers who have long focused on the case.
The poll found that most Americans believe the Trump administration concealed information about the late sex offender, including his death in 2019 and his ties to rich and powerful people, and disbelieve Trump’s claim that he was unaware of Epstein’s alleged trafficking of young girls when they were friends decades ago.
The poll found that only 23 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the ongoing scandal, while 52 percent disapprove.
But the poll found he eased his supporters’ concerns: 53 percent of Republicans said they approved of his handling of the issue, up from 44 percent in November.
That’s still far below Trump’s 85 percent approval rating among Republicans overall.
This could be very important. Trump fueled conspiracy theories about Epstein before returning to the White House, with prominent supporters accusing his administration of a cover-up.
Republicans and Democrats in Congress defied Trump in November and passed a law requiring the Justice Department to release documents related to its long-running investigation into Epstein by Dec. 19.
The online survey, conducted from Dec. 3 to Dec. 8, found continued skepticism about the U.S. government’s role.
62 percent of respondents (including 56 percent of Republicans) said they believed the government withheld information about Epstein’s death, which was ruled a suicide in a Manhattan jail in 2019 while he was facing federal sex trafficking charges.
An even higher share (70 percent) said they thought the government was withholding information about people who may have been involved in the late financier’s alleged sex trafficking of young girls, including 62 percent of Republicans.
And only 18 percent said they thought Trump did not know about Epstein’s alleged crimes before they became public.
Among Republicans, the rate was 34 percent.
Trump has said he was unaware of Epstein’s activities and said they broke off their friendship before Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to a charge of soliciting a minor for prostitution.
