Massie says Trump wants him out for targeting the ‘Epstein class’
Rep. Thomas Massie says President Trump wants him pushed out of Congress because he’s trying to expose what he calls the “Epstein class.”
Mr. Trump is backing Massie’s GOP primary challenger, Ed Gallrein, a retired Navy SEAL.
Mr. Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, California Democrat, led the charge to force the Department of Justice to release millions of files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex‑trafficking charges.
“Donald Trump told us that even though, you know, he had dinner with these kinds of people in New York City and West Palm Beach, that he would be transparent — but he’s not,” Mr. Massie said on ABC’s “This Week.” “He’s still in with the Epstein class. This is the Epstein administration, and they’re attacking me for trying to get these files.”
Mr. Massie’s reelection fight is shaping up to be a major test of Mr. Trump’s influence over a Republican Party he has reshaped during his nonconsecutive terms in the White House.
The president has gone after Mr. Massie repeatedly, calling him a “loser” and accusing him of disloyalty to the MAGA agenda. He’s urging supporters to rally behind Mr. Gallrein in the May 19 primary.
Mr. Massie has split with Mr. Trump on several foreign‑policy moves, including strikes against Iran and the effort to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, arguing that Congress should have been consulted. He’s also questioned continued U.S. aid to Israel as part of his broader opposition to foreign assistance, which he says would be better spent at home.
Their biggest public clash, though, has been over the Epstein files. The DOJ has signaled that the investigation is over, frustrating voters, including parts of the MAGA base, who do not believe the story is over.
The issue recently took center stage in Washington after Attorney General Pam Bondi sparred with members of the House Judiciary Committee over her department’s handling of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which Mr. Massie and Mr. Khanna shepherded through Congress.
On Sunday, Mr. Massie criticized Ms. Bondi’s appearance before the committee, saying she seemed more interested in confrontation than answers.
“I don’t think Pam Bondi has confidence in Pam Bondi,” he said. “She wasn’t confident enough to engage in anything but name-calling in the hearing. So no, I don’t have confidence in her.”
Mr. Trump, for his part, celebrated Ms. Bondi’s performance.
“AG Pam Bondi, under intense fire from the Trump Deranged Radical Left Lunatics, was fantastic at yesterday’s Hearing on the never ending saga of Jeffrey Epstein,” Mr. Trump wrote.
