Trump tries to stay calm on camera, but behind the scenes he’s in full meltdown as the Epstein scandal won’t go away

Donald Trump is reportedly growing increasingly exasperated with how his own administration is handling the Jeffrey Epstein controversy—a scandal that continues to dominate the news cycle and eclipse his political agenda.

According to The Washington Post, Trump has been privately fuming that the uproar over Epstein has sidelined other key issues he’s trying to push. Two sources familiar with the president’s mood described him as frustrated and increasingly impatient with the lack of control over the situation. The Post spoke to nearly a dozen insiders who painted the picture of a White House spiraling—caught flat-footed by the blowback, especially from Trump’s own base, and without a cohesive strategy to respond.

Officials had reportedly miscalculated the public’s reaction, hoping that the fury over the unreleased Epstein documents would eventually fade. That hasn’t happened.

“Many are wondering how sustainable this is going to be for all the parties involved—be it the FBI director or attorney general,” one source told the Post, describing the Department of Justice and the FBI as “breaking at the seams.”

Much of the chaos began on July 7, when the DOJ and FBI issued a joint statement confirming that Epstein died by suicide and insisting that no “client list” exists—a direct counter to conspiracy theories long fueled by Trump’s supporters. The memo also stated that no further information would be released, frustrating many who had been led to believe otherwise.

In the fallout, FBI deputy director Dan Bongino—himself a former conspiracy-peddling radio host—allegedly considered resigning after a heated confrontation with Attorney General Pam Bondi. Bondi, who earlier this year had teased the potential release of Epstein files, became a central target for blame.

At the time, Trump was reportedly furious with Bongino, though his administration kept a public front of unity.

Behind closed doors, however, the president lashed out—criticizing not just Democrats, but also his own supporters for refusing to let the issue go. He attempted to change the narrative by calling the Epstein uproar a Democratic “hoax” and labeling the MAGA faithful’s fixation as the obsession of “weaklings.”

To deflect attention, Trump went on to declassify records related to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. and amplified a stunning allegation from his Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard. Gabbard claimed that Obama-era officials had orchestrated a “treasonous conspiracy” against Trump—an accusation that former President Obama’s office called “ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction.”

Despite these efforts, the Epstein fallout hasn’t faded. Instead, renewed media coverage has spotlighted Trump’s social ties with Epstein dating back to the ‘80s and continuing through the early 2000s.

“He does not want to create a bigger spectacle by firing anyone,” another insider told The Washington Post, indicating that while Trump may be angry, he’s hesitant to shake up his administration amid the growing storm.

Stephen A. Saltzburg, who served in the Reagan-era Justice Department, told the paper, “Now, they seem to be in full-bore panic mode, trying to change the subject and flailing in an effort to make sense of what makes no sense.”

Meanwhile, some within the FBI are reportedly still pushing for more transparency. “That frustration remains,” MSNBC’s Shelby Talcott reported. “There’s still sort of this quiet debate. And then of course you have the Trump base who has been relentless in letting the president know that they are unsatisfied with how this has all happened.”

Even after weeks of distractions, diversions, and deflections, Trump has yet to regain control of the narrative. The Epstein file remains a thorn in the side of an administration struggling to contain both internal dysfunction and external backlash.