President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa in the Oval Office of the White House on Wednesday in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump is lashing out at his own supporters, accusing them of being duped by Democrats, as he tries to clamp down on criticism over his administration’s handling of much-hyped records in the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation, which Trump now calls a “Hoax.”

“Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this “bull—-,” hook, line, and sinker,” Trump wrote Wednesday on his Truth Social site, using an expletive in his post. “They haven’t learned their lesson, and probably never will, even after being conned by the Lunatic Left for 8 long years.”

“Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work, don’t even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success, because I don’t want their support anymore! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” he went on.

The rhetoric marks a dramatic escalation for the Republican president, who has broken with some of his most loyal backers on issues in the past, but never with such fervor. Though Trump cannot legally run for another term, he will need strong support from a united party to pass his remaining legislative agenda in a narrowly-divided Congress and an energized base to turn out in next year’s midterm elections.

Dangled documents

The schism centers on the Trump administration’s handling of documents related to Epstein, who was found dead in his New York jail cell in August 2019, weeks after his arrest on sex trafficking charges. Last week, the Justice Department and the FBI acknowledged in a memo that Epstein did not maintain a “client list” to whom underage girls were trafficked. They also said no more files related to the investigation would be made public, despite past promises from Attorney General Pam Bondi that had raised the expectations of conservative influencers and conspiracy theorists.

“It’s a new administration and everything is going to come out to the public,” she had said.

The reversal sparked fury among Trump’s most loyal defenders, who have turned on Bondi, in particular. But Trump has repeatedly said he maintains confidence in his attorney general and had instead chided those who continue to press the issue.

“I don’t understand what the interest or what the fascination is,” he said Tuesday, after unsuccessfully urging his “‘boys’ and, in some cases, ‘gals'” to stop wasting “Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about.”

In an Oval Office appearance Wednesday after the Truth post, Trump made clear that he was done with the story and said he had “lost a lot of faith in certain people.”

“It’s all been a big hoax,” he told reporters. “It’s perpetrated by the Democrats, and some stupid Republicans and foolish Republicans fall into the net.”

He complained that Bondi has been “waylaid” over her handling of the case and has given out all “credible information” about the wealthy financier. “If she finds anymore credible information she’ll give that, too,” Trump said. “What more can she do than that?”

Trump and many figures in his administration, including FBI Director Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, have spent years stoking dark and disproved conspiracy theories like those surrounding Epstein, including embracing QAnon-tinged propaganda that casts Trump as a savior sent to demolish the “deep state.”

Anger still brewing

Trump’s comments have not been enough to quell those who are still demanding answers. Some of the podcasters and pro-Trump influencers who helped rally support for Trump in the 2024 campaign said Wednesday they were disappointed or puzzled by his comments.

Far-right conspiracy theorist and podcaster Alex Jones called Trump’s handling of the Epstein situation “the biggest train wreck I’ve ever seen.”

“It’s not in character for you to be acting like this,” he said in a video Tuesday. “I support you, but we built the movement you rode in on. You’re not the movement. You just surfed in on it.”

Benny Johnson, a conservative podcaster, said on his show that he is a fan of Trump’s movement but is trying to “give tough love and speak on behalf of the base.”

“Maybe it hasn’t been framed correctly for the president,” Johnson said. “I don’t know.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., in an interview on Benny Johnson’s show Tuesday, had called for the Justice Department to “put everything out there and let the people decide.”