Criticism over Epstein Comments
Scott Jennings, a Republican strategist, took aim at Atlantic Contributor Jemere Hill for expressing happiness over the backlash against President Donald Trump related to Jeffrey Epstein, while seemingly disregarding the victims of the late pedophile.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump labeled the situation an “Epstein scam,” accusing Democrats of distracting from the positive achievements of his administration. During a segment on “CNN Newsnight,” host Abby Phillip read Trump’s post, prompting Hill to call the incident “delicious” and mention Jennings’ reaction, suggesting he was blaming her for remaining calm.
“This is a delicious, unique goal for many reasons. He was a part of the Republican party, and they spun this wild conspiracy theory about who was in these files,” Hill stated. “When they could theorize and dig into the conspiracy around the Democrats involved, it was all fun and games, but now their base expects some sort of revelation.”
Hill continued, “If there were anything on either side, we’d probably know it by now. But the way he used conspiracy theories to solidify his base means they’re not likely to buy into anything he says. So, I’m actually pleased to see him making such a major misstep.”
Jennings pushed back, condemning Hill and others on the left for treating the Epstein situation as a political tool against Trump rather than a tragic matter of justice.
“I mean, using the word ‘Hey’ to start off and say you’re ‘very satisfied’ while talking about a young woman who was abused—this is a tragic case. [Ghislaine] Maxwell helped traffic these women, and she’s in prison. This whole situation is very sad,” he remarked.
He added that he perceives Democrats as being politically thrilled by the situation without genuinely caring about the victims, claiming their concern emerged only recently when it became a means to attack Trump. “It’s not just about laughing at the situation but the real issue and the victims involved,” he noted, criticizing the language used as unacceptable.
Hill countered, suggesting that conservatives engage in similar tactics as the Democrats do now.
On a related note, House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries confirmed that the Democratic Party’s current push to obtain more documents linked to Epstein isn’t rooted in a genuine urgency for justice.
Chris Cuomo from News Nation accused Democrats of weaponizing these documents merely to undermine Trump instead of focusing on justice for the victims. He asked, “If they care, why didn’t they do anything during the Biden administration? Just like chasing down the mythical client list or the outlandish notions about Epstein being murdered, it seems the people in MAGA circles want to discover if there are more responsible parties when it comes to human trafficking and sexual abuse. The Democrats don’t seem interested in that—they’re just aiming to get under Trump’s skin.”
