Martin Jay
Is the Trump presidency going to be remembered only for rebranding the Epstein files as the "Clinton Files"?
"The photos depict a web of unsavoury relationships and associations that complicate both Democratic efforts to keep the focus on Trump and the incumbent president's desire to move on from the issue entirely," reported the AP when the first major tranche of photos from the so-called Epstein files was released in mid-December.
Bill Clinton's prominent appearance in the photos at least sheds some light on why Democrats, when in power, refused to lift the lid on the stinking Epstein affair-doing so would have been akin to shooting themselves in the foot, and Joe Biden obviously didn't want to drop the Clintons in it.
Many might argue we shouldn't be shocked to see Bill feature in this tawdry affair, given his reputation for an inability to control his carnal needs. The list of women he has been accused of assaulting is extensive, as are the lengths to which Hillary has gone to protect him.
Two things emerge from this latest batch of photos, which show Bill Clinton in close proximity to very young girls while spending time with Epstein. First, the Trump administration has decided that if the scandal is going to erupt, they might as well land the first political blow-and so they have reached for the lowest-hanging fruit: Bill. Second, the Clintons themselves will likely make a mockery of the entire corrupt U.S. political system by bypassing its legal institutions. They have already started this by ignoring congressional committee requests to appear and testify.
But in any case, the gloves are off. This is now outright war between Republicans and Democrats-and the latter will do everything in its power, using its deep contacts within institutions like the FBI, to get its hands on the Trump photos, which have, of course, been removed from the official release.
However, it is fair to say Clinton appears to have been even closer to Epstein than Trump was.
When Clinton was president, records show Epstein visited the White House multiple times. Later, after Clinton left office, Epstein assisted with some of the former president's philanthropic efforts. Clinton flew multiple times on Epstein's private jet, nicknamed the "Lolita Express," including on a humanitarian trip to Africa in 2002 with disgraced actor Kevin Spacey and comedian Chris Tucker.
Even Democratic-leaning journalists in the U.S. note that Clinton's personal weaknesses have always clashed with his public moralizing-and his association with Epstein serves as a stark reminder of that. This goes far beyond receiving oral sex from an intern in the Oval Office. It stretches back decades.
His 1992 campaign was rocked by rumours of an affair with Gennifer Flowers, which he denied at the time. His presidency was hit even harder when he was impeached in 1998 for lying under oath and obstructing justice after denying any sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky. He ultimately acknowledged an "inappropriate" affair with her.
Currently, it seems the pressure from Democrats to release the files-whether genuine or not-has backfired, as the trove of photos reveals numerous images of Clinton and Epstein together. In fact, these pictures of the two hanging out as old friends are arguably more damaging than the ones in which a young girl's face has been pixelated-supposedly a DOJ initiative to "protect minors or victims." That framing alone is a clean shot designed to hit its target, and for now, it is Clinton in the frame, facing media wrath even from traditionally Democratic-leaning outlets like CNN. Recently, conservative CNN commentator Scott Jennings suggested the files should be renamed the "Clinton Files."
Of course, simply being photographed next to Epstein is not a crime and could, in certain cases, reflect innocent proximity. A number of famous faces appear in the first batch of files-alongside Clinton and Prince Andrew, there are also shots of musicians Mick Jagger and Michael Jackson.
What's important to note is that Bill Clinton is known to share the same sexual compulsions as Prince Andrew, whom a royal biographer recently remarked on a podcast "needed to have sex three times a day." Epstein reportedly referred to Andrew as the only person as depraved as he was when it came to young women. Clinton, like Andrew, has a history that can't be airbrushed away-and the photos of him with young girls are a genie that cannot be put back into the bottle. It stinks.
Naturally, that won't stop Democrats from calling this stunt what it is: a well-timed smear ahead of the midterms, where Trump is expected to likely lose both houses of Congress. Failing quick-fix policies on the economy and foreign policy-which are having a doubly damaging effect-will hit Trump hard at the ballot box, potentially rendering him impotent in the second half of his term. How long he can maintain the farce that the Epstein story is empirically linked to the Democrats is uncertain, though it is worrying that a war in the Middle East against Iran looks increasingly likely to be used as a tool to deflect blame from his lacklustre performance as a populist leader-one struggling to help blue-collar Americans and restore the country's former global hegemony.