Trump Pleads With Followers to Back Bondi in Dispute Over Epstein Inquiry

In a long social media post, President Trump praised Attorney General Pam Bondi and told his followers to “not waste Time and Energy” on the Jeffrey Epstein case.

President Trump on Saturday threw a political lifeline to Pam Bondi, his embattled attorney general, appearing to side with her over Dan Bongino, the F.B.I.’s deputy director, who has threatened to quit over Ms. Bondi’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

“They’re all going after Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is doing a FANTASTIC JOB!” Mr. Trump wrote in a lengthy and rambling post on social media, seeking to stem a political crisis that has threatened to splinter his far-right political base. “We’re on one Team, MAGA, and I don’t like what’s happening.”

“LET PAM BONDI DO HER JOB — SHE’S GREAT!” he added.

Mr. Trump, appearing concerned about the fallout from his administration’s decision to close the Epstein investigation, went on to plead with his followers to “not waste Time and Energy” on the disgraced financier and registered sex offender he once socialized with. He described Mr. Epstein in the post as “a guy who never dies.”

The post — which Ms. Bondi welcomed, according to officials — came a day after a bruising battle between her and Mr. Bongino burst into public view. Mr. Bongino has not shown up for work since Ms. Bondi accused him of planting negative news stories about her during a testy face-to-face encounter in the West Wing office of Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff and an ally of Ms. Bondi’s.

Mr. Bongino, who has groused about his workload and spoken wistfully of his lucrative old gig as a podcaster, where he promoted conspiracy theories, has told friends he might ditch his job.

Even with the president’s support, Ms. Bondi remains the target of withering criticism from the hard-right wing of Mr. Trump’s coalition, which blames her for overhyping a modest tranche of new Epstein files as a bombshell revelation soon after she took office in February. Laura Loomer, the flame-throwing activist who wields significant influence with the president, has joined a growing chorus calling for Ms. Bondi’s resignation.

The blowback over the Epstein case had raged unabated for nearly a week, since the Justice Department and F.B.I. released a memo closing the probe and affirming previous findings that Mr. Epstein’s death had been a suicide.

It has defied the patterns of previous Trump controversies, provoking criticism from activists on the right increasingly willing to cast doubt on Mr. Trump’s actions and motives — and not just place blame on his surrogates and subordinates.

Saturday’s post, which included unfounded accusations against Democrats, did not appear to achieve its intended result of diverting attention and quelling doubts about the case, based on the negative response of even Mr. Trump’s supporters.

Mr. Bongino’s boosters had hoped that Kash Patel, the F.B.I. director, who has privately criticized Ms. Bondi’s Epstein stunt, would also consider quitting in protest. It has not happened.

A few hours before Mr. Trump posted his support for Ms. Bondi, Mr. Patel offered up his own statement on social media, calling it “an honor to serve the President of the United States.”

“I’ll continue to do so for as long as he calls on me,” Mr. Patel wrote.

Mr. Trump, in his post, directed Mr. Patel to move on from the Epstein inquiry, and instead focus on investigating Democratic fund-raising groups and his debunked claims that he won the 2020 election.

He did not mention Mr. Bongino once in the 398-word post.

That would appear to leave Mr. Bongino in the lurch. Ms. Bondi’s allies in the administration believe he has burned his bridges and needs to leave, according to two people familiar with her thinking.

Justice Department and F.B.I. spokesmen declined to comment.

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