Putin's hold over Trump is fast slipping out of his hands.

In my blog entry of 17 May 2017 I reported that,

"On January 10, 2017, the media reported on the existence of a private intelligence dossier containing unverified allegations of misconduct and ties between Donald Trump, then President-elect, and the Russian government during the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the period preceding the election. The dossier was written by a former British MI6 intelligence officer, Christopher Steele (left), who went into hiding after the release of the dossier, but reappeared on March 7, 2017" (Wikipedia)

Fast forward to 17 July 2025, and  we now have what is known as the "Epstein files", a collection of files about the activities and connections of  the paedophile, Jeffrey Epstein (right), which are held by the US Department of Justice, and which Trump's MAGA base is screaming to be released.

 Trump, however, is claiming that,

"President Donald Trump is now comparing the Jeffrey Epstein files to the [hoaxed] Russia investigation and other past inquiries that disrupted his first term." (W. James Antle III (left) : Wasington Examiner: 17 July 2025) (my emphasis)

James Antle further reports that,

"Trump’s obvious irritation with his supporters’, or “PAST supporters” as he put it in a social media post on Wednesday, fascination with Epstein, is stepping on his instruction to Attorney General Pam Bondi to release “credible” information on the matter. 
...
“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!” Trump wrote.  (ibid W. James Antle III )

 

Wasington Examiner: 17 July 2025 

 

Brandy Zadrozny on The Beat With Ari: MSNBC: 17 July 2025 

In the Steele Dossier of 2017 it is alleged that,

"However there were other aspects to Trump's engagement with the Russian authorities. One that had borne fruit for them was to exploit Trump's personal obsessions and sexual perversions  in order to obtain suitable 'kompromat' on him." (cf: Steele Dossier) 

 Throughout Trump's fist presidency, and his now current presidency, puzzzlement about his 'bromance' with Putin has caused many political heads to be scratched.

Why is Trump always so accomodating of Putin, especially in the current war between Putin and Ukraine? 

As Rachel Maddow (left) recently reported,

"In January President Trump said, "If Russia did not end the war in Ukraine, he would hit them with new sanctions, and also tariffs. Vladimir Putin ignored him and then Trump did nothing in response" (MSNBC: 15 July 2025) (my emphasis)

She goes on to outline that Putin continued to ignore Trump's subsequent, and similar, threats. 

She further continues,

"And that brings us to today, and can you guess how it went? Trump threatens 'very severe sanctions ... very severe tariffs ... against Russia" (ibid Rachel Maddow)

But, more importantly, she points out that,

"No Ukraine deal within 50 days. So Putin gets to keep doing whatever he wants to do in Ukraine for ANOTHER 50 DAYS .." (ibid Rachel Maddow)

And now that Trump is comparing, "the Jeffrey Epstein files to the [hoaxed] Russia investigation ", one is left with the feeling that, like the contents of the Steele Dossier, the Jeffrey Epstein files may similarly contain rather 'salacious' details about Trump's personal obsessions and sexual perversions. 

Even Elon Musk (right) has hinted that,

"Billionaire Elon Musk alleged that President Trump has ties to convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein as the part of his growing feud with the president, a fight that boiled over and turned personal on Thursday.

“Time to drop the really big bomb,” Musk wrote on X, the social platform he owns. “[Trump] is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.”

Minutes later, he followed up: “Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out.”" (Dominick Mastrangelo: The Hill: 5 June 2025) (my emphasis) (cf. also: Leigh Kimmins: The Daily Beast on Yahoo News: 17 July 2025)

Is it any wonder that, as Steve Benen points out,

"As part of his response, the Republican president eventually got around to saying the story is “no different than Russia, Russia, Russia.”
…
If the president is of the opinion that the Russia scandal and the Epstein scandal are of equal validity, then the White House should prepare for the ongoing controversy to become even more dramatic." (Maddow Blog: MSNBC: 17 July 2025) (my emphasis)

 

 Melissa Murray: MSNBC: 17 July 2025

Trump's power over his MAGA supporters is beginning to fade.

And with the Russian economy fast imploding (John Varga), and the accelerating clamour for Trump to "fully" reveal the contents of the 'Epstein' files, not only is Putin's Russian world collapsing, but his hold over Trump is fast slipping out of his hands.   

 

 

 

(to be continued)