This is particularly galling to Trump’s base, given how they were fed for years on conspiracy theories, none more tantalizing than the one around Epstein. While many of those theories were loopy (are airplane
contrails controlling the weather and releasing mind-control drugs?), the theories around Epstein are grounded in facts. He really did abuse untold numbers of children. He really did have close relationships with powerful people across many American and foreign institutions. He really did die in mysterious circumstances. Even if you weren’t dumb enough to believe that Hillary Clinton was kidnapping children to drink their blood, cut off their faces and wear them like masks (yes,
that’s an actual thing many QAnon people believed), this looked like a
real conspiracy, as people like JD Vance
said: