Republicans distance from Trump on Epstein and Iran before midterms

Ahead of November's US midterm elections, some Republicans are quietly distancing themselves from President Donald Trump over his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and the war with Iran, according to a Republican strategist.

Trump has long portrayed himself as a political outsider who would expose elite abuse of power and focus on domestic problems. But halfway through his final term, he has backpedalled on many of those ideas, said Rina Shah, a geopolitical adviser and former senior GOP congressional aide. In competitive races, Shah said, some Republicans are "quietly distancing" and talking about gas prices or local issues because the Iran war and the Epstein case are already appearing in attack ads and polling.

Epstein files

During his 2024 campaign, Trump promised to declassify FBI files on Epstein and his network. Kash Patel, now FBI director, said it was time to reveal who the "pedophiles" are. Yet after taking office, Trump slowed the process, called the issue a "hoax" and said Republicans were being tricked by Democrats. Congress eventually forced the release of the files, helped by a few Republicans who broke with Trump. The administration has released heavily redacted batches but continues to withhold some. Republican lawmakers who voted to mandate releases paid a price: Marjorie Taylor Greene left her Georgia seat in January 2026 after clashing with Trump; Nancy Mace lost her primary bid after Trump refused to endorse her; Lauren Boebert barely won her primary; and Thomas Massie lost his primary after angering Trump.

Iran war

Trump had promised to reduce foreign military involvement. Now he faces tough questions about the US-Israel war on Iran, which MAGA figures like Tucker Carlson have called a mistake, saying, "This is Israel's war. This is not the United States' war." Some disgruntled MAGA supporters see the war as a distraction from the Epstein issue. Massie summed up the sentiment: "Bombing a country on the other side of the globe won’t make the Epstein files go away." Trump has tried to downplay the war's impact, but voters, including Republicans, think he broke his promise, driving his approval rating to record lows. "Seven months into an open-ended campaign with shifting goals," Shah said, "that promise looks different to a lot of his voters." In Congress, Democrats have repeatedly tried to curtail the war. In September, just seven Republican House members joined Democrats to pass an anti-war bill; the Senate has seen similar small support. Trump called those Republicans "unpatriotic" and said they should be ashamed. He backed a rival of Senator Bill Cassidy, who voted for the anti-war bill, and Cassidy lost his primary.

'Drain the swamp'

Trump had promised to purge a "deep state" establishment. In a way, he kept that promise: the Department of Government Efficiency forced tens of thousands of federal workers out and dismantled institutions like USAID. The military threw out notions of racial, gender and economic diversity. Universities and the Smithsonian Institution faced a campaign against what Trump called an unqualified, diversity-obsessed elite. But lobbying groups, including some supporting foreign governments, have been given a free hand, and ethics rules and watchdogs that tackle political corruption have been weakened, Shah said. At his inauguration, Trump surrounded himself with the world's wealthiest people, some of whom have played a role in his administration.

Source: Al Jazeera.