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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
David Smith in Washington

Trump cranks up distraction machine but focus refuses to budge from Epstein

a man in a suit
Donald Trump has invoked everything from Barack Obama to NFL team names to deflect attention from his relationship with the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Photograph: Shutterstock

Donald Trump displayed the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Sitting in the Oval Office, he was asked by a reporter about the justice department’s hunt for evidence about the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “I don’t really follow that too much,” he said. “It’s sort of a witch-hunt.”

And then the pivot: “The witch-hunt you should be talking about is that they caught President Obama absolutely cold.” Trump was claiming a plot by Barack Obama to rig the 2016 election, accusing his predecessor of “treason”. For good measure he warned: “Whether it’s right or wrong, it’s time to go after people.”

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