Participants at an annual meeting of a key MAGA bloc are railing against President Trump over his administration’s insistence that no smoking gun exists in the case of deceased child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, whose supposed client list has fed fury and lore over years of Justice Department probes.

Attendees and commentators at a student action summit at Tampa hosted by MAGA personality and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk spent the weekend demanding an explanation as to why the multi-year probe into Epstein’s potentially explosive list — one purportedly containing names of government heavyweights and business moguls — ended with a fizzle. Attorney General Bondi said last week that no list existed and that Epstein died by suicide while awaiting criminal trial in 2019.

The disbelief has created internal Republican strife, with Mr. Trump defending Ms. Bondi’s handling of the matter while Democrats seek to exploit the growing rift.

“Listen, guys, I’m a free American. I supported Donald Trump in this last election. Yes, he did just actively cover up a giant child rapist ring, and I’m gonna criticize him for that, okay,” commentator and comedian Dave Smith said Sunday to thunderous applause during a debate on Israel with columnist Josh Hammer. 

“And I’m sorry, after all these years of us right-wingers saying, ‘Protect the children,’ come on, that’s bad for your soul if you don’t,” Mr. Smith continued. “You speak up about that. It’s horrible what he’s doing.”

During an appearance at the same conference on Saturday, former Trump White House strategist and podcaster Steve Bannon said that the handling of the Epstein case could have serious consequences for the Republican Party in the next election.

“For this to go away, you’re going to lose 10 percent of the MAGA movement.” said Bannon, who was arrested in 2020, but later pardoned by Mr. Trump. “If we lose 10 percent of the MAGA movement right now, we’re going to lose 40 seats in [2026], we’re going to lose the presidency.”

Separately, political commentator and podcaster Megyn Kelly, who often supports Mr. Trump and his administration, took to social media to express her skepticism about the lack of details.

“There are really only two options,” she wrote on X. “1.There’s no huge undisclosed there there on Epstein, Bondi misled on it (until she didn’t) & Trump is quick to forgive a loyal soldier for being desperate to get on TV.”

“Or 2. There is a scandal that’s being covered up & it’s at his direction.”

The Epstein case has fed speculation and incredulity for decades, since the former school-teacher-turned-banker and financier was first convicted in 2008 for child prostitution but received a controversial non-prosecution plea deal in Florida state court. Since then, Epstein only became more influential among the political and financial glitterati until his arrest in 2019. His private plane reportedly carried hundreds of famous personalities on trips around the nation and down to his private island in the Caribbean. 

While travel manifests are not equivalent to guilt, Epstein’s 2019 arrest on child sex trafficking charges, and conviction of his colleague Ghislaine Maxwell for recruiting dozens of young girls for Epstein, has driven interest in his associations. His death while in federal custody has also led many to believe he had a blackmail list full of powerful officials and celebrities.

While the non-release of details has caused a rift between MAGA and the president, last week it also sidelined FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, a former radio show host and Secret Service officer who reportedly, along with Director Patel, wanted to release all FBI evidence from the case, but was allegedly stymied by Ms. Bondi. Mr. Bongino’s future status with the bureau is currently in flux, feeding more speculation about what the Justice Department could be withholding.

The president this weekend said criticism placed on the FBI and the Justice Department, and on Ms. Bondi in particular, is unfounded. In a social media post, Mr. Trump blamed the previous administrations for ginning up expectations about the file.

“What’s going on with my ‘boys’ and, in some cases, ‘gals?’ They’re all going after Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is doing a FANTASTIC JOB! We’re on one Team, MAGA, and I don’t like what’s happening. We have a PERFECT Administration, THE TALK OF THE WORLD, and ‘selfish people’ are trying to hurt it, all over a guy who never dies, Jeffrey Epstein,” the president wrote in a lengthy post on Truth Social.

“Why are we giving publicity to Files written by Obama, Crooked Hillary, Comey, Brennan, and the Losers and Criminals of the Biden Administration, who conned the World with the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, 51 ‘Intelligence’ Agents, ‘THE LAPTOP FROM HELL,’ and more,” Mr. Trump continues, suggesting his supporters not waste time and energy on “somebody that nobody cares about.”

Democrats looking to take advantage of the feeding frenzy between the president and his base are demanding that the administration release evidence of the sex cult conspiracy that it says it does not have.

“Why are the Epstein files still hidden? Who are the rich & powerful being protected,” Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna of California said in a post on X. “On Tuesday, I’m introducing an amendment to force a vote demanding the FULL Epstein files be released to the public. The Speaker must call a vote & put every Congress member on record.”