Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk

The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party

Lara Trump interviews Charlamagne Tha God on Fox News
Lara Trump interviews Charlamagne Tha God on Fox News
(Image credit: Jamie McCarthy / Getty Images)

What happened

President Donald Trump Sunday lashed out at Charlamagne Tha God after the radio host said on Fox News that the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could be the vehicle for a "political coup" in which "traditional conservatives" take back the Republican Party from Trump's stranglehold.

Who said what

The Epstein case has "dominated news coverage" since the Justice Department announced it will not be releasing any more documents from the sex trafficking investigation, The Associated Press said. Trump and top officials had suggested for months that those Epstein files would "expose hidden truths about his death," The New York Times said, and the "reversal triggered outrage" among the president's "most ardent supporters."

Traditional conservatives know that "this Epstein thing" is "the issue that has gotten the base riled up — the MAGA base isn't letting this issue go — and for the first time they can probably take their party back and not piss off the MAGA base," Charlamagne, whose real name is Lenard McKelvey, told Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump on her Fox News show Saturday. Trump responded on social media, calling the "Breakfast Show" host a "low IQ" and "racist sleazebag" who "knows nothing about me or what I have done."

What next?

Trump is a "once-in-a-lifetime, one-on-one political juggernaut," Charlamagne said, but "we have the opportunity to have, like, a huge reset."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.