MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell has sharply criticized former President Donald Trump for what he describes as a face-saving maneuver regarding the release of government documents related to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. The commentary came during Wednesday's episode of "The Last Word" following Trump's announcement on Truth Social that he had signed the bill authorizing the file release.
Political Reversal on Epstein Transparency
Trump's administration initially positioned itself as transparent on the Epstein matter, with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi vowing in February to release related files. However, by July, Trump had dramatically shifted his stance, dismissing the entire case as a Democratic "hoax."
The former president changed course again last week as support grew for a unanimous consent vote in the Senate. O'Donnell reminded viewers that despite ultimately signing the bill into law, Trump had openly opposed the legislation until political pressure became overwhelming.
"Everyone in Congress knows, and everyone in the country should know that Donald Trump fought this bill every minute until he was told over the weekend that he was going to lose both in the House and, much more importantly, in the Senate," O'Donnell stated during his broadcast.
Bipartisan Pressure Forces Action
O'Donnell explained that Trump typically would have "every right" to expect the GOP-controlled Senate to kill the Epstein Transparency Act. However, increasing bipartisan pressure compelled the former president to publicly encourage Republicans to vote in favor, leading to its unanimous passage.
"If Donald Trump thought Republicans in the Senate would hold the line for him, he would have never told House Republicans to vote for the bill," said O'Donnell. He suggested that Senate Majority Leader John Thune must have privately informed Trump about the impending defeat.
The host pointed to Thune's public silence on the Epstein files until Wednesday as evidence of private communications about the political reality Trump faced. O'Donnell theorized that Trump's eventual support for the vote allowed him to "pretend" he had allowed the bill's passage rather than acknowledge his political failure.
Internal Republican Divisions Exposed
The situation revealed tensions within Republican leadership, particularly between Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson. O'Donnell noted that Johnson only voted in favor of the bill because "Thune promised" to add amendments allowing for potentially censorious provisions—promises that were never fulfilled.
This resulted in now-viral footage of Johnson expressing his "deeply disappointed" reaction. "That is how unwilling John Thune was to do Donald Trump's dirty work in the end, after House Democrats spent the year exposing that dirty work," O'Donnell commented.
When questioned by reporters about his break with Johnson, Thune explained the procedural differences between the two chambers: "I think there are different ways of doing things. The House and the Senate function differently. We have procedures and rules that we have to adhere to and follow. It makes it much harder to pass things through the floor in the Senate."
O'Donnell concluded that Trump's reversal on the Epstein files legislation represents both a political surrender and an attempt to manipulate his supporters by reframing defeat as voluntary action.
