President Trump and his allies are desperate to move past the Jeffrey Epstein controversy — but their own words and actions are having the opposite effect.

Trump’s decision to sue The Wall Street Journal over an Epstein-related story, his administration’s choice to bar the Journal from the group of reporters who will cover the president’s upcoming trip to Scotland, and Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) eagerness to avoid a House vote on disclosure of Epstein material have all given fresh fuel to the story.

The self-defeating aspect of this approach was typified by one social media post among the many that Trump has been issuing.

On Tuesday afternoon, the president lamented that the achievements of the first six months of his second term were being underplayed because “all the Fake News wants to talk about is the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax!”

His post, of course, gave the media another reason to keep talking about it.

The sense of creeping anxiety emanating from the White House over the Epstein matter is testament to the unusual discord it has caused within the Trump base.

Trump’s astonishing political comeback, from the nadir of the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, to winning the White House back last November, was enabled by the fierce loyalty of his "Make America Great Again"........

© The Hill