THE KEY QUESTION ABOUT THE EPSTEIN ISSUE IS: WHAT IS THE ISSUE? Perhaps fearing that without constant reminders the public might lose interest in the Jeffrey Epstein matter, the Washington Post has conducted a text message poll of 1,089 people to ask “how closely are Americans following news about government files from the federal investigation of Jeffrey Epstein, and what do they think about President Donald Trump’s handling of the issue.”

The Washington Post made the not-particularly-earthshaking discovery that a lot of people are paying “at least some” attention to the Epstein story, that most support releasing “all files” in the case, that they “suspect” the files will contain “embarrassing information about Trump, Democrats, and billionaires,” and that Democrats disapprove of Trump’s handling of the issue.

Here’s an important question that was not included in the Washington Post’s survey: What is the issue? It would be interesting if a reputable pollster asked an open-ended question along the lines of “What do you think Trump did in the Epstein affair?” Another interesting question would be to ask when Trump did whatever it is the respondents suspect him of doing.

The questions hint at the amorphousness of the Epstein matter. We know what Epstein did, at least his criminal acts. “From at least 2002 through at least 2005, Epstein enticed and recruited, and caused to be enticed and recruited, dozens of minor girls to visit his mansion in New York, and his estate in Palm Beach, Florida, to........

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