New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman said at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin that Donald Trump’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files last year marked the first time his MAGA base began to believe him less, citing accounts from his top allies and advisers.
Haberman said the Epstein fallout was not isolated. She argued Trump had also broken promises to lower prices, oppose “forever wars” and “drain the swamp,” adding that voters could see when he broke those commitments.
Haberman also warned that Trump’s shifting positions could be awkward for MAGA Republicans ahead of the midterms. She contrasted his repeated warnings about communism and democratic socialism with what she described as warmth toward New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his welcome for Chinese President Xi Jinping, despite years of attacks on the Chinese Communist Party.
