A forthcoming book by two of America's most prominent political journalists has laid bare the extent of Donald Trump's private fury at some of his most loyal allies over the Jeffrey Epstein files — including a direct phone call in which the president scolded the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The account appears in an excerpt from 'Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump', written by New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan and due for release on 23 June. The excerpt offers a rare glimpse into the panic that gripped the White House as backlash over the Epstein case spread through Trump's own political coalition in the summer of 2025.
Some very unusual stuff happened in the White House Situation Room last summer. Adapted from @maggieNYT and my forthcoming book, "Regime Change" - gift link: https://t.co/mxkrYAwqFV
— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) June 10, 2026
A Rally That Went Off Script
Kirk had held a Turning Point USA event that devolved into what aides described as an Epstein 'grievance fest', with one speaker after another criticising then-Attorney General Pam Bondi over the administration's handling of the situation. Trump subsequently called Kirk directly and scolded him.
The confrontation took place on 12 July 2025, the same day Trump took to Truth Social to defend Bondi and urge his supporters to stop spending, in his words, 'Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about.' The post was widely seen as an attempt to shut down the controversy — one that, by all accounts, fell short.
Anger Directed at Several Allies
Kirk was not the only figure to feel Trump's displeasure. Trump told aides he was deeply unhappy with Kirk, Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly, all of whom had publicly pressed the administration to release more information related to Epstein.
Donald Trump Jr and Vice President JD Vance eventually joined the calls for transparency, urging the White House to change its position and pressure the Justice Department to release more files. The internal discord reflected how deeply the Epstein issue had fractured Trump's inner circle.
Situation Room Damage Control
Trump's top aides were so concerned about leaks surrounding their handling of the Epstein files that they held multiple damage-control meetings within the classified confines of the Situation Room. Senior figures including VP Vance and Chief of Staff Susie Wiles gathered there to debate how to manage the growing scandal.
The book also reveals that then-FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino privately warned at the time that 'this is going to be President Trump's Iran-Contra.' Meanwhile, the authors write that 'relationships at the top of the Justice Department were by now beyond dysfunctional.'
The Shadow of Kirk's Death
The revelations carry particular weight given what followed. Kirk was assassinated in September 2025 at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University, meaning the falling-out with Trump over the Epstein files was among the last major public disputes of his life.
Some very unusual stuff happened in the White House Situation Room last summer. Adapted from @maggieNYT and my forthcoming book, "Regime Change" - gift link: https://t.co/mxkrYAwqFV
— Jonathan Swan (@jonathanvswan) June 10, 2026
Haberman and Swan said they conducted approximately 1,000 interviews over more than two years for the book, which the publisher describes as taking readers inside the 'secret deliberations of a president who has fundamentally altered the nature of the office he holds.'
The Epstein files controversy remains one of the most politically volatile issues to have emerged during Trump's second term. Despite the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act in November 2025, which legally required the full release of all related documentation, a complete disclosure has yet to materialise. The 'Regime Change' excerpt makes clear that the resistance to full transparency came, at least in part, from the very top.
