As President Donald Trump returned to the White House for his second term, the news of the Epstein files resurfaced. A new wave of global chaos followed. A new wave of global chaos followed which wasfueled by media scrutiny and renewed calls for accountability.
The files are a partially released collection of documents that name elite figures linked to Epstein, a financier and socialite convicted of serious s-xual offenses. They include influential people like Michael Jackson, Donald Trump, Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, Elon Musk, Kimbal Musk, and others.
The fight for accountability over the files continues. Author and journalist Anand Giridharadas has a theory. He said he knew why powerful figures in the Epstein network had avoided accountability. He called this avoidance deliberate and claimed the reason has persisted for years.
According to The Raw Story, Giridharadas spoke on the Daily Beast podcast with host Joanna Coles. He said the so-called “Epstein class,” is a loose network of billionaires, financiers, academics, royals, and political operatives. He claimed the group uses mutual protection and shared tactics. Their goal, he said, is to cover up problems and shape the media narrative.
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“They just understand something fundamental that is the heart of this chapter, which is that their shared interests with each other are more important to them than any ideas or principles they hold,” Giridharadas said in the podcast as he referred to the Substack series on the Epstein files.
Several authors and journalists have launched a series analyzing the truth behind the files. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice under the Trump administration has repeatedly demanded action. It wants key Republican members to release all the files and hold those listed accountable.
Some of these works were released in late 2025 and early 2026. They include The Epstein Diaries by Michael Wolff, a longtime Trump critic. Another is The Epstein Files by Jessica Yellin.
Meanwhile, in Giridharadas’s Epstein Class, he made a bold claim. He said popular public figures may engage in public feuds, political disputes, and fiery debates. But behind closed doors, he said, they “have each other’s backs.”
He argued that this loyalty among the elite shields them from legal trouble. This holds true even amid intense social media backlash. He also suggested Trump may have ramped up foreign policy actions to divert public attention from the Epstein files. This included escalating conflict with Iran.
According to several reports, Trump and Epstein kept a friendship during the 1990s and early 2000s. They eventually fell out. Multiple pictures show the two together at a New York club called KitKat. The photos are from 1998.
Reports also suggest Epstein introduced Melania Trump, then a young model, to Donald Trump. The introduction was made through Paolo Zampolli. He was a modeling agent who later became close to Trump.
After returning for his second term, Trump repeatedly dismissed renewed interest in the Epstein files as a “hoax.” He also denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes.
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Consequently, the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28 under Operation Epic Fury. The attacks came amid long-running tensions between the U.S. and Iran.
The deadly strikes killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The news created global panic. His daughter, grandchild, son-in-law, and daughter-in-law also died.
His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was named the next leader. He will head the Islamic Republic. At the same time, airstrikes destroyed major sites across Iran.
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As Iran launched counterattacks on Gulf countries and closed the Strait of Hormuz, the situation ramped up to repeated attempts to establish a ceasefire and end the war.
Furthermore, Giridharadas read from his Substack essay, saying: “A war broke out. Human beings circled the moon. Kim Kardashian was spotted with Lewis Hamilton. Memories faded, and the virus of collective rage went hunting for new hosts.”
He questioned whether the Epstein scandal had ultimately become “just another story,” asking whether public outrage simply fades in an era “in which some get away with anything they do, and others never get anything they need.”
