Operation Narrative Swap: How Trump Replaced Epstein with Obama
When the Epstein conspiracy burned too hot, Trump pulled the oldest move in his playbook: change the target, not the tactic.
Just days after Donald Trump publicly disavowed the Epstein controversy and turned on his own followers for refusing to let it go, his administration handed the MAGA base a new accusation of an old villain. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence—now led by Trump loyalist Tulsi Gabbard—released a declassified intelligence summary accusing the Obama administration of orchestrating a “treasonous conspiracy” to undermine Trump’s 2016 campaign and sabotage his presidency.
If the Epstein narrative had become a liability, the ODNI report was its narrative replacement. And it arrived precisely when Trump needed to re-center outrage away from himself and back toward a familiar external enemy.
The Epstein Collapse Left a Vacuum
As documented in The MAGA Memory Hole, Trump’s sudden reversal on Epstein—from years of winking complicity to open hostility—shocked even his most loyal supporters. MAGA influencers revolted. Conspiracy channels raged. Rally attendees demanded the firing of Attorney General Pam Bondi. Trump’s credibility as the “truth-teller” president was fracturing.
But he didn’t beg them to stay.
Instead, he scorched the earth: “Let these weaklings do the Democrats’ work — I don’t want their support.” Then he moved on.
The Epstein narrative was dead. But the base’s emotional need for betrayal, secrecy, and righteous fury was not.
Enter: the ODNI drop.
From Epstein to Obama: Reframing the Enemy
The July 18th ODNI release accused Obama-era intelligence leaders of “manufacturing” Russian interference claims to justify surveillance and damaging leaks against Trump. It painted the intelligence community not as defenders of democracy, but as conspirators who engineered a coup before Trump even took office.
The script was instantly familiar:
Shadowy bureaucrats
Fake investigations
Deep State manipulation
It echoed the same themes the Epstein story had sustained. But now, Trump wasn’t the one being questioned. He was back to being the victim.
On Truth Social, he wrote:
“This is bigger than Watergate. This is TREASON. There must be full accountability.”
Kayleigh McEnany resurfaced on cable news calling for “prosecutions.” Conservative pundits who had roasted Trump days earlier suddenly had new talking points.
The conspiracy was reborn—with a new cast.
The Pivot Wasn’t Reaction. It Was Strategy.
This wasn’t an improvisation. It was a pressure valve.
Trump’s inner circle had watched Epstein coverage turn from political asset to political threat. The ODNI release was a narrative reset—giving permission to the MAGA base to abandon a tainted storyline without losing their shared sense of grievance.
It checked every box:
✔ A new villain (Obama’s intel team)
✔ A new betrayal (they tried to stop Trump before he won)
✔ A new justification for Trump’s war on institutions
Just like that, the MAGA media machine pivoted. The grand jury smoke from Epstein was replaced with “treason” smoke from 2016. The old scandal was replaced by a recycled one with cleaner partisan lines.
The Narrative Swap Is the Strategy
Trump’s handling of the Epstein story revealed more than just hypocrisy—it revealed method. When a conspiracy becomes inconvenient, the goal is not to apologize. It’s to replace. Burn the old bridge and cross a new one.
The Epstein backlash showed that even the base has limits. But Trump’s true gift is not loyalty—it’s narrative control. The ODNI drop wasn’t just a news story. It was a lifeline.
In the politics of perpetual grievance, the enemy can always change. The tactic never does.
References
Read the companion piece: The MAGA Memory Hole: How Trump Betrayed the Conspiracy He Built
The MAGA Memory Hole: How Trump Betrayed the Conspiracy He Built, Proximity Portal, July 19, 2025. https://www.proximityportal.com/p/the-maga-memory-hole-how-trump-betrayed
Reuters. “Jeffrey Epstein conspiracy fallout puts Trump, White House in damage-control mode.” July 16, 2025. https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/trump-white-house-race-stem-epstein-conspiracy-fallout-2025-07-16/
ABC News. “What Trump has said about Jeffrey Epstein over the years, including on 2024 campaign trail.” July 16, 2025. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-jeffrey-epstein-years-including-2024-campaign-trail/story?id=123778541
NPR. “Trump calls for the release of Jeffrey Epstein grand jury testimony.” July 19, 2025. https://www.npr.org/2025/07/19/nx-s1-5473430/trump-calls-release-jeffrey-epstein-grand-jury-testimony
AP News. “With Epstein conspiracy theories, Trump faces a crisis of his own making.” https://apnews.com/article/trump-epstein-conspiracy-theories-bondi-bongino-fbi-a143076353acbc1193cb9697e7fc4a90