Trump in no man’s land

In the final scene of Harold Pinter’s play No Man’s Land, the nostalgic old poet Spooner states to his elderly counterpart Hirst: “No. You are in no man’s land. Which never moves, which never changes, which never grows older, but which remains forever, icy and silent.” I kept thinking of this moment, and the play itself, as I followed the growing scandal over the Epstein files. Trump, who for so long seemed to dodge and weave from every allegation or court ruling or even impeachment, is stuck. A man who has an off-the-cuff throwback to every attack is now losing words to say.

This is no singular presidential scandal, far from a personal indiscretion like Clinton’s affair or even a tight-knit abuse of the executive’s power like Watergate. Trump’s connection to Epstein is a microscope, revealing a plague within the New York socialite world at the end of the last century. The infamous photo of the two men, sprawled over the Windsor Castle green ahead of his state visit, was taken in 1997. That millennium, ‘End of History’ moment seems quite a while ago if you judge time by political shifts.

Trump’s Epstein debacle has a third participant. Another wealthy, powerful man hiding in plain sight, who has the power to make this Trump scandal a fatal blow

However, Trump and others, who are alleged to have been in personal contact with the notorious paedophile, give out the impression that this was a lifetime ago, and that people need to move on. Lord Mandelson, who was sacked over his Epstein connections, spoke about their relationship as if it were something out of living memory, that he can barely recall in his own mind. But it wasn’t long ago. Epstein’s abuse and trafficking of young women and girls is far more recent than these men would have you believe. The man died in 2019, and yet those who were supposedly intimately connected with him send out statements that posit their connections with him as ancient history.

The mass gatherings of survivors outside Washington D.C.’s Capitol contradict this sentiment. For a figure like Trump, who is always for the innovative, ambitious present rather than dwelling much on the past, the Epstein case is a siren. The President is struggling to find the source of where it’s coming from, let alone turn it off.

Many may look at the unfolding revelations, with figures like Noam Chomsky and former Senator George Mitchell, and fall down the conspiracy rabbit hole. Others sink into nihilism over the whole systems of wealth and power. If you’re able to look through all that smog, however, you’d find that Trump’s Epstein debacle has a third participant. Another wealthy, powerful man hiding in plain sight, who has the power to make this Trump scandal a fatal blow.

The striking fact about these recent events in Trump-land is that, unlike his impeachment trials or even his fallout with Elon Musk, it is two constant presences of his past who are the authors of his current troubles

Returning to the beginning of this revelation, a recent article revealed the now infamous ‘Birthday’ album. It showed the letter Trump sent to Epstein on his 50th birthday, which the President claimed never existed. Look only to the paper where this piece was published to find this third man: The Wall Street Journal. Rupert Murdoch, media proprietor whose News Corporation bought the broadsheet in 2007, has had an unusual relationship with Donald Trump in recent years. Whatever squabbles or reconciliations they’ve had over the years, this article has been seen by media experts like Claire Atkinson as the final nail in the coffin. And with Trump filing a $10 billion lawsuit against the paper last July, the media baron and the President’s mutual agreement has likely disappeared. The striking fact about these recent events in Trump-land is that, unlike his impeachment trials or even his fallout with Elon Musk, it is two constant presences of his past who are the authors of his current troubles.

Beyond that, Murdoch and Epstein are alleged to be close friends and colleagues of Trump. Both made their fortunes and names in New York City, the same place where Trump did the same. Both were semi-secretive figures, keeping just out of the spotlight but still holding immense recognition in public and private spheres. Above all, both were men with real power, something that Trump has only gained with the presidency. Murdoch’s media empire and Epstein’s wealth and connections had, by evidence now known to the public from the many inquiries and investigations, radical power to influence, control, and abuse others at their will. Trump and the many others who kissed the ring to Murdoch or partied with Epstein may have even looked up to these power brokers, whether in admiration, fear, or a mixture of both.

Trump cannot make deals with the dead

Ghosts from Trump’s past have walked into his gilded oval room. It looks like they’re going to haunt him for the rest of his days. It could be that Trump and Murdoch come to another belated rekindling, but by this point in both their lives and after what has occurred in the last few months, it is unlikely.

Regarding Epstein, Trump cannot make deals with the dead. Same with the scores of other well-known faces who had proximity to him and were exposed as his close friends. Like the old man Hirst in No Man’s Land, Trump is cornered by memories he can’t arrest. They might not bring him down tomorrow, but these blows have connected and add to a long list of troubles that Trump simply cannot get rid of in time. There’s another quote that sums up this whole situation, from Eugene O’Neill’s play Long Day’s Journey into Night, where the old mother Mary calmly says, “The past is the present, isn’t it? It’s the future too. We all try to lie out of that, but life won’t let us.”