Donald Trump is discovering that you can stoke a conspiracy theory but you can never satisfy its followers. The president has suffered a sudden fall from grace among many of the MAGA devoted because of the ham-fisted way that hes been trying to paper over questions about Jeffrey Epstein, the financier who (allegedly, some say) took his own life in prison in 2019 after he was arrested on sex trafficking charges and was previously convicted for child sex offenses.Trump and Epstein were great pals for years. Ive known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy, Trump said in 2002. Hes a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it Jeffrey enjoys his social life. Related Why are Trumpers so obsessed with Jeffrey Epstein? One columnist says its a coping mechanism. In that narrow space between abuse of adults and pedophilia, the MAGA masses have found their moral absolution On the younger side was an understatement. Epstein regularly recruited underage women for sex, according to documents in his first criminal case. One young woman was only 14 years old. Dive deeper every day Join our newsletter for thought-provoking commentary that goes beyond the surface of LGBTQ+ issues Subscribe to our Newsletter today While Trump liked to jet around with Epstein, he has never been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epsteins crimes. Still, that didnt stop Trump from sending Epstein a birthday greeting in 2003 with a drawing of a naked woman, according to The Wall Street Journal. Trump promptly sued the paper and insisted that he never draws pictures (there are ample examples that he does).Since Epsteins death, conspiracy theorists have been insistent that he was part of a giant cabal of pedophiles running the government and society overall. After all, Epstein was seen at social events with some of the most powerful people in the world, including Bill Gates and Bill Clinton. Indeed, Trump worked hard to connect Epstein to Clinton when he was first running for president.Indeed, pedophilia is the central organizing concept for much of the conspiracy-minded universe. Q Anon has faded from the headlines, but it began in 2016 as the Pizzagate conspiracy theory. Pizzagate referred to a restaurant in D.C., which in the addled minds of conspiracists was the site of a child sex-trafficking ring run by Democrats. A gunman actually went to the restaurant to free the children; fortunately, no one was injured and police arrested him. The following year, QAnon arrived on the scene. An anonymous poster spun a tale of powerful people everyone from Tom Hanks to the Dalai Lama who were part of a vast network of child trafficking and sexual abuse. QAnon followers pictured a dramatic moment known as The Storm where Trump would lead a mass purge of these evildoers.At the heart of all this conspiracy is hatred of LGBTQ+ people (theres a lot of anti-Semitism in it as well). Pedophilia has long been the favored libel of the anti-LGBTQ+ right, going back to the days of panic that gay men were recruiting innocent boys. More recently, drag queens reading to children in libraries is seen by the right as a form of sexual assault, and transgender health care for youth is seen as child abuse.Unsurprisingly, the conspiracy language has been useful for politicians who want to placate the base without having to repeat the most outlandish tenets of the conspiracy (like elites harvesting a life-extending chemical from children). Republicans know how to placate the fringe by using code words, without having to detail the conspiracy behind it. Thats whya soulless opportunistlike Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY)decided to call Democrats pedo grifterswhen the Biden administration distributed baby formula to immigrants. Its why there weremore references to pedophiliaduring Ketanji Brown Jacksons confirmation hearings to the Supreme Court than there were to the Constitution.However, even Republicans are bailing on Trump. Polls show that a majority of Republicans believe the government is hiding something on Epstein. House Republicans are even considering a vote on a bill calling on the Justice Department to release more information about Epstein, in part to placate an enraged base.The problem facing Trump is that his reaction to the mounting calls for transparency about who Epsteins clients were shakes the very foundation of what the conspiracists believe. Trump was the one who was supposed to deliver them from the Deep State. Why is he acting this way? Is it because he is part of the Deep State himself? Certainly, Trump is acting like he has something to hide, even if he doesnt. Hes not helping himself by calling the conspiracy theorists troublemakers. In the bizarro-world of conspiracy, Trump was actually helped by the story about his birthday greetings to Epstein. People who had been critical of him immediately called the report fake. They find it easy to dismiss actual evidence. What they wont be able to dismiss is lack of evidence. This could be Trumps downfall. Its certainly going to be Attorney General Pam Bondis, who is already marked as the fall guy. Trump has ordered only the most limited release of information about Epstein, not the sweeping open-all-the-files transparency that conspiracy theorists want. The truth is the conspiracy theorists will never be satisfied. They are looking for something, and they will know it when they see it. And if they dont see it, they will know beyond any doubt that sinister forces are hiding it from them.Trump himself is the perfect example of this unbreakable loop. He started the lie that Barack Obama wasnt born in the U.S. No amount of proof, including Obamas birth certificate, could ever satisfy those who wanted to believe otherwise. Its only fitting that the man who rose to political power by promoting a conspiracy theory should find himself on the receiving side of one for a change. Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.