Trump's Calculation

 Trump's sudden U-turn on release of the Epstein files made headlines and raised questions about his motivation.  It seems to me the explanation is pretty simple.

Trump is counting on the fact that everyone - including his MAGA base - knows that he is a sleazy pervert who has made a habit of molesting women along with all his other abuses of power.  That is a pretty easy conclusion to reach since the wide knowledge of his character did not stop his being elected to the Presidency twice.

In addition to that it looked very likely that Congress was going to vote for release of the Epstein trove, leaving Trump's only option to be risking a veto which would only fuel evidence of guilt.  And, he is also counting on using his usual effective strategy of denying evidence and asserting that accusations are simply Democrat-sponsored lies.

Along with all of the above Trump will continue to intimidate the media and to create diversions, including the idea that he cares about affordability and healthcare.  More ominously, if the tide of opinion seems to be moving against him he may move beyond killing small boat drug runners to starting a war with Venezuela.