President Donald Trump fired Billy McLaughlin, his director of digital content, shortly after the White House's official TikTok account was inundated with social media users demanding the administration release the Epstein files, which are said to contain detailed lists of some of the late financier, pedophile, and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein's most high-profile clients and enablers.
Trump himself is widely believed to be in the Epstein files and has rejected calls by his followers to release them, admonishing critics of Attorney General Pam Bondi, who recently concluded no such list exists, despite claiming the exact opposite just months ago.
The White House launched its official TikTok account Tuesday with three videos and Trump’s tagline, “Welcome to the Golden Age of America,” featured in the profile. The debut post shows a montage of Trump at rallies and public appearances, with Trump's voiceover declaring himself the “voice” of the American people.
A second video spotlights the White House grounds, while a third highlights some of Trump’s more controversial moments, including tense exchanges with foreign leaders. It also includes one clip of Trump bragging that he "was the hunted, and now I'm the hunter."
But the rollout has been disastrous. Most comments on the videos have mocked Trump or criticized his administration, with many users renewing calls for the president to release the Epstein files.
@whitehouse/TikTok
@whitehouse/TikTok
Just days after the botched rollout, McLaughlin confirmed he'd been dismissed, saying in X post that serving as Trump's digital content director "was the most meaningful and intense chapter of my professional life."
He also linked to an op-ed he wrote for Fox News in which he defended the Trump administration's digital content strategy for "echoing the humor, passion and identity" of the MAGA movement. He claimed Trump's "decisiveness gave us the freedom to move fast and take risks."
You can see his post below.
No one is surprised by Trump's decision to dismiss McLaughlin—and they are only drawing more attention to why Trump is so desperate to shut down any mention of the Epstein files in the first place.
Meanwhile, the Epstein saga continues to do the White House no favors.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's associate and procurer, told Justice Department officials in a July prison interview that she never witnessed inappropriate conduct by Trump and denied the existence of a client list, according to a newly released transcript.
The interview was conducted by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney. Shortly afterward, Maxwell was transferred from a Florida prison to a minimum-security facility in Texas.
Maxwell is seeking a pardon from Trump and has been accused of lying to federal officials. The White House has insisted that “no leniency is being given or discussed” in her case.
