WASHINGTON — Vice President JD Vance’s attempts Wednesday to sell Republicans’ massive tax and spending law to Pennsylvania voters were overshadowed by President Donald Trump’s clash with his base over the Jeffrey Epstein scandal and mixed messages about potentially firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Trump spent much of Wednesday going off on GOP lawmakers and supporters who have demanded his administration reverse course and release documents related to the deceased convicted sex offender and disgraced financier. And his vice president had a tough act to follow after his boss admitted he asked a group of House Republicans if he should try terminating Powell over his refusal to lower interest rates.

As Vance took the stage in West Pittston in northeastern Pennsylvania, he assumed a role he’s rarely undertaken during the second Trump administration: public salesman in chief. A former senator from Ohio and current president of the Senate, Vance has done most of his selling behind the scenes, helping twist the arms of reluctant GOP lawmakers in pursuit of Trump’s agenda.

Surrounded by signs that read “America is Back,” Vance led off his remarks by contending that the new law dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would bring the American economy and manufacturing sector “roaring back to life” and would be “transformational to the American people.”

“You earned that money, you ought to keep it in your pocket,” the vice president said of the law’s provision on not taxing tips and overtime. “We are creating the biggest tax breaks, maybe in American history, for investing in building in the United States of America. … Invest in Americans, and your government ought to reward you — isn’t that common sense?

“But the crazy thing is, for years our government has done the exact opposite. We have rewarded people who have shipped American jobs overseas and penalized the great small businesses who invested right here in America,” he said. “And under President Trump’s leadership, we are flipping that on its head.”

The vice president’s appearance at a machine shop came a day after Trump had headlined an energy and artificial intelligence summit in Pittsburgh. Vance focused much more on Republicans’ tax and spending law than Trump, who soft-sold it in the Steel City while bringing up a range of other issues. Vance said administration officials intend to spend the run-up to the 2026 midterm elections “talking about these big wins,” while asserting that Democrats and the “corporate media” would like to focus on other things.

Shortly before Vance’s remarks, Trump had taken to social media to lambaste some of his “PAST” supporters for expressing frustration over his Justice Department’s decision to release no information about Epstein, who had ties to Trump and a list of celebrities, including former President Bill Clinton.

Attorney General Pamela Bondi recently announced that the DOJ would not release any documents about Epstein, his lewd and criminal activities — nor an alleged “client list” that conservatives for years have contended show so-called elites breaking the law with no consequence.

Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republican members on Tuesday called on the administration to be more open about the Epstein-related documents, a rare crack in the Trump-GOP delegation alliance. The president, who has denied any wrongdoing over his friendship with Epstein, appeared to be seething Wednesday morning.

“The Radical Left Democrats have hit pay dirt, again!” Trump wrote in a lengthy post, attacking Democrats over what he described as “Scams and Hoaxes,” including the Russian election interference investigation during his first term and the Hunter Biden laptop scandal.

“It’s all they have — They are no good at governing, no good at policy, and no good at picking winning candidates. Also, unlike Republicans, they stick together like glue. Their new SCAM is what we will forever call the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax, and my PAST supporters have bought into this ‘bulls—,’ hook, line, and sinker,” he added. “They haven’t learned their lesson, and probably never will, even after being conned by the Lunatic Left for 8 long years.”

Trump tried to pressure upset Republicans into dropping the matter by lumping them in with his Democratic foes.

“Let these weaklings continue forward and do the Democrats work, don’t even think about talking of our incredible and unprecedented success,” he wrote, “because I don’t want their support anymore!”

‘He’s dead’

Moments before reporters entered the Oval Office for a bilateral meeting between Trump and Bahraini Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, reports surfaced on social media that Trump was considering firing Powell as Fed chair. But those reports, posted on social media, did not dominate the Q&A session.

“He’s dead. He’s gone,” Trump said of Epstein. “Certain Republicans got duped by the Democrats, and they’re following a Democratic playbook.” Asked if Bondi should release any Epstein-related information, he replied, “Whatever’s credible, she can release that.”

Trump’s two White House communications offices have, at times, appeared to push contentious moves being mulled by the president to change the media and political narrative. If that was the case with the Powell reports, it certainly created buzz.

“We’re not planning on doing anything,” Trump said Wednesday when asked about reports that he was considering firing the Fed boss. He noted that Powell’s term ends next year, and he would get to nominate a new chair. “No, I’m not talking about that,” he said, later calling it “highly unlikely.”

But he then essentially kicked off the sweepstakes to replace Powell, saying Kevin Hassett, director of the White House’s National Economic Council, would be a strong contender and suggesting Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was doing too good of a job to leave his post.

But that doesn’t mean Hassett, one of his longest-serving aides dating back to his first administration, would be a shoo-in. Trump said he has “a lot” of good candidates to choose from among conservative economists who want to slash interest rates, which Powell has refused to do despite the president’s many pleas.

However, Trump confirmed he floated the idea of firing Powell to 11 House Republican lawmakers with whom he met Tuesday evening in the Oval Office over cryptocurrency legislation.

“I talked about the concept of firing him. I said, ‘What do you think?’ Almost every one of them said I should,” Trump told reporters, adding with a chuckle: “But I’m more conservative than they are.”

Trump’s mixed signals on Powell, however, did not appear to affect U.S. stock markets, with none backing off their slight daily gains.

“He’s a terrible Fed chair. I was surprised he was appointed. I was surprised, frankly, that (former President Joe) Biden put him in and extended him,” said Trump, who first appointed Powell to the position in 2017.

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