President Donald Trump faced repeated interruptions and heckling regarding his historical ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during a campaign rally in Chillicothe, Ohio, south of Columbus, on Wednesday night.
Video footage posted on social media by Robert Potylo, known online as Robby Roadsteamer, captured him chanting shortly after the president took the podium. “Trump went on the Jeffrey Epstein plane! Trump went on the Jeffrey Epstein plane!” Potylo sang as audience members booed. Moments later, footage showed security escorting him from the arena while sections of the crowd chanted “USA! USA!” As he left, Potylo called out to audience members, “No political violence! We’re all buddies!”
Videos from the event documented several other instances of protesters interrupting the speech and subsequently being removed from the venue. Following Potylo’s ejection, Trump addressed the audience and claimed, without offering evidence, that the protester had received $250 to disrupt the event, describing him as “not a young guy.”
The Ohio demonstration occurred as Epstein’s associations re-enter the political spotlight ahead of November’s midterm elections. Days prior to the rally, House Judiciary Committee Democrats published a report urging the appointment of an independent special counsel to investigate Trump’s past relationship with Epstein. The congressional report pointed to statements from women and documents released in the federal case as justification for examining whether wrongdoing occurred. The allegations are disputed and have not resulted in any criminal charges or findings against Trump.
The White House strongly rejected the report and its underlying claims. White House spokesperson Lauren Bis dismissed the document on Monday as a desperate attempt by Democrats to distract voters from Republican momentum tied to the administration’s achievements. Bis maintained that Trump expelled Epstein from his Mar-a-Lago property because he was a creep and stated that the president has been fully exonerated regarding Epstein’s criminal activities. Trump has consistently denied wrongdoing, maintained that he severed ties with Epstein in the mid-2000s after associating with him in the 1990s and early 2000s, and denied knowledge of Epstein’s abuses. In early 2024, Trump wrote on social media that he was never on Epstein’s aircraft or at his island.
Disputes over travel records have persisted. Documents released by the Department of Justice last December included a January 7, 2020, email from an assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York asserting that flight logs listed Trump as a passenger on Epstein’s private jet eight times between 1993 and 1996.
Democrats have incorporated the Epstein issue into their midterms strategy, dedicating millions of dollars to related advertising campaigns in competitive races that could determine control of Congress. Epstein was federally indicted in July 2019 on charges of sex trafficking minors and conspiracy, with federal prosecutors alleging he operated a network of underage girls for abuse between 2002 and 2005. He died by suicide in a New York jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial.
Trump has encountered similar disruptions at other recent campaign stops amid a cross-country tour designed to support Republican candidates. The travel schedule has included deep red states that Trump won easily in 2024, highlighting Republican difficulties in races that have grown unexpectedly competitive amid sliding approval ratings, economic pressures, and voter concerns regarding the Iran conflict. During a Monday rally in Mississippi supporting incumbent Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in her tight race against Democrat Scott Colom, protesters interrupted the president multiple times, including an instance where a heckler shouted profanities regarding a White House ballroom initiative. Reports also indicated Trump was heckled at least nine times during a South Carolina rally the previous week.
