The controversial life and shocking death of financial fixer and child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein won a second of round of heavy media coverage after claims were made that Donald Trump knew Epstein. But Americans of all political stripes mostly agree on one thing: Epstein did not commit suicide, but was murdered, according to the latest I&I/TIPP Poll.

The online national poll, taken by 1,362 adults, asked four questions total about Epstein’s controversial life. The poll has a margin of error of +/-2.7 percentage points.

The first, and possibly most controversial, question asked: “Did Jeffrey Epstein die by suicide or was he murdered?”

Among all those responding, 41% agreed that Epstein didn’t kill himself but was in fact murdered, presumably because powerful people had too much to lose if he told what he knew. Just 25% of participants believe Epstein committed suicide, while a sizeable 35% called themselves “not sure.”

That’s 76% of all Americans who say they either don’t believe the official version of Epstein’s death in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York, or have serious doubts about it.

And, perhaps surprisingly, responses by political affiliation aren’t all that different: Democrats (39% murdered, 27% suicide, 34% not sure), Republicans (44% murdered, 26% suicide, 30% not sure) and independents (40% murdered, 22% suicide, 37% not sure) are all pretty much in the same ballpark.

For a second question, those taking the poll were then asked: “Should the government release all Epstein-related documents — including flight logs, client lists, and surveillance footage — to the public, even if they implicate powerful individuals?”

The responses were overwhelming: 75% said yes, only 9% said no, and 15% weren’t sure. And once again, the political breakdown among the major political affiliations were strikingly alike, with Democrats slightly more likely to answer “yes” than the other two.

As a third question, voters were asked: “Do you believe the federal government is being transparent about Jeffrey Epstein’s activities and associates?”

Again, the government doesn’t come out looking pretty, with only 26% answering “Yes, fully transparent,” a majority 55% responding “No, withholding important information,” and 19% saying “not sure.”

Republicans this time were more likely to say “fully transparent” (37%) than either Dems (23%) or indies (14%); but GOP members were less likely to answer “withholding important information” (41%) than the Dems (65%) and independents (64%), both with a majority.

And finally, a question many may have been pondering all along: “In your opinion, is the Epstein case receiving too much, too little, or about the right amount of media coverage?”

The answer split pretty evenly, with 29% saying “too much,” 30% saying “too little,” 24% “about the right amount,” and 16% “not sure.”

So, taken together, 54% want more coverage or are satisfied with the current level.

The party breakdown has a slightly different message. Democrats (22% too much, 34% too little, 30% about right) and independents (22% too much, 31% too little, 25% about right) see eye-to-eye; Republicans (42% too much, 27% too little, 20% about right) are far more inclined to believe the Epstein scandal is getting more media attention than it deserves.

The last question reveals the underlying politicization of the Epstein scandal.

The truth is, no one much cared about the Epstein scandal until Donald Trump became president for a second time. As the Democrats’ elaborate hoax alleging that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election on Trump’s behalf has been shattered by recent revelations, the news media swiveled to alleged ties between Trump and Epstein.

Pictures of Trump beside the now-deceased child-sex trafficker ignore the fact that Trump was for decades one of the most prominent people in the New York media, with literally hundreds of snapshots taken of him and various other well-known Gothamites.

Some, including Never Trump Republicans, have used the lull in coverage of the real scandal, the Russia Hoax, to demand full disclosure of the so-called Epstein files containing a supposed “client list” that many on the left hoped would show Trump was an Epstein “client.”

The only problem: The Justice Department says such a list doesn’t exist. There’s good reason to believe that’s not a lie.

As Trump himself said, “Those files were run for four years by those people (President Joe Biden, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and FBI Director James Comey). If they had anything, I assume they would’ve released it. Those files were run by these people; they were run by my enemy. If there was anything in there, they would’ve used them for the election.”

Very logical.

Nonetheless, the media repeatedly reported on alleged or possible ties between Trump and Epstein, while ignoring well-documented connections between Epstein and former President Bill Clinton and former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who removed the convicted Epstein from his state’s sex-offender registry, and other powerful Democrats and their supporters.

As J. Peder Zane wrote in RealClearPolitics in late July, “During the last few weeks the legacy media has covered that story as if it were Watergate. The New York Times, for example, published more than 50 articles and opinion pieces on Epstein and Trump between July 16 and July 23.”

It was a feeding frenzy. But it seems to have quieted down a lot, after the Wall Street Journal dredged up a note bearing Trump’s name that was included in an album put together in 2003 for Epstein’s birthday.

Trump called the story “false, malicious, and defamatory,” denied writing it, and promptly sued the Journal for $10 billion in Florida, presumably a far-friendlier venue for Trump than New York.

While Congress vows to continue looking into Epstein’s many contacts with famous people, including prominent politicians, there are signs that public interest is fading.

Last week, Deep Newz reported that Google searches for “Epstein” had plunged 89%, indicating Americans seem to be moving on from the story. Meanwhile, CNN poll maven Harry Enten called the scandal a “nothingburger,” noting that only 1% of all Americans made it their top concern.

Even so, as the I&I/TIPP Poll shows, Americans clearly want full disclosure, and are not buying the official story behind Epstein’s jailhouse suicide on Aug. 10, 2019. Americans deserve to know the full truth, whatever it is, to lay this scandal to rest.

I&I/TIPP publishes timely, unique, and informative data each month on topics of public interest. TIPP’s reputation for polling excellence comes from being the most accurate pollster for the past six presidential elections.

Terry Jones is an editor of Issues & Insights. His four decades of journalism experience include serving as national issues editor, economics editor, and editorial page editor for Investor’s Business Daily.