The House and Senate approved legislation Tuesday forcing the Justice Department to make public all records related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, ending months of political conflict that saw President Donald Trump abruptly shift his stance days before the vote.
The House passed the measure 427-1, with Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., casting the only vote against it. The Senate approved the bill hours later through unanimous consent, sending it to Trump’s desk.
Under the legislation, the attorney general must make public all unclassified documents, communications, and investigative materials about Epstein and accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell within 30 days. The DOJ may redact information that identifies victims or could endanger national security or harm active investigations, BUT the bill also states that they must notify Congress of any redactions.
Trump’s reversal came after months of resistance and attempts at distraction. The president had repeatedly called the matter a “hoax” and described it as “pretty boring stuff” in July. He declared his support Sunday only after a bipartisan group secured 218 signatures on a discharge petition, which forced House leadership to schedule a vote over Speaker Mike Johnson’s objections.
Related: House Nears Vote on Epstein Files as White House Calls Effort ‘Hostile Act’
The timing drew scrutiny from critics and survivors. Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel questioned Monday why Trump would seek a congressional vote if he had “nothing to hide,” noting the president could order the Justice Department to release the files without legislation.
Before Trump’s reversal, administration officials called Republicans including Reps. Lauren Boebert and Nancy Mace to the Situation Room, where Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel urged them to withdraw their petition signatures. Both lawmakers refused. Trump later criticized Greene on social media, calling her a “traitor” (or “Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Greene”) for supporting the release.
Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., provided the decisive 218th signature on November 12 after her delayed swearing-in following the longest government shutdown in US history. That same day, the House Oversight Committee released 20,000 pages from Epstein’s estate, including emails that referenced Trump.
About a dozen Epstein survivors watched from the House gallery as members voted Tuesday. Before the vote, survivor Jena-Lisa Jones criticized Trump directly: “I beg you, President Trump: Please stop making this political. It is not about you, President Trump.”
Jones, who said she voted for Trump, added that his “behavior on this issue has been a national embarrassment.”
Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., sponsored the bill. Greene said her support caused a rift with Trump that “has torn MAGA apart.”
Trump has the authority to release the files through executive action, but has not done so. When ABC News correspondent Mary Bruce asked him Tuesday why he had not already released them, Trump called her a “terrible person” and said ABC’s broadcast license should be revoked.
The Justice Department said in a July memo that investigators found no “client list” and uncovered no evidence justifying charges against other individuals. However, it remains unclear what new information the department’s files may contain.
Related: Would JD Vance in 2021 Believe That Epstein’s ‘Client List’ Does Not Exist?
Trump and Epstein were photographed together at social events in the 1990s, including parties at Mar-a-Lago. The two had a falling out that reporters dated to late 2007.
Epstein died, reportedly by suicide, in jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Maxwell serves a 20-year sentence for helping him abuse underage girls.
Related: Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison After Justice Department Interview
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