After months of delaying tactics and strong-arm attempts by Republican leadership, the House will vote Tuesday on legislation that would force the Justice Department to release the so-called Epstein files. The vote, which is expected to pass with the support of more than a dozen Republicans, marks a bipartisan rejection of the president. donald trumpwho called on his party to move on from Epstein and vote against the resolution before changing course over the weekend after it became clear the resolution would pass.
This historic vote, and the months-long battle to get the bill to the floor, caused divisions between Trump and some of his closest allies, while keep asking questions about the president’s relationship with one of the most notorious sex offenders in American history.
As MPs prepare to cast their votes, here’s everything you need to know about what they’ll actually vote on, what’s already public, and what questions they hope to answer by releasing new information.
What are the Epstein files?
The documents called the “Epstein files” are evidence and testimony collected by the Department of Justice and the FBI over the course of two investigations and criminal cases against Epstein.
Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to procuring and soliciting prostitution from a minor in a controversial friendly deal with federal prosecutors. He died by suicide in federal custody in 2019 after being accused of sex trafficking of minors in a separate investigation. The files held by the Department of Justice and the FBI allegedly contain thousands of pages of witness and survivor testimony, digital evidence, communications between Epstein and others, as well as potentially videos and images of sexual abuse against minors.
Since Epstein died in prison, only his close collaborator and long-term associate, Ghislane Maxwell, has been tried and convicted in connection with the trafficking ring run by Epstein. The lack of investigations and subsequent prosecutions against other people identified by survivors as participants in their abuse has generated widespread public interest in the contents of the files and the reasons behind federal prosecutors’ failure to bring additional charges.
Conservative and right-wing commentators spent years calling for transparency regarding the government’s investigations into Epstein, while insisting that Trump would make the files public upon returning to office. In July, after a public stunt in which prominent MAGA influencers were photographed at the White House with folders purportedly containing a portion of the files, the Justice Department and FBI stuck out his back from within their own movement, announcing that they would not publish any additional accusations and that evidence related to the case would not be made public.
The resulting backlash has persisted for months, and the slow, steady trickle of information related to the case has placed greater scrutiny on the president. Shortly after the Justice Department made its announcement, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Justice Department had warned Trump that his name appears in the files.
Trump has repeatedly called the scandal a “hoax” perpetrated by Democrats. Saturday, huh. demanded for Attorney General Pam Bondi to launch investigations into other men named in Epstein-related documents, including former President Bill Clinton, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman. Bondi quickly agreed.
What is the House voting on?
The House will vote Tuesday on the “Epstein Records Transparency Act,” which would require the Justice Department to disclose “all unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials in the possession of the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorneys’ Offices,” related to the cases against Epstein and Maxwell. These include flight records and travel records, records of corporate entities associated with Epstein, the identities of people “named or referenced in connection with Epstein’s criminal activities, civil settlements, immunity or plea agreements or investigative proceedings,” as well as internal communications between government agents discussing the case.
The law would allow the Justice Department to redact sensitive information related to the identity of survivors, as well as material describing child sexual abuse, other violent crimes or material that would jeopardize an ongoing investigation.
Crucially, there is some evidence in the Justice Department’s documents about Epstein that cannot be released without court approval, primarily sealed grand jury transcripts. The judges have recently rejected The Justice Department offers to release grand jury testimony related to the Epstein case, although it is not uncommon for transcripts to be made public.
What about all this other material that’s already been released?
So yes Congress has to force the Justice Department to release all of these materials, where do things like Epstein’s “birthday book” Trump page and Epstein’s emails released earlier this month come from?
They come from an entirely different source: Epstein’s estate.
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, led by Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), have been working with Epstein’s estate, as well as survivors, to release evidentiary documents held by representatives of the late sex offender.
These include the so-called “birthday book” (a collection of more than 50 congratulatory letters that included a lewd missive from Trump) and thousands of emails between Epstein, Maxwell and others that the Oversight Committee released last week. The treasure of about 20,000 emails It included allegations that Trump knew of Epstein’s activities with underage girls. Epstein wrote in 2011 that Trump “spent hours” at his home with one of his victims, said he was the man who could “defeat” Trump, and described Trump as “the dog who has not barked.” In another email, Epstein tells a reporter to investigate reports that Trump was so enthralled while ogling young women at Epstein’s pool that he walked face-first into a glass door.
On Sunday, Garcia appeared on MS NOW and reaffirmed that the Oversight Committee will continue to seek additional materials from Epstein’s estate and other sources.
“What we have received pales in comparison to the documents that actually exist at the Department of Justice,” he said. “Just stay tuned, because there is a lot more information that will be released, more documents that we will obtain, and we will continue to demand that you do the right thing and get us that release from the Department of Justice.”
What did Trump say?
Trump again accused Democrats on Sunday of pushing the “Epstein hoax” as a way to “deflect from all of his bad policies and losses.”
“Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrats’ problem, not the Republicans’ problem! Ask Bill Clinton, Reid Hoffman and Larry Summers about Epstein, they know all about him, don’t waste your time on Trump,” he wrote.
Hours later, Trump changed his position on the vote. writing in Truth Social that “Republicans should vote for the release of Epstein’s files, because we have nothing to hide and it is time to put this Democratic deception behind us.”
Measure 180 came after Trump’s efforts to override the discharge petition, the mechanism through which House members can force a vote on the records over leaders’ objections, failed. Last week, the White House reported summoned Lauren Boebert (D-Colo.) to the Situation Room and attempted to convince her to remove her name from the petition, a similar unsuccessful attempt was made to convince Rep. Nancy Mace (R.S.C.) to withdraw her support.
Now that Trump says he supports the request, it’s worth remembering that just as he could order the Justice Department to investigate his political rivals, he could order Bondi to release the files without Congressional intervention.
What happens if the House votes to release Epstein’s files?
Like any other bill, it will be sent to the Senate, where, if leaders decide to put it to a vote, it would only require a simple majority for approval. He would then head to Trump’s desk. The president has already indicated that he would sign the bill if it were to happen. “I’m all for it,” huh? saying as part of his response to a question Monday about whether he would sign the bill.
