After Trump reversal, US House pushes forward on Epstein vote

The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives will vote Tuesday on a resolution to force the release of Justice Department investigative files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, after President Donald Trump abruptly reversed his long-standing opposition.

Trump dropped his resistance late Sunday, days after a bipartisan House petition secured enough signatures to trigger a vote—an unusual move that defied the president’s wishes. Until then, Trump and his team had worked to block further disclosure of documents from the DOJ’s probes into Epstein, a wealthy financier who once socialized with Trump.

“House Republicans should vote to release the Epstein files, because we have nothing to hide,” Trump posted on social media, calling the controversy a Democratic “hoax.”

Democrats and some Trump allies reject that claim, saying the files are authentic DOJ records tied to Epstein’s history of sexually abusing and trafficking underage girls. Epstein died by suicide in a federal jail in Manhattan in 2019, shortly after being arrested on new federal child sex-trafficking charges. Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said Trump reversed course only after failing to stop the House inquiry.

A senior White House official, speaking anonymously, said Trump had grown frustrated with Republicans’ preoccupation with the files and wanted them to focus on economic issues. House Speaker Mike Johnson said releasing the documents could help dispel allegations of Trump’s involvement with Epstein, noting that the resolution allows the DOJ to redact victims’ identities.

“He’s never had anything to hide,” Johnson said. Rep. Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican leading the effort, expects the resolution—requiring a two-thirds majority—to pass easily, possibly even unanimously. Massie warned, however, that the DOJ could delay releasing files by citing exemptions for ongoing investigations.

Trump recently ordered a new investigation into Democrats’ ties to Epstein.If approved, the measure will move to the Senate before heading to Trump’s desk. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has not commented on whether he will schedule a vote.Trump has long denied any connection to Epstein’s crimes.

Although the two socialized in the 1990s and early 2000s, Trump says the friendship ended long before Epstein’s legal troubles. Newly released House committee emails showed Epstein believed Trump “knew about the girls,” though the context of that phrase remains unclear.

The White House said the emails show no wrongdoing. Last week, Attorney General Pam Bondi—who previously stated the files offered no new investigative leads—said she would follow Trump’s directive to probe Democrats’ ties to Epstein.

The controversy has also strained Trump’s relationship with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, once one of his most loyal supporters. He publicly labeled her a traitor after she repeatedly criticized Republicans’ handling of the Epstein files.