U.S. House, Senate overwhelmingly pass bill to force Epstein files release

U.S. Put up votes to do sir jacob epstein files public

The bill is passed' in the U.S. House: See the result of a vote on releasing the Epstein files

Epstein survivors speak ahead of U.S. Vote on releasing documents

Trump feuds with Marjorie Taylor Greene over Epstein files

White House says Epstein emails mentioning Trump were 'selectively leaked'

Bondi orders prosecutor to probe Epstein ties to prominent Democrats

Fallout from the Epstein files

Just a few minutes ago, Schumer took to the floor of the Senate to ask for unanimous consent to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

The president of the Senate asked, “Is there an objectIon?” After a few seconds of silence, he declared: “So, ordered.”

“The Senate has now passed the Epstein bill as soon as it comes over from the House,” Schumer said.

It’s not immediately clear when that procedural paperwork happens, but it will likely be in the next few hours and it’s now a formality. The next step will be sending the bill to Trump to sign.

Now that the House has overwhelmingly voted in favour of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, all eyes turn to the Senate, where a vote could happen within hours.

The Senate Minority Leader, Democrat Chuck Schumer, said he’ll seek unanimous consent to pass the bill immediately.

The top Republican in the Senate, Majority Leader John Thune, promised swift action after the House vote and opened the door to a vote this evening.

However, we don’t yet know exactly when all this could happen. I’m monitoring proceedings in Congress and will next update you when it looks like things are moving in the Senate.

Even if the Senate passes the bill and the president signs it into law, some members of Congress believe the Trump administration could still find a way to refuse to disclose the files.

That’s because of Trump’s move last Friday to order Attorney General Pam Bondi to launch an investigation into Epstein's connections to three prominent Democrats: former president Bill Clinton, former treasury secretary Larry Summers and the founder of LinkedIn, Reid Hoffman.

The bill includes a clause allowing the DOJ to withhold material that "would jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution, provided that such withholding is narrowly tailored and temporary."

Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who co-sponsored the bill, told ABC's This Week that Trump’s sudden call for that investigation "might be a big smokescreen ... As a last-ditch effort to prevent the release of the Epstein files."

Thune says the Senate will try to pass the Epstein bill quickly, potentially later today, and send it to Trump.

Previously, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he didn’t think Republicans would advocate for the documents’ release.

The sole “nay” in the House’s vote came from Louisiana Republican Clay Higgins.

Last night, Higgins posted this video to X saying, “Lord, give me strength, help me to be worthy,” and, “We have to try to do the right thing, even if it’s difficult.”

After voting no, Higgins issued a statement.

“This bill reveals and injures thousands of innocent people — witnesses, people who provided alibis, family members, etc.” he said today.

“If enacted in its current form, this type of broad reveal of criminal investigative files, released to a rabid media, will absolutely result in innocent people being hurt.”

The gavel is down, making it official: The House has passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

It was overwhelming but not unanimous, passing 427 to 1.

It’s incredibly rare in this deeply partisan U.S. Congress to see any matter approved so strongly, let alone a bill that has until now been so divisive.

The sole dissenter was Republican Clay Higgins.

It’s unclear what exactly we’ll learn if the Justice Department releases all of its files related to the Epstein case.

But Barry Levine, author of The Spider: Inside the Criminal Web of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, who has been reporting on Epstein since the mid-2000s, says there are certainly some outstanding questions that need answers.

One of those questions, Levine wrote in July for the New York Times, pertains to how Epstein “amassed such a large fortune and how he was able to fund such a complex trafficking scheme.”

“We need to follow the money,” he wrote. “The FBI files may reveal more about the funding and other financial mechanics of Mr. Epstein’s operation.”

Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre claimed Epstein trafficked her to multiple men. Those she accused have denied wrongdoing.

“Who were the clients implicated in Epstein’s sex trafficking operation?” Levine wonders.

The House of Representatives has now begun voting on House Resolution 4405, the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

More than 100 representatives have already cast their ballots and so far there's not a single vote against it.

There are 15 minutes allotted for the vote by the 433 members of the House.

If the bill passes in the House, it then goes to the Senate. It's not yet clear whether the Senate Majority Leader John Thune will hold a vote on the matter.

It's also possible that the Senate could ask for changes to the bill, requiring the House to vote on it again.

If it does pass through both the House and Senate, it would then end up on Trump's desk.

Trump could then veto the bill. The president had previously opposed the Justice Department's (DOJ) release of its Epstein files but he has since indicated that Republicans should support the bill and that he would sign it.

If the bill makes it through all these stages, the DOJ would then have 30 days to release all unclassified documents and investigative materials that relate to Epstein.

Those records, according to the bill, can't be redacted “on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

However, the bill does allow some exceptions to redacts, which includes portions that contain "personally identifiable” information about victims or information that could compromise an ongoing federal investigation.

---

---