House Republican leaders are aiming to hold a vote on Tuesday regarding legislation that would force the full release of the Justice Department’s files on Jeffrey Epstein, sources familiar with the matter told CBS.
Last week, all Democrats and four Republican House members successfully brought a petition to the floor to force a vote on releasing the complete Justice Department files on Epstein, bypassing GOP leadership. House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed that the vote will take place this upcoming week.
The bill, titled the *Epstein Files Transparency Act*, was first introduced in July by Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California and Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky amid increasing pressure on the Trump administration to release additional Epstein-related documents.
This bipartisan legislation calls for the disclosure of all documents related to investigations involving Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted of sex trafficking in 2021. Specifically, the bill would require the release of flight logs, travel records, names of individuals and entities referenced in any Epstein case, and internal Justice Department communications within 30 days of the bill’s passage.
Additionally, the legislation mandates the public release of any records concerning the destruction, deletion, alteration, misplacement, or concealment of documents, recordings, or electronic data related to Epstein and his associates. It would also include documentation pertaining to Epstein’s death.
Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide in 2019 at a Manhattan correctional facility while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
“I believe we’re going to get 40, 50 Republicans voting with us on the release,” Khanna told reporters on Wednesday. “And if we get that kind of overwhelming vote, that’s going to push the Senate, and it’s going to push for a release of the files from the Justice Department.”
However, it remains unclear whether the Senate would take up the bill if it passes the House.
Last week, the House Oversight Committee released more than 20,000 pages of documents from Epstein’s estate. These included emails exchanged between Epstein and others regarding former President Donald Trump.
On Friday, Trump called on the Justice Department and FBI to investigate Epstein’s involvement with prominent Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton, as well as major financial institutions. Trump has previously stated that he cut ties with Epstein years ago and has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
When asked about the potential vote on Saturday, Trump said, “I don’t care about it released or not. What I think you should do if you’re going to do it, then you have to go into Epstein’s friends,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One.
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*In unrelated news, a Louisiana father spoke out recently, saying it’s “disturbing” after deepfake images of his daughter were allegedly shared, highlighting concerns about the vulnerabilities faced by the homeless population when the employed are pushed into homelessness.*
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/house-gop-leaders-aiming-hold-211738221.html
