Bill directs Justice Department to make them available within 30 days

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday evening that he has signed legislation approved by Congress that aims to compel the release of files related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump once pointed a finger at Democratic lawmakers over the matter, saying, “This latest Hoax will backfire on the Democrats just as all of the rest have.”

Trump and House Republican leaders had battled rank-and-file members for months over whether documents in the federal government’s possession should be made public.

Trump suddenly changed course Sunday night and announced he would sign the measure. The House vote had been put into motion following a decision by four Republicans, including Colorado’s Lauren Boebert, to sign a petition to force House GOP leaders to schedule the vote compelling the release of some 100,000 files held by the federal government in the Epstein case.

The bill would direct the Department of Justice to make many records related to Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell publicly available within 30 days of enactment, with exceptions for material related to ongoing investigations.

It also would require Attorney General Pamela Bondi, within 15 days of making such records public, to submit a report to Congress that includes information on the materials it has released and withheld, a list of any redactions made and the legal justification for doing so, and a list of any government officials and politically exposed persons named in the investigation.

Late last week, Bondi tapped Jay Clayton, the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to lead an investigation into Epstein’s ties to notable political figures and campaign contributors. Earlier on Truth Social, Trump had singled out prominent Democrats, such as former President Bill Clinton, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman.

At a news conference Wednesday, Bondi said Clayton’s investigation wouldn’t interfere with disclosures required under the new law. She emphasized that she wouldn’t hesitate to redact sensitive materials as needed.

“We will continue to follow the law with maximum transparency, while protecting victims,” Bondi said.

Trump has spent part of this week trying to defend his reversal — while also continuing to claim the dust-up over the Epstein files was a “Democrat hoax” created by opposition party lawmakers eager to bruise him politically.

“I have nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein. I threw him out of my (Mar-a-Lago) club many years ago because I thought he was a sick pervert,” the president said Tuesday in the Oval Office. “But, I guess, I turned out to be right.”

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, meanwhile, plans to continue its own probe into the late financier and has released a trove of documents from the Epstein estate, including emails from Epstein suggesting Trump “knew about the girls.”

The controversy became a rare example of some congressional Republicans being willing to defy Trump on a hot-button issue.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., initially opposed the measure but eventually had no choice but to bring it to the floor due to a successful discharge petition from Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., the lead backers of the bill.

“We fought the president, the attorney general, the FBI director, the speaker of the House and the vice president to get this win,” Massie said at a Tuesday news conference outside the Capitol with women victimized by Epstein. “They’re on our side today, though, so let’s give them some credit, as well. They are finally on the side of justice.”

All but one House Republican present Tuesday voted in favor of the measure, resulting in a lopsided final tally of 427-1. Louisiana Republican Clay Higgins was the lone voting member to oppose the bill, arguing that it lacked ample protections for innocent people.

In another surprise move, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer on Tuesday evening requested unanimous consent to pass the legislation without amendment as soon as it was sent over from the House. No senators objected, clearing its path to passage in that chamber on Wednesday.

“This isn’t about Democrats versus Republicans, or about Congress versus the president,” Schumer said Tuesday. “This is about giving the American people the transparency they’ve been crying (out) for.”

The monthslong standoff between lawmakers and the president over the Epstein files also saw GOP firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene speak out against her longtime political ally, contending that Trump — before his Sunday night reversal — was protecting wealthy friends.

Meanwhile, Boebert, who represents Colorado’s 4th Congressional District, last week denied reports that her meeting at the White House was meant to pressure her to remove her name from the congressional petition.

She said last week’s meeting — held in the White House Situation Room, with Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel reportedly in attendance — was just adults having a conversation. 

“I love the White House,” Boebert told CPR News. “Adults are allowed to have conversations.”

This CQ-Roll Call article was distributed via the Associated Press. The Washington Examiner contributed to this report.