US lawmakers approve release of Epstein files

US House and Senate vote overwhelmingly to make justice department release Epstein files. The US House votes 432-1 to compel the justice department to release all of its Jeffrey Epstein files. The Senate also says it will pass the the bill via unanimous consent before it heads to President Donald Trump's desk to be signed into law. The development came shortly after the House passed the bill with massive majority of 247-1 votes. Only Rep Clay Higgins voted no to the act, saying that the release of Epstein files to the public will "absolutely result in innocent people being hurt". In a post on X, Higgins said, “I have been a principled “NO” on this bill from the beginning. What was wrong with the bill three months ago is still wrong today. It abandons 250 years of criminal justice procedure in America. As written, this bill reveals and injures thousands of innocent people – witnesses, people who provided alibis, family members, etc.”

Survivors of Epstein's abuse cheered its passage. Holding electric candles, the women embraced, laughing and smiling, as members of Congress told them "good job". Survivor Annie Farmer also praised the late Virginia Giuffre for her role exposing Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.Farmer said that she met Giuffre in 2019, and recalled how "she just had this poise and this strength, and it was incredible to see". Giuffre, she said, deserves credit for unifiying the victims and inspiring them to speak out.

Now that both the House and the Senate have approved the release of all the Epstein files, the bill will need to be formally transmitted - via the Senate - for presidential signature.The Justice Department has a 30-day deadline after the president takes out his pen to release the files.

Tens of thousands of pages of evidence from federal investigations into convicted sex offenders Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, known as the Epstein files, have been released to the public in stages over several years. These documents, some released in redacted format, include Epstein’s flight logs, his contact book, email exchanges, court documents, and testimonies from victims and witnesses.