The US House of Representatives voted almost unanimously on Tuesday to demand that the Department of Justice declassify all documents related to the investigation of the Epstein Case, everything surrounding the pedophile financier who died by suicide in prison in 2019 and his victims. Democrats have been pushing in that direction for months, but pressure from Donald Trump within Republican ranks had prevented it. Delays, blockages, maneuvers. However, this past weekend, the president, aware of the damaging nature of the case to his image, once again changed strategy, urging his party to vote in favor. The outcome in the lower chamber has broken the first barrier, but not all obstacles. Trump, if he wanted, could now order the release of all the material.
Trump's stance so far has been that there was nothing new to know about Epstein, a wealthy and famous businessman who had been convicted 15 years earlier of sexual offenses against minors. That there was nothing incriminating in the documents held by the Executive, no new leads, no list of Epstein's clients or a list of people who may have been blackmailed. And that the country should stop talking about the issue immediately because it was a distraction.
"The systematic review did not reveal any incriminating client list. There were also no credible evidence that Epstein was blackmailing prominent individuals as part of his actions. We did not find evidence that could support an investigation against uncharged third parties. Epstein harmed over a thousand victims. Each one suffered a unique trauma, and sensitive information related to these victims is intertwined throughout the material. This includes specific details such as the names and images of the victims, and physical descriptions. One of our top priorities is to combat child exploitation and bring justice to the victims. Perpetuating unfounded theories about Epstein does not contribute to any of these goals," said the Department of Justice in a memo in July trying to close the case.
The White House's attempt backfired. Dozens of prominent voices from the MAGA world and conspiracy theorists protested and warned that they would not give up. The pressure on Republican congressmen and FBI officials, who until very recently were fervent believers in the conspiracy, became suffocating, and they raised their concerns to the supreme leader. In early September, Trump made a move and handed over to Congress over 33,000 pages of documents on the Epstein Case. The move, more than an act of transparency, was an attempt to appease the anger, but it did not work because there was hardly anything new. Democrats in the lower chamber pulled all possible strings, obtaining documents from Epstein's estate administrators that mentioned Trump week after week, causing harm to the party and the president.
The September material was already known. And as more information has been released in recent weeks about Trump's ties to Epstein, or the Department of Justice's negotiations with the pedophile's ex-girlfriend (sentenced to 20 years in prison for providing him with minors and now transferred to a minimum-security facility), the growing feeling is that the president was covering up something significant. It was no longer just Democrats or victims, but Republican officials who were saying it. Even loyal and committed individuals, like Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia, an absolute and loyal fan who has now turned against Trump, causing the president to insult her ("traitor") and receive numerous threats.
Hence the turn this Tuesday, with all congressmen, except one from Louisiana, voting in favor of declassification. "House Republicans should vote in favor of releasing the Epstein files because we have nothing to hide, and it is time to move on from this Democrat farce perpetrated by radical left lunatics to divert attention from the great success of the Republican Party. The Department of Justice has already made tens of thousands of pages on Epstein public, is investigating several Democratic agents (Bill Clinton, Reid Hoffman, Larry Summers, etc.) and their relationship with Epstein, and the House Oversight Committee can have everything they are legally entitled to, I DON'T CARE! All I care about is that Republicans refocus on what matters: the economy (...) Nobody cared about Jeffrey Epstein when he was alive, and if the Democrats had something to show, they would have made it public before our overwhelming electoral victory," the president wrote on Sunday night in a lengthy message on his social media.
Today's vote was just a first step. Hours after the House of Representatives approved the bill with 427 votes in favor and only one against, the Senate automatically sent the bill to the president's desk. All while the Department of Justice rushes to open an investigation into Democrats connected to Epstein, allowing Attorney General Pam Bondi to block part of the documentation due to an ongoing process.
The problem for Trump is that today, more than ever, many people care about the Epstein case, especially among the followers and activists of the Make America Great Again universe that he leads. For years, MAGA supporters have believed and fueled the theory that Epstein was murdered. By Mossad, by other intelligence services, or powerful people who wanted to silence him once he was arrested. That there was an unprecedented cover-up operation within the Deep State and that everything was happening because prominent Democratic figures were involved. MAGA supporters are willing to believe almost anything Trump says, and justify the impossible. Everything except him saying there is no conspiracy.
"This has been one of the most destructive things for MAGA: seeing how the man we supported from the beginning, during three elections, people lining up for hours, sleeping in their cars to attend rallies... Seeing how this has turned into a struggle has shattered MAGA. And the only thing that will convince the powerful and brave women who support me is taking action to release these files. And the American people will not tolerate any more nonsense," said Congresswoman Taylor Greene on Tuesday from the steps of the Capitol, in a joint appearance with her colleague Thomas Masie, despised by Trump, and Democrat Ro Khanna, standing with many of Epstein's exploitation network victims.
"During Trump's second term, the Department of Justice announced the closure of the investigation into Epstein's accomplices and subsequently moved Ghislaine Maxwell to a correctional facility, where, reportedly, she receives preferential treatment. This is not about a few corrupt Democrats or Republicans. This is institutional betrayal," one of them denounced in front of cameras from all national networks, except Fox, the most pro-Trump and not covering this scandal.
The most exposed today was the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson. Forced to allow a vote he had been avoiding for months and to support it while deeply criticizing it. While trying in vain to change the text to soften it and contain damage. "It is incredibly dangerous to demand that officials or employees of the Department of Justice declassify materials that originated in other agencies and intelligence agencies," he said. "The request could create new victims because it forces the Department of Justice to disclose information even in cases where the Department of Justice or the FBI have already reviewed and determined it is not credible, it is false information. Doing this and demanding disclosure could ruin the reputation of completely innocent people, like those who may have only known Epstein but knew nothing of his crimes," he added. The proposal that was voted on, however, already includes that Attorney General Pam Bondi, one of the president's closest allies, can withhold or censor parts related to child sexual abuse material, something the victims agree with.