US President Donald Trump on Sunday urged Republicans in the House of Representatives to vote in favor of releasing all government-held files related to Jeffrey Epstein, reversing his earlier resistance to broad public disclosure.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that Republicans should support the release “because we have nothing to hide,” framing the issue as an effort to counter what he called a Democratic attempt to weaponize selective records. The shift comes as lawmakers prepare for a high-stakes vote that could force the Justice Department to publish thousands of pages tied to Epstein and past federal investigations.
The president’s reversal follows weeks of escalating pressure inside his party and a steady release of documents by House Democrats. Those materials include email exchanges between Epstein and his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell, some referencing Trump, that have reignited public scrutiny of Epstein’s network of influential contacts.
Trump has long denied any wrongdoing connected to Epstein and says he severed ties with the financier years before Epstein’s 2008 conviction. But speculation surrounding their past association has fueled political tension, including a recent clash with Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, once one of Trump’s most vocal allies.
Greene has publicly accused Trump of resisting efforts to release the files, while Trump has criticized her in return, calling her a “traitor” and “wacky” in a series of posts that triggered national attention.
Momentum inside the House appears to favor disclosure. Republican Representative Thomas Massie, a co-sponsor of the legislation, said in an interview with ABC News that as many as 100 Republicans could vote for the bill.
If passed, the Epstein Files Transparency Act would require the Justice Department to release all unclassified records, communications, and investigative materials related to Epstein. The measure has support from both Democrats and Republicans, although its prospects in the Senate remain unclear.
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The latest clash over the files intensified after Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a set of three email exchanges between Epstein and Maxwell. One email from 2011 mentions Trump by name. According to the White House, the “victim” referenced in the email was Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s highest-profile accusers.
Hours after the release, House Republicans responded by publishing roughly 20,000 documents of their own, accusing Democrats of “cherry-picking” information to craft “a fake narrative to slander” the president.
Trump has repeatedly dismissed renewed interest in the records as a political distraction, describing the focus on Epstein as a Democrat-driven “hoax” designed to divert attention from other legislative battles.
“The Department of Justice has already turned over tens of thousands of pages to the public,” Trump wrote Sunday, adding that investigators were reviewing the actions of “various Democrat operatives” connected to Epstein. He urged Republicans to “get BACK ON POINT.”
The Justice Department has separately confirmed that it is reviewing Epstein’s connections to several high-profile individuals, including former President Bill Clinton, investor Reid Hoffman, and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers. All have denied any wrongdoing.