Congress Passes Bill to Make Public Jeffrey Epstein Files
The upper chamber of Congress on this Tuesday passed without delay to a bill that will require the publication of official records concerning the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, after a near-unanimous vote in the House of Representatives and a reversal by the president and his GOP allies. The White House relented after an extended period of trying to forestall the cross-party initiative involving a scandal that has followed the president since his comeback to the White House.
Swift Passage in Both Chambers
Senators proceeded by unanimous consent, which needs acceptance from each senator but avoids a individual voting process, expediting the process. Hours earlier, the House overwhelmingly approved the bill on a massive majority.
“The American people have endured sufficient delay. Those affected have suffered long enough,” the top Senate Democrat said in a Senate remarks on Tuesday, before urging the Senate to adopt it by consent. “Uncover the facts. Let transparency reign.”
Presidential Signature
The measure next will be sent to Trump for his approval. Trump signaled on the previous day that he would approve the bill.
Though Trump has for months dismissed the outcry over the official management of the Epstein case as a “false narrative”, he expressed his backing for the House bill over the past few days, and said he would sign the measure if it reaches his desk.
Support and Opposition
Opposition lawmakers, along with victims and their representatives who were seated in a House gallery, broke into applause after the bill was enacted. Lone dissent came from a Louisiana Republican, who said he was concerned the measure would make public specific data of individuals involved, persons of interest and others caught up in the investigation.
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