House panel releases tranche of Epstein files as controversy looms large over Congress’ return to Washington
CNN Newsource
Originally Published: 02 SEP 25 16:35 ET
Updated: 02 SEP 25 19:20 ET
By Alison Main, Manu Raju, Annie Grayer, Sarah Ferris, and Ellis Kim, CNN
(CNN) — The House Oversight Committee on Tuesday released tens of thousands of Jeffrey Epstein-related files it had received from the Justice Department, as the controversy surrounding the case intensified with lawmakers’ return to Washington.
While more than 30,000 pages were made public, the committee’s release may not represent the totality of the Epstein-related documents in the Justice Department’s possession and congressional Democrats have said they largely included previously known information. Still, the files – which include flight logs, court filings, jail surveillance footage, redacted records, depositions and memos – fuel intrigue in a case that has at times driven a wedge between President Donald Trump and his own party.
“The 33,000 pages of Epstein documents James Comer has decided to ‘release’ were already mostly public information. To the American people – don’t let this fool you,” Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on House Oversight Committee, said in a statement.
“After careful review, Oversight Democrats have found that 97% of the documents received from the Department of Justice were already public. There is no mention of any client list or anything that improves transparency or justice for victims.”
The Republican-led House panel obtained the documents as part of a subpoena to the Justice Department last month, and the committee, in the days since, moved to redact sensitive information in them.
As the panel readied the files’ release Tuesday, GOP Rep. Thomas Massie pushed forward with his effort to compel the publication of the case files in full – a vote that House GOP leaders have sought to head off.
Massie’s decision to officially move ahead with his bipartisan bill to force the Justice Department to release the files breathed new life into an issue that has caused headaches for the Trump administration and threatens to put Hill Republicans on the spot over the politically contentious issue.
“People want these files released. I mean, look, it’s not the biggest issue in the country. It’s taxes, jobs, the economy, those are always the big issues. But you really can’t solve any of that if this place is corrupt,” Massie said.
Just hours after returning from their summer recess, GOP lawmakers were facing intense pressure from their base to make a decision on whether to support the Kentucky Republican’s resolution, or risk accusations that they are against transparency around the case.
Massie formally introduced his resolution Tuesday afternoon, kicking off a frenzied week in which he and his Democratic cosponsor, Rep. Ro Khanna, will attempt to get the 218 signatures needed to circumvent leadership and force a vote on the House floor.
Massie expressed confidence that he and Khanna could get six Republicans to join all 212 House Democrats in supporting their petition, despite what he said were attempts by the White House to halt the effort.
“There’s a major pressure campaign from the White House right now, and also from the speaker, but I think there are enough Republicans who are listening to their constituents and care about these victims that we’ll get the 218 signatures we need,” he said.
“Nobody’s tried to get me to stop doing it. I have texted with Mike Johnson as recently as yesterday,” Massie later told reporters, refusing to disclose what Johnson had said to him.
And any vows from Trump and his allies to mount a primary against Massie doesn’t worry him, the congressman said. “I’ve already poked the hornet’s nest here. And you know, once you’re, once you’re in for a penny, you’re in for a pound, we’re going to get these files released,” he said.
CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.
GOP leadership pushes symbolic vote
Underscoring the growing pressure on House Republicans to act on the Epstein matter, leadership on Tuesday added a symbolic vote to the chamber’s calendar that would call on the Oversight Committee to continue its investigation into the Epstein files.
Massie criticized the move, which came before he had the opportunity Tuesday to file his discharge petition and begin collecting signatures, as not “wide enough.”
“It’s basically telling [House Oversight Chairman] James Comer to keep doing what he’s doing, and I appreciate what James Comer is doing, but this vote is unnecessary, and it’s to provide political cover to those Republicans who may not be sponsoring or signing the effort that Ro Khanna and I put forward,” he said of Johnson’s resolution.
The speaker brushed off Massie’s criticism, telling reporters later in the afternoon that he “would not put much stock in what Thomas Massie says.”
“The House Republicans have been very consistent about maximum disclosure, maximum transparency for the Epstein files, but we have to do it in a way that would protect the innocent victims of these horrific crimes,” he said, later adding, “What people want to do with this for political purposes, to me, is really just shameful.”
In response, Massie pointed to a Wednesday press conference he and Khanna will hold with a number of Epstein victims who he said are pleading for the files to be released.
“He can’t say that he’s protecting the victims, and I’m not,” he said.
Emotional closed-door meeting with victims
Johnson and members of the Oversight Committee met with six victims for more than two hours behind closed-doors Tuesday in what many lawmakers described as an emotional and informative meeting.
GOP Rep. Nancy Mace left the meeting in tears, while Johnson told reporters the testimonials were “heartbreaking and infuriating” and that “there were tears in the room. There was outrage.”
The speaker, who has tried to walk a tightrope on the issue, vowed for “transparency” in releasing information to the public, and said Trump shares the same perspective.
“That’s his mindset. And he wants the American people to have information so they can draw their own conclusions.” Johnson said he’d spoken with Trump “about this very subject myself,” saying the president “is insistent that we protect the innocent victims, and that’s what this has been about.”
Yet, Democratic Rep. Melanie Stansbury criticized Johnson for not wanting to expand the investigation into Epstein beyond the Oversight panel.
“It’s noteworthy that in the room with six victims of sexual violence by Jeffrey Epstein, it was suggested by Democrats that this be investigated using the full force of every committee here in Congress. And the speaker ended by saying he didn’t think that was necessary. He’d like to just keep it in the Oversight Committee,” Stansbury said.
Members in the room relayed that the victims want more information released, while ensuring that certain private details are protected.
But even some Republicans leaving the room signaled that they would be open to signing onto Massie’s effort to force a full House vote on releasing the files.
“After reading the entire resolution, it’s very good. It’s well written. It protects the victims and it provides the transparency that the country deserves, and most importantly, the survivors deserve. Yes I will be proudly signing the petition,” GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia said.
Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, meanwhile, told reporters she believes all of the files will be released and that a vote won’t be necessary, but if it comes to it, she would be “happy to” sign on.
There was bipartisan agreement in the room to subpoena more individuals based on the names that came up in the conversation with the victims, Democratic Rep. David Min of California told reporters.
“There’s a lot of stuff we’re learning that the government has access to that has not been made available to us,” he said.
“We want to know what we don’t know and where we can get it. I came away from this feeling like that first tranche of documents that we received was completely useless and that they’re withholding a lot of information right now.”
This headline and story have been updated with additional developments.
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