Instead, Trump says House Republicans should vote to release Epstein files

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said House Republicans should vote to release files on the Jeffrey Epstein case, a stunning reversal after previously rejecting the proposal as a growing number of members of his own party supported it.

“We have nothing to hide, and it’s time to move on from this Democratic hoax perpetrated by radical left lunatics to divert us from the great success of the Republican Party,” Trump wrote on social media Sunday night after landing at Joint Base Andrews following a weekend in Florida.

The president’s change is an implicit recognition that the measure’s supporters have enough votes to pass it in the House, although its future in the Senate is unclear.

It’s a rare example of Trump backtracking because of opposition within the Republican Party. Upon his return to office and his second term as president, Trump has largely consolidated power in the Republican Party.

“I DON’T MIND!” Trump wrote in his social media post. “The only thing I care about is that the Republicans get back to the point.”

Lawmakers supporting the bill have been predicting a big victory in the House this week with a “flurry of Republicans” voting in favor, defying GOP leadership and the president.

In his opposition to the proposal, Trump even contacted two of the Republican lawmakers who signed it. One of them, Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert, met with administration officials in the White House Situation Room last week to discuss it.

The bill would force the Justice Department to release all files and communications related to Epstein, as well as any information about the investigation into his death in federal prison. Redacting information about Epstein’s victims or ongoing federal investigations would be allowed.

“There could be 100 or more” Republican votes, said Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., among lawmakers who discussed the legislation in their Sunday news show appearances. “I look forward to a veto-proof majority on this legislation when it comes to a vote.”

Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., filed a discharge petition in July to force a vote on their bill. It is a rarely successful tool that allows a majority of members to bypass House leadership and force a floor vote.

Chairman Mike Johnson, R-La., had criticized the recall effort and sent members home early for their August recess when the GOP’s legislative agenda was upended by clamor for an Epstein vote. Democrats also maintain that the election of Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., was stalled to delay her becoming the 218th member to sign the petition and gain the threshold needed to force a vote. It became the 218th signature moments after taking the oath of office last week.

Massie said Johnson, Trump and others who have criticized his efforts “would suffer a big loss this week.”

“I’m not tired of winning yet, but we’re winning,” Massie said.

The vision from the Republican leadership

Johnson appears to expect the House to decisively back the Epstein bill.

“We’ll just do this and move on. There’s nothing to hide,” adding that the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has been releasing “a lot more information than the discharge petition, their little tactic.”

The vote comes as new documents raise new questions about Epstein and his associates, including a 2019 email Epstein wrote to a journalist saying Trump “knew about the girls.” The White House has accused Democrats of selectively leaking emails to smear the Republican president.

Johnson said Trump “has nothing to hide from this.”

“They’re doing this to go after President Trump on the theory that he has something to do with it. He doesn’t,” Johnson said.

Photography by Davidoff Studios via Getty Images

Trump has never been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, and the mere inclusion of someone’s name in the investigation files does not imply otherwise. Epstein, who committed suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial, also had many prominent acquaintances in political and celebrity circles besides Trump.

Khanna expressed more modest expectations about the vote count than Massie. Still, Khanna said he expected 40 or more Republicans to join the effort.

“I don’t even know how involved Trump was,” Khanna said. “There are a lot of other people involved who need to be held accountable.”

Khanna also asked Trump to meet with those who suffered abuse. Some will be at the Capitol on Tuesday for a news conference, he said.

Massie said Republican lawmakers who fear losing Trump’s support because of how they vote will have a mark on their record if they vote “no,” which could hurt their long-term political prospects.

“The record of this vote will outlast Donald Trump’s presidency,” Massie said.

The MAGA division ITSELF

On the Republican side, three Republicans joined Massie in signing the discharge petition: Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Boebert.

Trump publicly renounced Greene last week and said he would back a challenger against her in 2026 “if the right person comes forward.”

Greene attributed the fallout with Trump to “unfortunately, it all came down to the Epstein files.” She said the country deserves transparency on the issue and that Trump’s criticism of her is confusing because the women she has spoken to say he did nothing wrong.

“I have no idea what’s in the files. I can’t even guess. But that’s the question everyone is asking: Why fight this so hard?” Greene said.

Trump’s feud with Greene escalated over the weekend, when Trump sent out a final social media post about her while still sitting in his helicopter on the White House lawn when he arrived home Sunday night, writing, “The fact is, no one cares about this traitor to our country!”

Even if the bill passes the House, there is no guarantee that Senate Republicans will approve it. Massie said he just hopes Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., “does the right thing.”

“The pressure will be there if we get a big vote in the House,” said Massie, who thinks “we could have a Republican landslide.”

Massie appeared on ABC’s “This Week,” Johnson was on “News Sunday,” Khanna spoke on NBC’s “Meet the Press” and Greene was interviewed on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

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News writer Michelle L. Price contributed to this report.