House Poised to Pass Bipartisan Bill Forcing Release of Jeffrey Epstein Files After Trump Reversal

House set to vote on bill to publish Epstein records

WASHINGTON — The House is preparing to cast an overwhelming bipartisan vote to require the Justice Department to release all unclassified records connected to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his alleged co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell. The move marks a significant victory for lawmakers in both parties who have pressed for greater transparency for months.

The measure, which recently amassed enough cross-party support to head straight to the House floor, gained additional momentum over the weekend when former President Donald Trump reversed his earlier position and publicly urged House Republicans to back the bill.

Authors and support: The legislation’s co-sponsors, Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), are pushing for a veto-proof majority and say they expect significant GOP support — potentially 100 or more Republicans — particularly after Trump’s endorsement. “Almost everybody” will support the bill, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) told NBC News, noting that party leaders were not directing members how to vote. A lopsided House vote would increase pressure on the Republican-controlled Senate to consider the measure.

Massie has urged colleagues to weigh the long-term political implications. “Just thinking politically, [Republicans] need to look past 2028 and wonder if they want this on their record for the rest of their political career,” he told reporters. Khanna said he and Massie will hold a news conference with Epstein survivors and will urge Trump to meet with them.

Legislative path: The push to the floor was driven by a discharge petition that allowed rank-and-file members to bypass leadership. All House Democrats signed on, and after Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) was sworn in and became the 218th signer, a wave of Republicans announced they would support the bill once it reached the floor. The White House reportedly tried behind the scenes to persuade several Republican women to withdraw their signatures.

In a separate development, Trump directed Pam Bondi — a longtime ally — to look into Epstein’s reported ties to prominent Democrats and certain financial institutions. With the vote looming, Trump posted on Truth Social urging House Republicans to approve the legislation and told reporters he would sign it if it reached his desk.

Oversight and documents already released: The Justice Department has already provided tens of thousands of documents from the Epstein investigation to the House Oversight Committee, which has conducted its own probe and published many records. Last week, Democrats on Oversight released emails from Epstein to Ghislaine Maxwell and journalist Michael Wolff that reference Trump; in one 2019 email Epstein wrote, “Of course he knew about the girls as he asked ghislaine to stop,” though Epstein did not allege criminal conduct by Trump.

Trump has consistently denied any involvement in Epstein’s crimes. The two men socialized in the 1980s and 1990s, including at a 1992 gathering at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. Their relationship later soured after Trump accused Epstein of poaching employees from his resort and said he banned Epstein from Mar-a-Lago.

Background: Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008 to state charges of soliciting prostitution with a minor. In July 2019 federal prosecutors charged him with sex trafficking of minors. Authorities reported that Epstein died by suicide in his jail cell a month later while awaiting trial.

What the bill would do: The House bill would direct the attorney general to publish, in a searchable and downloadable format, “all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials” related to Epstein and Maxwell. That includes flight logs and travel records, information about people and entities connected to Epstein, and internal Justice Department emails, notes and other communications. The legislation permits limited withholding or redaction of information that would identify victims or jeopardize an active federal investigation.

Leadership concerns: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has argued the bill is unnecessary because the Oversight Committee has been releasing many documents already. He has also said he is concerned the discharge process may not fully protect victims from disclosure. “We wanted to ensure that victims of these heinous crimes are completely protected from disclosure,” Johnson said, adding that that uncertainty is a key problem with the petition approach.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com.