President Donald Trump on Sunday called on House Republicans to support the release of files related to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a dramatic change of direction on a hot-button issue he had long opposed.
“House Republicans must vote to release the Epstein files because we have nothing to hide and it is time to move on from this Democratic hoax perpetrated by radical leftist lunatics to distract from the great success of the Republican Party,” Trump posted in Truth Social.
Just last week, Trump called the effort to release the files a “hoax,” saying Democrats raised them to “reflect how poorly they handled the shutdown.”
In his message, Trump said the Justice Department had already published “tens of thousands” of pages about Epstein and noted his recent move. leadership of the Ministry of Justice to investigate Epstein's relationships with prominent Democrats such as former President Bill Clinton. Trump's request followed a string of emails that referenced figures on both sides of the aisle, including the president himself.
A Clinton spokesman told NBC News on Friday that the released emails “prove that Bill Clinton did nothing and knew nothing.”
“The rest is noise designed to distract from election defeats, shutdowns and God knows what else,” the spokesman said in a statement Friday night.
Representatives Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, and Thomas Massie, Republican of Kentucky, last week collected enough signatures to petition for dismissal force a vote on the measure in the House. They received support from Trump allies, including Reps. Nancy Mace, R-C., and Lauren Boebert, R-Colo. The petition also received the signature of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who over the weekend quarreled with Trumpwhich Green explained as her support for the release of Epstein's files.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, opposed the effort, but he said on Wednesday he will unveil the measure this week. To become law, the bill would also need to pass the GOP-controlled Senate and receive Trump's signature.
NBC News asked the White House for comment on Trump's post.
Trump has been friends with Epstein for years, but said they had a “quarrel” – probably around 2007. Epstein, who committed suicide in prison in 2019, has been at the center of conspiracy theories about his death and criminal case — and many in Trump's base supported greater transparency around Epstein. Trump promised campaign transparency and even appointed Kash Patel and Dan Bongino to two top FBI posts—both of whom, before joining the administration as FBI director and deputy director, used their media platforms to characterize the Epstein case as part of a cover-up to protect powerful people.
Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein's crimes.
The Epstein files have caused an uproar among MAGA baseThis year, Trump supporters expressed outrage at the administration's decision to no longer release the files.
The backlash led to Hannah and Massey eventually submitting their resignations. Soon after, Trump's team created a group to overthrow Massey. Since then, Trump approved Massie's challenger in the Republican primary.
