UPDATE
Jul 21, 2025 7:50 PM CDT
The House won't vote this summer on whether the Justice Department should release files related to the Jeffrey Epstein case, Speaker Mike Johnson said on Monday, after he called last week for the Trump administration to "put everything out there." The Rules Committee has already sent a resolution to the House floor, though no vote had been scheduled. Lawmakers begin a six-week vacation on Thursday. Johnson's reversal put him back in alignment with President Trump on the issue, the New York Times reports. "We need the administration to have the space to do what it is doing," the speaker told reporters, adding that Congress could still take action if it's needed. "I don't think we're at that point yet, because we agree with the president," Johnson said.
Jul 15, 2025 9:19 PM CDT
House Speaker Mike Johnson is urging the Justice Department to make public all its files related to Jeffrey Epstein. Johnson also wants Attorney General Pam Bondi to clarify her previous comments about possessing a so-called "client list" tied to Epstein's network, Politico reports. "It's a very delicate subject, but you should put everything out there, let the people decide it," Johnson told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson in an interview released shortly after he and other Republicans blocked a House vote Tuesday that Democrats framed as a push for the White House to hand over the files.
The renewed call for transparency follows the Trump administration's refusal earlier this month to release more details about Epstein's death and the sex-trafficking investigation, after federal investigators concluded there was no evidence of foul play or a hidden list of clients. The Washington Post reports that Johnson has never broken so publicly with Trump on an issue. Multiple factions have emerged amid MAGA infighting over the issue, though Trump said Tuesday that he doesn't "understand why the Jeffrey Epstein case would be of interest to anybody," the AP reports. "He's dead for a long time," Trump told reporters after returning from a trip to Pittsburgh. "He was never a big factor in terms of life."
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Trump described the case as "pretty boring." Earlier Tuesday, the president defended Bondi's handling of the case but suggested more documents could be released, the Guardian reports. "She's handled it very well, and it's going to be up to her," he said. "Whatever she thinks is credible, she should release." When a reporter asked him if Bondi had told him he was cited in the documents, Trump said, "No, no," Variety reports. He said Bondi had provided "just a very quick briefing" on the files, adding that they were "made up" by the Obama and Biden administrations.
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