President Donald Trump has urged Republicans to vote for the release of the Epstein files despite previously opposing the move, as bipartisan support pushes the measure toward an expected House vote.
President Donald Trump has instructed House Republicans that they may vote to release federal files related to Jeffrey Epstein, asserting that the party “has nothing to hide”.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump wrote: “House Republicans should vote to release the Epstein files, because we have nothing to hide, and it’s time to move on from this Democrat Hoax perpetrated by Radical Left Lunatics in order to deflect from the Great Success of the Republican Party.”
The vote follows a successful discharge petition spearheaded by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) that secured all 218 signatures needed to force the House vote, with additional Republicans now indicating they will support the release. “The House Oversight Committee can have whatever they are legally entitled to, I DON’T CARE! All I do care about is that Republicans get BACK ON POINT,” Trump added, urging a focus on the economy, border security, and social issues.
The release of more than 20,000 previously undisclosed files last week, including emails implicating Trump, has intensified scrutiny.
One email from 2019 reportedly stated that Epstein believed Trump “knew about the girls,” though the White House maintained Trump has never been accused of wrongdoing.
Trump also criticized some Republican members, warning that “some ‘members’ of the Republican Party are being ‘used,’ and we can’t let that happen.” The files’ release is expected to reach the House floor on Tuesday, amid a widening rift within the GOP and tension with former ally Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, whom Trump has publicly withdrawn support from, calling her a “traitor.”
Rep. Massie, while supporting the vote, cautioned that Trump’s announced investigation into Epstein’s connections to Democratic figures may serve as a distraction, describing it as a “hoax” and a possible smokescreen to impede transparency.