Republican Reveals Trump Administration’s Exhaustive Efforts to Stall Epstein Files Release
A Republican congressman revealed the behind-the-scenes efforts by the Trump administration to stop the release of the Epstein files.
In an article in The Atlantic which details how millions of documents related to the crimes of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein became public, Kentucky Republican Congressman Thomas Massie revealed how the administration worked behind the scenes to thwart the process.
According to the article, as a vote on releasing the files approached last summer, “the White House and top Trump allies launched an effort to forestall it that…was unprecedented in its intensity and scope.”
In the report, Massie called the effort a “360-pressure campaign” that targeted anyone who associated with him. Massie told the magazine that in some instances, the administration offered some of his key staff members prestigious and lucrative jobs in the White House or the private sector.
The House Oversight Committee began investigating the Epstein case last summer, requesting documents and issuing subpoenas. Those efforts led to Congress passing the Epstein Files Transparency Act on Nov. 19. Earlier this year, the Justice Department released more than 3.5 million documents related to the case, but millions more documents still have not been released.
Trump’s name appears in the files thousands of times. The files have also raised questions about others in the administration. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had said that he had cutoff off contact with Epstein in 2005, only for the documents to contradict that claim.
Lutnick eventually testified and admitted to having lunch on Epstein’s island in 2012 while on a family vacation. Epstein had been convicted of soliciting sex with a minor in 2008. The 2008 conviction was the result of a plea deal and Epstein served a 13-month sentence.
In 2019, Epstein was indicted on much more serious sex trafficking charges and killed himself in prison. Epstein’s primary accomplice and former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, was convicted of sex trafficking and is serving a 20-year-sentence.
The report in The Atlantic seemed to contradict what Trump said during his presidential campaign in 2024. During the campaign, he appeared on the Lex Fridman podcast. During that interview he said he’d have “no problem” releasing the documents.
