US President Donald Trump has asked Republicans in the House of Representatives to vote for the publication of the Epstein files, changing his previous statements on the subject, the BBC writes.
“House Republicans should vote to release the Epstein files because we have nothing to hide,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Sunday night.
Trump's major shift comes as dozens of Republicans have signaled they are willing to vote to release the documents.
The House of Representatives could vote this week on legislation to force the Justice Department to release the files. Supporters of the bill appear to have enough votes to pass the House, although it is unclear whether it will pass the Senate.
Trump would also have to approve the release of the documents if they are passed by both chambers.
Both Democrats and some Republicans supported this legislative effort. Republican Representative Thomas Massie, a co-sponsor of the bill, said in an interview with ABC News on Sunday that as many as 100 Republicans could vote for it.
Known as the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the purpose of the bill is to compel the Justice Department to release all unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials related to Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump released the statement shortly after landing at US Air Force Base Andrews following a weekend in Florida.
“The Department of Justice has already released to the public tens of thousands of pages about 'Epstein', which examines the relationship of various Democratic operatives (Bill Clinton, Reid Hoffman, Larry Summers, etc.) with Epstein. I DON'T CARE!” Trump wrote, adding that he wanted Republicans to go “BACK TO THE ISSUES.”
Trump's reference to Clinton comes after the US Justice Department confirmed it would investigate pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein's alleged ties to major banks and several prominent Democrats, including former US President Bill Clinton.
Trump said he would ask Attorney General Pam Bondi and the FBI to investigate Epstein's “involvement and relationship” with Clinton and others.
Clinton has vehemently denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes.
A JPMorgan Chase spokesman said the firm regrets “any association” they had with Epstein and added that the firm “did not help him commit his heinous acts.”
Trump's comeback comes after Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released three email exchanges last week, including correspondence between Epstein, who died in prison in 2019, and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking.
Some of these exchanges refer to Trump. In an email sent in 2011, Epstein wrote to Maxwell: “I want you to realize that the dog that didn't bark is Trump… [VICTIMA] spent hours at my house with him.”
In his comments Sunday night, Trump reiterated the White House's dismissal of the Epstein files, calling them a “hoax” run by Democrats. His post came after House Speaker Mike Johnson suggested in comments on Fox News that a vote to release the documents would end allegations that Trump had anything to do with Epstein's abuse and trafficking of teenage children.
Trump and Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, traditionally one of his staunchest defenders, have sparred publicly over the dossier.
On Friday, Trump called Greene a “traitor” in social media posts and said she should be fired in next year's election.
For his part, Greene questioned whether Trump still puts “America first” and criticized his handling of the Epstein files.
In a letter to Congress and Epstein's survivors, she urged US lawmakers to vote in favor of releasing the files.
“Remember that your primary duty is to your constituents. Look into the eyes of your children, your sisters, your mothers and your aunts,” the letter said.
“Imagine if you were a survivor yourself. What would you want for them? What would you want for yourself?”
