U.S. politicians have released more than 20,000 documents from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s estate.
The documents include a series of emails that appear to suggest U.S. President Donald Trumpwas aware of some of Epstein’s criminal activity.
Next week, a vote is planned to decide if the full suite of records known as the ‘Epstein files’ will be released.
Background
Jeffrey Epstein was a wealthy financier who was arrested in 2019 on sex trafficking charges.
He was known to be friends with an array of high-profile politicians, celebrities, and the wealthy.
In 2002, Trump told New York Magazine that Epstein was a “terrific guy” who “likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”
In 2019, Trump said he hadn’t spoken to Epstein in 15 years.
'Epstein Files'
The ‘Epstein files’ are a series of documents relating to Epstein’s sex trafficking charges. During Trump’s 2024 Presidential campaign, he promised to release the documents.
The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. House Oversight Committee have both released batches of documents relating to Epstein this year, which Democrats have said were largely already public.
An FBI memorandum shared in July stated there was “no basis” to share more files and “no incriminating client list."
Documents
On Wednesday (local time), Democrat members of the Oversight Committee shared a series of Epstein’s email conversations, including with ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell.
In a 2019 email to author Michael Wolff, Epstein said “of course he knew about the girls,” referring toTrump.
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A different email chain from 2015 shows Wolff told Epstein that CNN was planning to ask Trump about his connection to the convicted sex offender, adding that Epstein should “let [Trump] hang himself”.
After publishing the emails, Republican committee members shared a Google Drive folder containing more than 20,000 documents “from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein”.
The sharing of these documents comes amid renewed calls to release all of the ‘Epstein files’.
In July, Republican representative Thomas Massie introduced a “discharge petition” that – if it received 218 votes (a House majority) – would see the introduction of a bill to release the files.
On Wednesday, the House swore in a new Democrat member, who became the 218th signatory.
Response
In a post to Truth Social, Trump labelled the situation a “hoax” and a “deflection.”
He said “only a... stupid Republican would fall into that trap” of supporting the release of the files.
According to U.S. media, a meeting was held between some of Trump’s senior team and the Republican representatives who signed for the petition.
They reportedly met in the ‘situation room’, a space reserved for high-level crises and military operations.
What’s next?
Republican House speaker Mike Johnson told media that next week he will put forward the bill to release the documents.
Republicans have a majority in the House and the Senate. Assuming the four Republicans who signed the petition vote for the bill, it will pass the House, however, it is unlikely to pass the Senate.
If it did, as President, Trump could veto it.
