Trump signs bill approving release of the Epstein files
US President Donald Trump has announced that he has signed a bill ordering the release of all files related to the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The bill requires the US Justice Department to release all information from its Epstein investigation “in a searchable and downloadable format” within 30 days.
Trump had previously opposed releasing the files, but changed his position last week after pressure from Epstein’s survivors and members of his own Republican Party.
With his backing, the legislation passed overwhelmingly in both the House of Representatives and the Senate on Tuesday.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump accused Democrats of pushing the issue to distract from his administration’s achievements.
"Perhaps the truth about these Democrats, and their associations with Jeffrey Epstein, will soon be revealed, because I HAVE JUST SIGNED THE BILL TO RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES!" he wrote.
"Democrats have used the 'Epstein' issue, which affects them far more than the Republican Party, in order to try and distract from our AMAZING Victories."
The release of the files also allows for redactions about Epstein’s survivors for ongoing federal investigations, but the Justice Department cannot withhold information due to “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity.”
The files due for release under the new legislation include documents from the criminal investigations into Epstein, such as transcripts of interviews with victims and witnesses, material seized during raids on his properties, internal Justice Department communications, flight logs, and information about people and entities linked to him.
These differ from the more than 20,000 pages released by Congress last week from Epstein’s estate, some of which directly reference Trump, including 2018 messages in which Epstein wrote: “I am the one able to take him down” and “I know how dirty donald is".
The forthcoming release is also likely to bring renewed pressure on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of all royal titles and honours by the King a few weeks ago, following fresh scrutiny triggered by the posthumous memoir of Epstein survivor Virginia Giuffre.
In the memoir, published on 21 October, Ms Giuffre writes that Andrew believed it was “his birthright” to have sex with her, describing him as “friendly enough, but still entitled".
Andrew continues to strenuously deny all allegations.
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee have also written to Andrew, requesting that he respond by Thursday to their call for him to appear before Congress for a transcribed interview about Epstein.
There is no legal requirement for him to testify.
What happened with the files and Congress?
The release of the files has dogged Trump, who had been a friend of Epstein's before reportedly falling out with him in the early 2000s, years before Epstein's convictions.
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In May, it was reported that US Attorney General Pam Bondi briefed Trump that his name, alongside several other high-profile figures, was included in the files.
Trump's allies have been keen to stress that being named in the documents does not imply guilt or association with Epstein's crimes, and that the pair's relationship was well documented at the time.
Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail while awaiting trial in 2019. He faced charges that he sexually abused and trafficked underage girls. Since his death, many more have said they were abused by him.
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