Epstein Files Transparency Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4405) to require the Attorney General to release all documents and records in possession of the Department of Justice relating to Jeffrey Epstein, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 4405
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Epstein Files Transparency Act''. SEC. 2. RELEASE OF DOCUMENTS RELATING TO JEFFREY EPSTEIN.
(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall, subject to subsection (b), make publicly available in a searchable and downloadable format all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials in the possession of the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and United States Attorneys' Offices, that relate to:
(1) Jeffrey Epstein including all investigations, prosecutions, or custodial matters.
(2) Ghislaine Maxwell.
(3) Flight logs or travel records, including but not limited to manifests, itineraries, pilot records, and customs or immigration documentation, for any aircraft, vessel, or vehicle owned, operated, or used by Jeffrey Epstein or any related entity.
(4) Individuals, including government officials, named or referenced in connection with Epstein's criminal activities, civil settlements, immunity or plea agreements, or investigatory proceedings.
(5) Entities (corporate, nonprofit, academic, or governmental) with known or alleged ties to Epstein's trafficking or financial networks.
(6) Any immunity deals, non-prosecution agreements, plea bargains, or sealed settlements involving Epstein or his associates.
(7) Internal DOJ communications, including emails, memos, meeting notes, concerning decisions to charge, not charge, investigate, or decline to investigate Epstein or his associates.
(8) All communications, memoranda, directives, logs, or metadata concerning the destruction, deletion, alteration, misplacement, or concealment of documents, recordings, or electronic data related to Epstein, his associates, his detention and death, or any investigative files.
(9) Documentation of Epstein's detention or death, including incident reports, witness interviews, medical examiner files, autopsy reports, and written records detailing the circumstances and cause of death.
(b) Prohibited Grounds for Withholding.--
(1) No record shall be withheld, delayed, or redacted on the basis of embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity, including to any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.
(c) Permitted Withholdings.--
(1) The Attorney general may withhold or redact the segregable portions of records that--
(A) contain personally identifiable information of victims or victims' personal and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
(B) depict or contain child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) as defined under 18 U.S.C. 2256 and prohibited under 18 U.S.C. 2252-2252A;
(C) would jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution, provided that such withholding is narrowly tailored and temporary;
(D) depict or contain images of death, physical abuse, or injury of any person; or
(E) contain information specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and are in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order.
(2) All redactions must be accompanied by a written justification published in the Federal Register and submitted to Congress.
(3) To the extent that any covered information would otherwise be redacted or withheld as classified information under this section, the Attorney General shall declassify that classified information to the maximum extent possible.
(A) If the Attorney General makes a determination that covered information may not be declassified and made available in a manner that protects the national security of the United States, including methods or sources related to national security, the Attorney General shall release an unclassified summary for each of the redacted or withheld classified information.
(4) All decisions to classify any covered information after July 1, 2025 shall be published in the Federal Register and submitted to Congress, including the date of classification, the identity of the classifying authority, and an unclassified summary of the justification. SEC. 3. REPORT TO CONGRESS.
Within 15 days of completion of the release required under Section 2, the Attorney General shall submit to the House and Senate Committees on the Judiciary a report listing:
(1) All categories of records released and withheld.
(2) A summary of redactions made, including legal basis.
(3) A list of all government officials and politically exposed persons named or referenced in the released materials, with no redactions permitted under subsection (b)(1).
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Mr. JORDAN. 4405.
Mr. Speaker, we all support holding bad guys accountable, and we are all going to vote for this resolution, but I think a little perspective is important.
Democrats have spent 6 months talking about Epstein, even though they had 4 years to do something about it.
Mr. Speaker, why would they do that? Why would they do that? Maybe it is to go after President Trump. Never forget that they shut down the government for 43 days. They said: Don't worry about our military. Don't worry about air traffic controllers. Don't worry about our economy. Don't worry about American families. No, no, no. Close the government for 1\1/2\ months because it might hurt the President.
For the past decade, there has been one constant for Democrats: Go after Trump.
They spied on his campaign. Then it was Mueller. Then it was impeachment one. Then it was impeachment two. Then it was all the lawfare: Alvin Bragg, Fani Willis, Letitia James. Then it was the Arctic Frost investigation at the Justice Department, surveilling United States Senators and Congressmen and a whole host of other Americans. Then it was Jack Smith and his gag orders and his raiding President Trump's home. Then it was a 43-day shutdown. Now it is Epstein.
By the way, the same party that did all that, they were also the ones who were texting with Mr. Epstein during a hearing where Michael Cohen was their witness in another effort to go after the President.
Americans see through it all and, frankly, it is actually kind of sad. This obsession, this syndrome, this mindset that says, we have to go after President Trump no matter what that they have.
Actually, when I think about it, I think it is because President Trump and Republicans have accomplished so much that they told the voters they were going to accomplish in the 2024 election. We are actually doing what we said we are going to do.
President Trump said he was going to cut taxes, and he did. President Trump said he would secure the border, and he did. President Trump said he would get men out of women's sports, and he did. President Trump said he would make sure Iran doesn't have nuclear capability, and he did. President Trump said he would get the hostages out of Gaza and back into Israel, and he did. He did this all in 9 months. I don't know what causes this mindset, this syndrome that the left has, but I know one thing: It is real.
Which brings me to last week.
Let's think about what the Democrats did last week. The Democrats released an email that the Oversight Committee had obtained from the estate, an email from Mr. Epstein to Ms. Maxwell. When the Democrats released it, they redacted the victim's name. That is something we all support, something everyone supports, except in this case, no court had ordered that name redacted. No agency had redacted it. The estate didn't redact it. The victim had already went public, so why black out a name? Why black out a name? Mr. Speaker, because she had said in her book and had testified under oath that she never saw any wrongdoing by President Trump.
Let's think about what they did. In an email between two criminals, Mr. Epstein and Ms. Maxwell, they hide the name of an individual who had went public and exonerated the President, and we know why: to distort and twist the message because they thought it might harm the President.
Their position: Cover up the names of people who are already public, but don't worry about other innocent people who the court said should remain private.
Again, I think the American people see through it. They see through what the Democrats are doing. The American people know what this is. They know Democrats have nothing else to run on because of the success of this administration.
Mr. Speaker, I say let's vote ``yes'' on this resolution, and then let's get focused on making sure we are doing what the American families elected us to do.
Mr. VAN DREW. Mr. Speaker, today I want to talk about hypocrisy. Let me be clear. I was a cosponsor of this very bill from the beginning, from jump start, because we should never protect pedophiles.
For months, my Democratic colleagues have done what they think is politically convenient through all the yelling, through all the tears, and through all the sadness.
They say releasing the Epstein list is of grave concern to them. If that was true, where were they during the 4 years of the Biden Presidency? Why didn't they demand the release of these files from jump start in year one? Mr. Speaker, why didn't they ask for them in year two? If that wasn't good enough, why didn't they ask for them maybe in year three? They had control. They didn't even ask in his final year of office.
Other than a single letter the ranking member wrote in 2019, a single letter, not one Democrat on the committee spoke out about Epstein or his victims of this very terrible tragedy, other than to say he didn't like the plea deal.
Mr. Speaker, let me say this: When they stand here today, insisting how badly they want these files released, why didn't they do it? Yet they stayed silent for year after year after year under Joe Biden.
It is impossible. Mr. Speaker, it is impossible to see that as genuine. What I see is a group more focused on scoring political points and drama than protecting abused children.
Mr. Speaker, the record is clear. Under Republicans, far more information has been released in the last 6 months than was done during all 4 years of the previous Presidency under Joe Biden. We have actually been the party of transparency. We have released the information. We have told the truth. Unfortunately, and I am sad to say it, they have been the party of hypocrisy.
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