House and Senate pass bill to force DOJ to release Epstein files to President Trump’s desk

PHOENIX — Congress overwhelmingly voted to force the Justice Department to publicly release its files on the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, an effort enabled by newly sworn-in U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva of Arizona, on Tuesday afternoon.

Grijalva spoke on the House floor before the bill passed with just one member voting no: Republican Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana.

“I rise today to acknowledge the survivors, family members and advocates who are here today and have never given up,” Grijalva said. “The legislation in front of us, at its core, is about something very simple. The survivors deserve justice; the American people deserve the truth.”

A few hours later, the Senate unanimously agreed to approve the legislation, which didn’t require them to take a roll call vote.

Now it’s on its way to the desk of President Donald Trump, who has indicated he will sign it. His promise marks a 180 from his previous stance that the matter was a “hoax.”

What does Adelita Grijalva have to do with vote to release Jeffrey Epstein files?

The House vote was made possible by Grijalva providing the essential 218th signature on a bipartisan discharge petition to force the DOJ to release the Epstein files.

After winning the seat in a landslide election in September, she promised to sign the petition.

However, Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson forced her to wait 50 days before swearing her in last week, setting a new record for the longest delay after an election.

Grijalva, who honored the survivors of Epstein’s abuse during her swearing-in speech, continued the pattern on Tuesday.

“To every survivor watching, your courage is inspiring. You are the reason why this vote is happening today,” Grijalva said. “Protecting women and children from pedophiles should not be a Democratic issue, should not be a Republican issue; it should be a human rights issue.”

Trump’s reversal on the Epstein files

Trump long claimed he cut ties with Epstein years ago, but pressure to release the files kept mounting.

Survivors of Epstein’s abuse rallied outside the Capitol Tuesday, holding photos of themselves as teens. One survivor said she was exhausted from surviving trauma and politics.

Another, Jena-Lisa Jones — who once voted for Trump — also called on him to take action.

“I beg you, Donald Trump, please stop making this political,” Jones said.

The group had rallied before and met with Johnson in September, but delays in swearing in Grijalva stalled the vote for weeks.

Only after Grijalva signed the discharge petition last week did the bill gain the support it needed.

By Sunday, Trump signaled Republicans should back the measure, a sharp reversal from dismissing it as a hoax.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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