{"id":172294,"date":"2025-11-18T14:19:12","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T14:19:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/house-of-representatives-to-vote-on-release-of-epstein-files-after-trump-u-turn-us-politics-live-the-guardian\/"},"modified":"2025-11-18T14:19:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T14:19:12","slug":"house-of-representatives-to-vote-on-release-of-epstein-files-after-trump-u-turn-us-politics-live-the-guardian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/house-of-representatives-to-vote-on-release-of-epstein-files-after-trump-u-turn-us-politics-live-the-guardian\/","title":{"rendered":"House of Representatives to vote on release of Epstein files after Trump U-turn \u2013 US politics live – The Guardian"},"content":{"rendered":"

Move comes after Donald Trump dropped his opposition to a vote on releasing files on the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein
Full report: House set to vote on release of Epstein documents<\/a>
Explainer: What to know about the US House vote<\/a>
Explainer: What are the Epstein files?<\/a>
In July, Democratic congressmen Ro Khanna and Republican Thomas Massie turned to an arcane procedural tactic known as a discharge petition to circumvent House leadership and compel a vote on their bill, the Epstein Files Transparency Act, if a majority of the 435-member House signs on.
House speaker Mike Johnson went to extraordinary lengths to avoid a vote on the the measure, which splintered his conference. Democrats accused the speaker of delaying the swearing-in of Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva to prevent her from becoming the decisive 218th signatory. She signed her name to the petition<\/a> moments after being sworn in last week.
Following Trump\u2019s reversal, several House Republicans, including close allies<\/a> of the president, have publicly stated their intent to vote for the release of the files, meaning the measure could pass unanimously.
If the House passes the resolution, it would move to the Senate, which would also need to vote on it before sending it to Trump to sign. Republican Senate majority leader John Thune\u2019s office declined to comment on what he planned to do about the bill.
In an interview<\/a> with Pod Save America on Monday, Khanna, the California congressman leading the push in the House, said he now expects the measure to move \u201cquickly\u201d through the Senate.
In an X post<\/a> directed to Trump on Monday, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer wrote: \u201cLet\u2019s make this easier. Just release the files now.\u201d
Taking the podium today, Marjorie Taylor Greene<\/strong> jokes that she never expected to be standing alongside these particular colleagues, fighting for the same cause. \u201cI woke up this morning and I turned to my weather app to check the temperature, and it was 32 degrees, and my first thought was, hell has froze over,\u201d she said.
\u201cThese women have fought the most horrific fight that no woman should have to fight, and they did it by banding together and never giving up,\u201d Greene added.
She also made reference to her fallout with the president over this issue. \u201cI\u2019ve never owed him anything, but I fought for him, for the policies and for America first, and he called me a \u2018traitor\u2019 for standing with these women and refusing to take my name off the discharge petition,\u201d<\/strong> the lawmaker from Georgia said.
Speaking today, progressive Democrat Ro Khanna<\/strong> thanks his colleagues, Republicans<\/a> Thomas Massie<\/strong> and Marjorie Taylor Greene<\/strong>. He particularly notes the pushback that the latter faced.
\u201cThere was so much pressure against her,\u201d Khanna said. \u201cBut she stood with the survivors.\u201d
He added: \u201cI expect an overwhelming vote in the House of Representatives<\/a>, and I don\u2019t want the DC swamp playing any games. They need to pass this in the Senate. They should not amend it. President Trump has said he would sign the Epstein Transparency Act.\u201d
Several survivors of Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s abuse are set to speak outside the US Capitol shortly. They\u2019re joining the congressman Ro Khanna<\/strong>, a Democrat, and Republican representative Thomas Massie<\/strong> \u2013 who co-led the bipartisan effort to force a House floor vote for the complete release of justice department files on Epstein.
Also speaking today is congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene<\/strong>, a Republican who has been one of Trump\u2019s most loyal allies in Congress. In recent days, she\u2019s found herself on the receiving end of the president\u2019s wrath<\/a> while pushing for the release of the files.
The Harvard professor and economist Larry Summers said he would be stepping back from public life after documents released by the House oversight committee revealed email exchanges between Summers and the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein<\/a>, who called himself Summers\u2019 \u201cwing man\u201d.<\/strong>
Politico reported<\/a> on Monday that Summers, a former treasury secretary, expressed deep regret for past messages with Epstein.
\u201cI am deeply ashamed of my actions and recognize the pain they have caused,\u201d he told Politico in a statement.
\u201cI take full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr Epstein. While continuing to fulfill my teaching obligations, I will be stepping back from public commitments as one part of my broader effort to rebuild trust and repair relationships with the people closest to me.\u201d
His comments come after lawmakers on both sides of the aisle urged companies and institutions to cut ties with Summers. Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren<\/a> told CNN<\/a> that Summers should be held accountable for his years-long relationship with Epstein.
Summers is now the subject of a new investigation that Donald Trump<\/a> started last week. The US president instructed attorney general Pam Bondi<\/a> to launch an inquiry into several Democrats<\/a> and institutions after their names appeared in the latest tranche of documents, which included emails that seemed to suggest Trump himself might have known about Epstein\u2019s conduct.
Per our earlier post about Trump\u2019s meeting with Mohammed bin Salman, that is due to start at 11am ET, with a formal welcome to the White House.
The two will then sit for a bilateral meeting at 11:45am, and we\u2019ll be providing the latest updates as they happen. That will lead to a lunch at 2pm, which is closed to the press. In the evening, the crown prince will return, this time for dinner in the East Room with the president and first lady.
Federal immigration agents are widening their crackdown in the state to include the city of Raleigh, the Democratic mayor of the state\u2019s capital has said.
The operation began on the weekend in Charlotte, with federal agents swooping on and arresting more than 130 people in a blitz across the city. Agents were expected to move into Raleigh on Tuesday.
The operations in North Carolina follow those launched in Los Angeles and Chicago \u2013 both deep blue cities run by nationally prominent officials who have openly criticised the White House.
The other big event for Trump today is the official visit of Saudi Arabia\u2019s de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has been welcomed back at the White House for the first time since the 2018 killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents.
US-Saudi relations deteriorated after Khashoggi\u2019s brutal killing. He had been a fierce critic of the kingdom; US intelligence concluded that bin Salman had most likely ordered state agents to kill him.
But seven years later, and with Saudi Arabia a critical ally to the US in the Middle East, Trump has smoothed over that dark chapter in the relationship.
In May, he made Riydah the first stop of his tour to the Gulf States where he signed a $142 billion arms deal.<\/a>
And today\u2019s he\u2019s prepared a lavish welcome for the prince at the White House- rolling out the red carpet with a fly-by, gun salute and a gala dinner.
\u201cWe\u2019re more than meeting,\u201d Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday when asked about the visit. \u201cWe\u2019re honoring Saudi Arabia, the Crown Prince.\u201d
We can expect deals on defence and nuclear. Trump has made a priority of boosting ties with the oil-rich Gulf kingdom, and said on Monday he would sell coveted F-35 stealth fighters to Saudi Arabia,<\/a> despite concerns from Israel.
He\u2019s also expected to sign a deal on a framework for civilian nuclear cooperation, AFP reported, and push Prince Mohammed to normalise relations with Israel after the war in Gaza.
Saudi Arabia yesterday was one of the key Arab states backing the UN Security Council\u2019s US-drafted resolution<\/a> which endorses an International Stabilisation Force to be deployed to Gaza.
In July, Democratic congressmen Ro Khanna and Republican Thomas Massie turned to an arcane procedural tactic known as a discharge petition to circumvent House leadership and compel a vote on their bill, the Epstein Files Transparency Act, if a majority of the 435-member House signs on.
House speaker Mike Johnson went to extraordinary lengths to avoid a vote on the the measure, which splintered his conference. Democrats accused the speaker of delaying the swearing-in of Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva to prevent her from becoming the decisive 218th signatory. She signed her name to the petition<\/a> moments after being sworn in last week.
Following Trump\u2019s reversal, several House Republicans, including close allies<\/a> of the president, have publicly stated their intent to vote for the release of the files, meaning the measure could pass unanimously.
If the House passes the resolution, it would move to the Senate, which would also need to vote on it before sending it to Trump to sign. Republican Senate majority leader John Thune\u2019s office declined to comment on what he planned to do about the bill.
In an interview<\/a> with Pod Save America on Monday, Khanna, the California congressman leading the push in the House, said he now expects the measure to move \u201cquickly\u201d through the Senate.
In an X post<\/a> directed to Trump on Monday, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer wrote: \u201cLet\u2019s make this easier. Just release the files now.\u201d
The bill, if enacted, would require the justice department to release all unclassified materials on the disgraced financier, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.
An emphatic vote in favour of the bill seems inevitable, and after Trump changed his mind on the weekend, several other Republicans<\/a> could join their party colleagues in voting for the bill.
But there are still other hurdles before the files see the light of day.
The bill would go before the Senate, where the Republican majority leader, John Thune, has not committed to holding a vote. However, an overwhelming House vote in favour could make it morally difficult for the Senate to refuse to stage a vote. Sixty out of the chamber\u2019s 100 senators would need to back it, to overcome the Senate\u2019s filibuster rule.
The bill then goes to the president\u2019s desk. Trump told reporters on Monday that he would sign it if it arrived on his desk, but he does have veto powers. A presidential veto can be overcome but it\u2019s a significant barrier.
This is one of the emails released last week by Democrats<\/a> which have put attention back on Trump and his history with Epstein. In it, Epstein wrote that Trump \u201cknew about the girls\u201d.
In another email, Epstein wrote that Trump \u201cspent hours\u201d with one of the victims at his house, and another email referred to the president as \u201cdirty.\u201d
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee have said the messages \u201craise serious questions about Donald Trump<\/a> and his knowledge of Epstein\u2019s horrific crimes.\u201d
Trump\u2019s friendship with Epstein has been a long-running scandal in American politics as the late disgraced financier had links to many other rich and powerful figures in the US and overseas.
Trump had previously said that he fell out with Epstein years before the convictions and he\u2019s helped fan the conspiracies.
As a candidate seeking re-election, he also promised to release the files on Epstein, who, investigators concluded, killed himself in a New York jail cell in 2019.
Since resuming office so far though, Trump has failed to follow through. As president, he has the authority to order the justice department to release the documents in its possession, as he has previously done with the government records related to the assassinations of Martin Luther King and John F Kennedy.
The president\u2019s dramatic shift came after it became increasingly apparent that the bill will pass the House, most likely with significant support from Republican lawmakers.
Trump and House speaker Mike Johnson changed their approach from outright opposition to declarations of indifference.
\u201cI DON\u2019T CARE!\u201d Trump wrote in a social media post on Sunday. \u201cAll I do care about is that Republicans<\/a> get BACK ON POINT.\u201d
Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump said he did not want the Epstein scandal to \u201cdeflect\u201d from the White House\u2019s successes, and claimed it was a \u201choax\u201d and \u201ca Democrat problem\u201d.
\u201cWe\u2019ll give them everything,\u201d he told reporters. \u201cLet the Senate look at it, let anybody look at it, but don\u2019t talk about it too much, because honestly, I don\u2019t want to take it away from us.\u201d
The issue has become a rare weak spot for the president with his supporters. An October poll showed just four in 10 approved of his handling of the matter, compared with the nine in 10 who approve of his overall performance.
Good morning and welcome to the US politics<\/a> live blog.
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives<\/a> is due to vote on the release of investigative files related to convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
It\u2019s the latest move in a scandal that has dogged Donald Trump<\/a> since his return to the White House.
Trump initially had resisted the release of more files, but changed his stance on the weekend, urging Republican lawmakers in a message on TruthSocial to \u201cvote to release the Epstein files, because we have nothing to hide.\u201d
I\u2019m Frances Mao and I\u2019ll bring you the latest news lines on this and other stories over the coming hours.<\/p>\n

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