The United States House approved this Tuesday (18) a measure that determines that the Department of Justice (DOJ) of President Donald Trump’s government must disclose all files from the department’s investigations into financier Jeffrey Epstein.
According to information from CNN, there were 427 votes in favor of the measure and only one against, from Republican representative Clay Higgins, from Louisiana. The measure now goes to the Senate.
Epstein was found dead in his New York cell in 2019, while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. For related charges, English socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former partner and ex-girlfriend, is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
This year, Trump suffered wear and tear because his government confirmed that Epstein’s death was a suicide and because he claimed that a list of the financier’s famous clients does not exist, contradicting theories from supporters of the American president.
Last week, Democratic representatives on the House Oversight Committee released thousands of Epstein files, including emails (the authenticity of which has not yet been independently verified) that indicate that the financier had claimed that Trump “knew about the girls” and that the American president “spent hours” with one of the victims of the scheme.
Trump has always denied taking part in Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme or having any knowledge of it.
After the emails were released, the American president reiterated his argument that attempts to link him to the financier were a “farce” orchestrated by the opposition and ordered the DOJ to investigate Epstein’s connections with former president Bill Clinton (1993-2001) and other Democratic politicians.
However, in recent days, Trump changed his tone and stated that he will sanction the project to release files on the financier if it is approved by Congress.
In July, the DOJ took a prison statement from Maxwell, in which Epstein’s ex-girlfriend and ex-partner said she never witnessed or heard about any “inappropriate” or criminal behavior by Trump and Clinton related to the financier’s activities.
