Former President Donald Trump is intensifying efforts to dissuade Republican members of Congress from supporting a forthcoming vote to compel the full disclosure of federal records related to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The House is scheduled to vote next week on legislation that would mandate the Justice Department release its complete investigative files on Epstein within one month. A discharge petition, a procedural tool to force a floor vote, recently secured the required 218 signatures after the swearing-in of a Democratic representative. The measure is anticipated to receive support from a significant number of Republicans, reflecting constituent demands for transparency.
In an attempt to sway votes, Trump and his allies have directly contacted Republican representatives who have backed the petition. One lawmaker was reportedly summoned to a meeting at the White House with senior officials, while Trump personally placed a phone call to another. That representative, however, declined to change her position, citing personal experience as a survivor of sexual assault and stating the issue was “deeply personal.”
This lobbying push coincides with the release of newly disclosed communications by Democratic investigators. These documents include allegations suggesting Trump was aware of Epstein’s misconduct. The former president’s team has dismissed the materials as selectively chosen, and Republican committee members subsequently released a much larger cache of records.
Among those documents were indications that Epstein’s staff monitored Trump’s travel and that the financier followed news about Trump years after their association ended.
Even if the bill passes the House, its prospects are uncertain. It would require passage in the Senate and a signature from the president to become law. Senate leadership has given no signal it will take up the measure, and Trump, who previously vowed to release the files, has now labeled the legislative effort a political fabrication.
The Justice Department announced earlier this year it would not release further details from its Epstein investigation, a decision that fueled public calls for the files to be made public.