Epstein files: Bill to release documents gets all-clear from Congress

A bill that would force the US Justice Department to release all of its files on Jeffrey Epstein will be sent to the desk of Donald Trump after both houses of Congress gave it the all-clear.

The House of Representatives was near unanimous in voting for the material to be released, with 427 in favour and one against.

Epstein votes as they happened - catch up on the latest

Hot on the heels of that vote, which was met with cheers in the chamber, the Senate said it too would pass the bill.

"As soon as it comes over from the House, we will pass the House's bill without changes, without delay, and we will finally get this done," said minority leader Chuck Schumer.

Once the Republican-controlled Senate has formally transmitted the bill - set to happen on Wednesday, according to majority leader John Thune - it will go to Mr Trump for approval.

Once the president signs it, the justice department has 30 days to release the files.

How did we get here?

Sky News US correspondent David Blevins said "things are now moving very fast indeed".

"It may be because of the scale of the result in the House," he explained. "Or it may simply be because in the last few days, the president has sought to seize control of the narrative."

Mr Trump has spent weeks decrying the Epstein files as a Democratic "hoax".

His links to the disgraced financier, a convicted paedophile, have long been subject to scrutiny. The US president has always denied any wrongdoing.

Speaking at the White House ahead of the vote on Tuesday, he said: "I threw him out of my club many years ago because I thought he was a sick pervert and I guess I would turn out to be right."

In a later post on his Truth Social platform, he said he doesn't care when the Senate passes the bill.

His change of heart on releasing the files came as a surprise over the weekend, as he called on Republicans in Congress to vote for the so-called Epstein Files Bill and indicated he'd sign it.

The issue has proved to be a major source of division within Mr Trump's Make America Great Again movement.

'Time to see who is listening'

Marjorie Taylor Greene, a long-time Trump backer who publicly fell out with the president just days ago, stood with Epstein survivors on the steps of the Capitol on Tuesday afternoon.

She said: "These 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.

"That's what we did by fighting so hard against the most powerful people in the world, even the president of the United States, in order to make this vote happen today."

One of the group, Liz Stein, added: "We have told our stories over and over and over. Now it's time to see who is listening. We ask that you vote to release the files. All of them."

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Tuesday's votes followed the release of thousands of files related to Epstein as part of an investigation by Congress' House Oversight Committee.

Emails, messages, photos and other documents released in recent weeks have included references to Mr Trump, the UK's since sacked US ambassador Lord Mandelson, and former British prince Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, who has faced calls from members of the committee to give evidence.

Read more:
Epstein files: New emails about Trump and Andrew emerge
Analysis: Trump and the Epstein questions that will not go away

Like Mr Trump, both Britons have denied any wrongdoing and expressed regret about their relationship with Epstein.

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