As House Vote Looms, State Lawmakers Challenge Trump to Release Epstein Files

After President Donald Trump's sudden about-face on the US House of Representatives' imminent vote to force the release of files on deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a group of state legislators on Monday urged Trump to prove he is serious by not waiting for Congress to make public materials from the federal case against his former friend.

In a letter provided to Common Dreams by the group Defend America Action, the 15 elected Democrats called on Trump and his administration to "put the issue of the Epstein files to bed once and for all" and "focus on what the American people are concerned about: the affordability crisis which has exploded on your watch."

"Just a few weeks ago, Americans from Georgia to Virginia to New Jersey registered their dissatisfaction with your economic performance with overwhelming victories for Democrats up and down the ballot," they noted. "That should've been a wake-up call for you and your administration, but instead, you've turned to an all-too familiar strategy of gaslighting the American people with tales of a booming economy that don't match reality."

Americans are falling behind on utility bills and car loan payments as job growth has ground to a halt and inflation—driven in part by Trump's sweeping tariffs—is costing average US households at least hundreds of dollars a month.

"We need bipartisan solutions to the cost of living crisis, not multiple congressional committees, investigations, and precious floor time devoted to files related to Jeffrey Epstein, which you could release with the stroke of a pen."

US House Democrats and a few Republicans have long fought to make the Department of Justice release its files on the late financier, which Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) recently pushed off for weeks by refusing to swear in Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.)—a delay he tried to blame on the government shutdown.

As the shutdown standoff over a looming healthcare crisis came to an end, Johnson finally administered the oath of office to Grijalva, who swiftly became the crucial 218th signature on a discharge petition to force a vote on the Epstein files. While her decision set up a December vote, Johnson then moved up the timeline.

With many House Republicans expected to vote for releasing the files as early as Tuesday, Trump sent shockwaves through the US on Sunday by suddenly declaring his support for the disclosure. He doubled down on Monday, telling reporters that he would sign the bill if it reached his desk but also returning to his claim that "the whole thing is a hoax."

As the state legislators wrote to Trump: "You have called the issue of the Epstein files a 'hoax,' and dismissed the numerous congressional efforts underway to pursue transparency, accountability, and justice for the hundreds of victims who suffered at Epstein's hands. This issue has again overtaken Washington, DC, and you have mobilized enormous government resources, up to and including meetings in the ultra-secure Situation Room, to try to prevent the files' release."

"Your eleventh-hour decision to not fight a vote in the House that you were certainly going to lose is yet another dodge—you could order the full release of the files today so that we can all move forward and deal with the issues our voters and yours care about: making life affordable for American families," they argued. "Those priorities should be addressing the skyrocketing costs that are keeping families up at night: housing, food, energy, and healthcare."

"We need bipartisan solutions to the cost of living crisis, not multiple congressional committees, investigations, and precious floor time devoted to files related to Jeffrey Epstein, which you could release with the stroke of a pen," they continued, stressing the need for "good partners" and "good policies" at the federal level to aid American families struggling with soaring prices. "Release the files and let's get on with the business of the American people."

Signatories to the letter include Iowa Rep. Kenneth Croken, Vermont Rep. William Greer, Colorado Sen. Cathy Kipp, Michigan Rep. Stephen Wooden, and Kentucky Rep. Lisa Willner. It is also signed by Pennsylvania Reps. Danilo Burgos and Arvind Venkat, Maryland Dels. Ashanti Martinez and Vaughn Stewart, Wisconsin's Sen. Melissa Ratcliff and Rep. Ryan Clancy, and four lawmakers from New Hampshire: Reps. John Cloutier, Chris McAleer, Terri O'Rorke, and Terry Spahr.