Mike Johnson To Fast-Track Vote To Release Epstein Files
House Speaker Mike Johnson announced Wednesday that the House of Representatives will vote next week on a bill to release all files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted child sex offender whose connections to powerful figures have fueled speculation for years.
Johnson said a discharge petition to force the vote reached the required 218 signatures after Arizona Democrat Adelita Grijalva was sworn in Wednesday evening. Grijalva filled the seat left vacant by her father, Rep. Raul Grijalva, who passed away in March from cancer-related complications.
“As soon as the discharge petition received the 218th signature, we brought it up on unanimous consent… The Democrats shockingly opposed it,” Johnson told reporters. “It was a staggering level of hypocrisy. I think some of them regretted it, because within about a half hour… some of them claim that they did not object, but they did.”
Although the unanimous consent effort was blocked, Johnson confirmed the bill would receive a full floor vote next week when the House returns.
The petition was spearheaded by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and backed by three other Republicans—Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Nancy Mace (R-SC), and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA)—alongside all House Democrats. It marked a rare moment of bipartisan unity, although Johnson accused Democrats of playing games once the bill advanced.
Grijalva’s swearing in increased the Republican majority to 219–214. Her long-delayed seating had prompted a lawsuit from Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes. Johnson defended the delay, citing scheduling conflicts amid the Senate’s ongoing shutdown negotiations.
The Epstein transparency bill seeks to declassify all federal files and investigations related to Epstein’s crimes, associates, and alleged accomplices, many of whom remain shielded from public view years after Epstein’s suspicious jailhouse death in 2019. The push to release the files has gained momentum as trust in government transparency erodes and speculation over Epstein’s connections continues.
Speaker Johnson emphasized that the vote represents a crucial opportunity for accountability.
“We owe it to the American people to show them everything we know,” he said. “No more cover-ups, no more protection for the powerful. The truth must come out.”
The post Mike Johnson To Fast-Track Vote To Release Epstein Files appeared first on Real News Now.
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