Days after blowing past a Dec. 19 deadline to release all files related to the Jeffrey Epstein case, the Justice Department announced that it had uncovered more than a million more documents potentially associated with its investigation into the late disgraced financier and convicted sex offender.
“The DOJ has received these documents from SDNY and the FBI to review them for release, in compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, existing statutes, and judicial orders,” the department wrote on X, referring to the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan. “We have lawyers working around the clock to review and make the legally required redactions to protect victims, and we will release the documents as soon as possible. Due to the mass volume of material, this process may take a few more weeks.”
On Sunday, Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, told the co-hosts of “The Weekend” that the administration was defying an act of Congress by moving slowly on the document rollout.
“Every member of the Judiciary Committee, every Republican, every Democrat voted to release these documents and to have them in our hands,” he said. “They were supposed to be in our hands so that we could stand up for victims and to make sure that we know the names of the people who enabled Jeffrey Epstein.”
Swalwell told MS NOW that he and colleagues had several avenues to hold Trump administration officials accountable for violating the Epstein Files Transparency Act, including restricting funding to the Justice Department and bringing inherent contempt charges against members of the administration, such as Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Still, Swalwell said he believed that the best thing Congress could do was to “have a public account” and put administration officials “in the witness chair and ask, ‘Just where the hell are these files? And why are you keeping Donald Trump’s name, to the degree that you are, out of them?’”
When the co-hosts asked Swalwell whether he believed members of the president’s party would join Democrats in holding the administration accountable, he said that while he didn’t have faith in Republicans, he had “faith in their constituents,” who “have put the downward pressure on them and have said that this issue is not going away.”
“There is a distrust in government right now, you know, of both parties,” Swalwell added. “Democrats have said we don’t care who’s in the files, whether it’s a Democrat or a Republican or someone who’s been an ally of ours on other issues, we just want a public accounting for the victims, and that’s what the American people are saying.” The seven-term congressman, who is running for governor of California, said the Epstein issue “is not going away with the voters” and urged Republicans to “stand on the side of transparency and accountability and results, rather than doing any more digging and bearing on behalf of Donald Trump.” Swalwell pledged that Democrats would try their hardest to bring justice to Epstein’s survivors. “We got your back,” he said. “We don’t care who is in these files. We’re not trying to protect anybody. We want full transparency, and then we continue to use the public sentiment that’s out there to move Republicans to link arms with us.” You can watch Swalwell’s full interview in the clip at the top of the page.
Allison Detzel is an editor/producer for MS NOW. Recommended
