Why just one US Representative voted against releasing Epstein Files

The lone US Representative who voted against the Epstein files' release has set out the one condition that would change his mind.

Republican Representative Clay Higgins was to oppose the Department of Justice (DOJ) releasing documents relating to the investigation of convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

The files have long been a contentious subject within US politics. The multimillionaire financier died by suicide in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 as he awaited trial for charges related to sex trafficking.

Documents related to Epstein have been released since, including several emails from the disgraced financier to various individuals, such as Ghislaine Maxwell and author Michael Wolff, with some of those emails referencing President Donald Trump.

Trump did not receive or send any of the emails and hasn't been accused of any wrongdoing. He has also continuously denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes.

After the emails' release, Trump dismissed them as a 'hoax', with the White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also accusing Democrats of releasing them 'to create a fake narrative to smear President Trump'.

It was announced that a vote to release the files in their entirety had been put to the House Representatives, with Trump seemingly doing a U-Turn on his previous stance as he called for Representatives to vote for the file's release, which are currently in the possession of the Department of Justice.

On Tuesday (November 18), a major milestone was hit as Congress voted overwhelmingly in favor of making them public.

The House of Representatives voted 427 to one in favor of the Epstein Files Transparency Act (EFTA) in a landmark move. Then the Senate unanimously approved the bill, so it's now up to Trump to sign the Act into law, which he has said he will do so.

Why did Higgins vote against the Epstein Files Transparency Act?

Higgins, a staunch Trump supporter and Louisiana's 3rd District Representative, has took to X to clarify why he's stood against the EFTA since the beginning.

Firstly, he claimed the bill 'abandons 250 years of criminal justice procedure in America.'

He says that 'as written,' the bill 'reveals and injures thousands of innocent people - witnesses, people who provided alibis, family members, etc'.

"If enacted in its current form, this type of broad reveal of criminal investigative files, released to a rabid media, will absolutely result in innocent people being hurt," he added.

"Not by my vote."

Giving the one condition that could change his vote - not that it even matters now - he explained: "If the Senate amends the bill to properly address privacy of victims and other Americans, who are named but not criminally implicated, then I will vote for that bill when it comes back to the House."

A community note on his post provided further context, however.

It read: "Rep. Higgins’ claim misrepresents H.R.4405. The bill includes redactions for victims & uninvolved individuals.

"[Representative Thomas] Massie explained victims can’t release names due to lawsuits forcing them into homelessness, and the petition was not yet eligible three months ago."

UNILAD has contacted Higgin's office for comment.

When will the Epstein Files be released?

The EFTA orders Attorney General Pam Bondi to release 'all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials' related to Epstein and Maxwell no later than 30 days after the law is authorized.

They are thought to include flight logs, internal justice department communications and will reveal the people connected to Epstein.

There are some hurdles before they're released though.

One of which is that the bill gives Bondi the power to withhold information that would jeopardize any active federal investigation or identifies any victims.

In a Truth Social post ahead of the Senate's vote on Tuesday (November 18), Trump said he 'didn't care' when the Senate passed the bill, 'whether tonight, or at some other time in the near future'.

He continued: "I just don’t want Republicans to take their eyes off all of the Victories that we’ve had," before listing off 'achievements' including 'the Great Big Beautiful Bill,' 'ending DEI,' 'stopping EIGHT wars' and 'being RESPECTED by every Country in the World,' among others.