The upper chamber of Congress on this Tuesday gave swift approval to legislation that will mandate the disclosure of case documents related to the deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, following a overwhelming vote in the lower house and a reversal by Donald Trump and his Republican allies. Trump's team relented after an extended period of trying to delay the cross-party initiative involving a controversy that has dogged the president since his comeback to the White House.
Unanimous Passage in Congress
The Senate acted by general agreement, which requires approval from each senator but does not require a formal roll call vote, speeding up the process. Hours earlier, the House voted decisively for the bill on a 427-1 tally.
“The American people have endured sufficient delay. Jeffrey Epstein’s victims have suffered long enough,” the Senate Democratic leader said in a floor speech on Tuesday, before urging the Senate to adopt it by consent. “Let the truth come out. Allow openness to prevail.”
Future Action
This legislation next will be sent to Donald Trump for his signature. He indicated on the previous day that he would sign the measure.
Although Trump has for an extended period dismissed the controversy over the authorities' approach of the Epstein case as a “false narrative”, he voiced approval for the legislation over the weekend, and announced he would sign the measure if it comes to him.
Reaction
Opposition lawmakers, along with victims and their advocates who were present in a public section, broke into applause after the bill was enacted. Lone dissent came from a Louisiana Republican, who said he was concerned the measure would disclose identifying details of people, those under scrutiny and others implicated in the investigation.
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