Calls for transparency and justice in the Jeffrey Epstein case reached a fever pitch in Washington, DC, on September 3, 2025, as survivors of Epstein’s abuse, attorneys, and a bipartisan group of lawmakers held a high-profile news conference on Capitol Hill. The event, which brought together voices from across the political spectrum, underscored the enduring pain of survivors and the mounting political pressure for the release of all Epstein-related case files.
The push for openness comes in the wake of the House Oversight Committee’s release of over 30,000 pages of Epstein-related documents on September 2. According to CBS News, the vast majority of these documents had already been made public, fueling frustration among survivors and their advocates who argue that crucial information remains hidden. The Department of Justice, for its part, maintains that no so-called “client list” or evidence of blackmail by Epstein has been found, but interest in the files and speculation about their contents have only grown.
At the heart of the current debate is a bipartisan bill that would compel the Justice Department to release all remaining Epstein files. Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California are leading the charge, with Massie noting that his discharge petition needs just two more Republican signatures to force a vote on the House floor. “Hopefully today we’ll get two more signatures on the discharge petition, that’s all we need,” Massie said at the press conference. Khanna, meanwhile, emphasized the unity of lawmakers on this issue: “We’re here not as partisans, we’re here as patriots. A nation that allows rich and powerful men to traffic and abuse young girls without consequence, is a nation that has lost its moral and spiritual core.”
Survivors themselves took center stage, sharing harrowing stories and demanding action. Lisa Phillips revealed that survivors are confidentially compiling their own list of individuals within Epstein’s orbit, many of whom, she said, abused survivors. “We know the names, many of us were abused by them,” Phillips explained. “We’re not quite sure how we’re going to release that or even if we’re going to, but it will be done by survivors and for survivors — no one else is involved.” Her remarks were echoed by GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, who posted on X that he and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene “are willing to name names” in the House under constitutional immunity if survivors’ lists are not made public.
Haley Robson, another survivor, called the passage of the bill “a huge component of healing for me” and others, insisting, “we, and the rest of the world, need answers.” Robson’s plea was direct: “Why was he so protected? And why didn’t anyone ever care to stop him?” She urged lawmakers to “lift the curtain on these files and be transparent.”
For some, the fight for justice is intensely personal and new. Marina Lacerda spoke publicly for the first time about being forced into Epstein’s mansion at age 14, lured by the promise of easy money. “It went from a dream job, to the worst nightmare,” Lacerda recalled. She pressed for survivor access to unredacted documents, with identifying information redacted for public release, and questioned why the abuse was allowed to continue for so long. “Our government could have saved so many women, but Jeffrey Epstein was too important and those women didn’t matter. Why? Well, we matter now.”
Annie Farmer, who testified at Ghislaine Maxwell’s 2021 trial, described a thorough public review of the files as “an important step” toward healing and prevention of future systemic failures. “We are not going away, we are not going to be quiet, and we are not going to give up,” Farmer said. She called on the American public to stand with survivors, emphasizing the need to restore trust in institutions. “Passing this Epstein Transparency Bill is one important step that can be taken to prove to Americans that the government does not side with sexual perpetrators.”
Attorney Brittany Henderson, representing many survivors, stressed the importance of balancing transparency with protection, especially for women trafficked from countries where they have fewer rights. “Those women are terrified that their names will be released in those files,” Henderson said, highlighting the need for careful redaction to avoid retraumatization.
Political divisions were on full display as the debate unfolded. President Donald Trump, when asked about the controversy, dismissed the push for the release of Epstein files as a “Democrat hoax that never ends,” likening it to the Kennedy assassination investigations. “No matter what you do, it’s going to keep going,” Trump said, insisting that “thousands” of pages had already been provided and that Democrats were simply seeking to distract from his administration’s successes. Trump’s comments were met with sharp rebuttals from survivors and some lawmakers, with Haley Robson stating, “there is no hoax. The abuse was real.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, urged that “the truth needs to come out,” emphasizing that the issue should transcend party lines. “Today, we are coming forward and we are going to fight like hell for these women, because we have to fight like hell for those that are enduring sexual abuse and are living in a prison of shame,” Greene said. She also encouraged President Trump to meet with survivors in the Oval Office, telling CNN, “They deserve to be there.”
Despite the bipartisan push, House GOP leaders have resisted the discharge petition, calling it “unnecessary” and preferring to continue the House Oversight Committee’s investigation. Speaker Mike Johnson, who met with survivors on September 2, described the meeting as “heartbreaking and infuriating” but maintained his opposition to the petition, arguing it does not do enough to protect victims’ identities. “Because we have so much compassion for the victims, those who spoke today, and the estimated maybe as many as 1,000 victims total, we have to be very diligent about protecting their identities,” Johnson told reporters. He pointed to the Oversight Committee’s ongoing efforts and suggested that even more documents could be obtained through that route.
Not all Republicans are on board with the discharge petition. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, for example, said she wouldn’t consider signing on until she had reviewed the thousands of pages already released. Several others echoed the sentiment that a more comprehensive congressional investigation would be preferable to immediate legislative action.
Amid the political wrangling, survivors and their advocates remain determined. “This is not about sides,” said Jena-Lisa Jones, another survivor. “Together, we can finally make a change.” Attorney Sigrid McCawley, representing some of the survivors, declared, “They’re demanding justice, they’re demanding accountability, and they’re demanding action. It’s time, finally, for action.”
As Congress returns to a host of contentious issues, the Epstein files controversy stands out as a rare case where bipartisan agreement exists — at least among some rank-and-file members. Whether that unity will be enough to overcome entrenched resistance and deliver long-awaited answers to survivors remains to be seen. For now, the survivors’ message is clear: the days of sweeping this under the rug are over, and they will not be silenced.
