The Senate on Tuesday quickly approved to legislation that will require the publication of case documents associated with the deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, following a almost unanimous vote in the US House of Representatives and a change of position by the president and his GOP allies. The White House relented after months of trying to delay the cross-party initiative involving a scandal that has dogged the president since his comeback to the White House.
Unanimous Passage in Congress
Senators proceeded by general agreement, which needs acceptance from each senator but avoids a recorded vote, accelerating the process. Hours earlier, the House voted decisively for the bill on a 427-1 tally.
“The American people have been patient long enough. Jeffrey Epstein’s victims have waited patiently,” Chuck Schumer stated in a Senate remarks on Tuesday, before requesting the Senate to approve it without opposition. “Let the truth come out. Let transparency reign.”
Future Action
The bill next goes to the president for his approval. He stated on Monday that he would sign the measure.
Though Trump has for months dismissed the outcry over the government’s handling of the Epstein case as a “Democrat hoax”, he voiced approval for the House bill over the weekend, and stated he would approve it if it comes to him.
Reaction
Democrats, along with victims and their representatives who were watching from a public section, broke into applause after the bill was approved. The only opposition came from Clay Higgins, who stated he feared the measure would make public identifying details of witnesses, persons of interest and others implicated in the investigation.
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