(NewsNation) — Representative Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is vowing to compel the Trump administration to release government files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“The Epstein files are not a hoax,” Massie wrote Friday on social media. “The Speaker adjourned Congress early to avoid the topic, but we will not forget.”
Massie added that when the House returns from its August recess, he plans to begin gathering the 218 signatures needed to “force a vote on binding legislation to release the files.”
Last month, Massie introduced the bipartisan Epstein Files Transparency Act, which would require a House vote on the full release of all government documents related to Epstein. If the House fails to consider the bill within seven legislative days, Massie plans to initiate a discharge petition.
Massie’s move follows Attorney General Pam Bondi’s announcement that the Trump administration had reviewed Epstein-related evidence and concluded Epstein died by suicide and he didn’t leave behind a “client list.”
Bondi suggested in February that the list was on her desk, although she later clarified that she was referring to the overall case file.
Nonetheless, the conclusion of the Epstein federal investigation has resulted in bipartisan criticism.
A group of Democrats is calling for a congressional hearing with the victims of Epstein and his associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, who they argue have firsthand accounts that “may not be sufficiently represented in the Department of Justice’s records.”