(NewsNation) — With Congress set to vote this upcoming week on whether to release the remaining Jeffrey Epstein files, all eyes are on what information could finally be disclosed.
The Epstein files have become a saga for the government and American public since the summer. The investigation exploded despite President Donald Trump urging the public and media to move on after he called the matter “pretty boring.”
Conspiracy theories and outrage have swirled around Epstein since 2006, when the financier first faced criminal charges related to sexual exploitation of underage girls. Epstein killed himself after more charges were brought in 2019.
Fascination with the case gained even more attraction after Attorney General Pam Bondi suggested she had an Epstein “client list” on her desk but then didn’t release documents with any new information. However, that may all change if the House votes to release the documents.
So what could be in the files? What are both sides saying about the files?
Names of powerful politcal and financial figures could be unveiled in files
It’s no secret that Epstein had ties to many powerful political, financial and media figures, even after he was convicted.
For years now, names from Prince Andrew to Bill Clinton, and Trump himself, have surfaced on emails from Epstein’s estate after Republican lawmakers revealed tens of thousands of emails during the initial release of the files.
The House Oversight Committee noted that 97% of the documents received from the Department of Justice were already public. However, there have been calls to release all the files from beyond lawmakers.
Dozens of survivors of Epstein have demanded the Department of Justice release all government files related to the investigation.
“Let’s stop calling it an Epstein client list … it’s Epstein’s sex buyer list,” said Teresa Helm, an accuser of Epstein and his longtime associate and former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell.
Trump referred to files as ‘Democratic hoax’
Democrats and Republicans have been fighting over the Epstein files for months now. Trump has tried to suppress the situation, even calling it “a Democrat hoax that never ends.”
“It reminds me a little of the (John F.) Kennedy situation,” Trump acknowledged back in September. We gave them everything over and over and over again … and nobody’s ever satisfied.”
Several Republicans, including Lauren Boebert (Colorado) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (Georgia), have pushed for files to be released. Greene was part of the bipartisan set of lawmakers who supported a discharge petition that was introduced in July, the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
As for Democrats, they’ve been advocating for all the documents to be divulged after Trump used the case during his presidential campaign and after Bondi’s comments about Epstein’s “client list” back in February.
“If he can betray the American public about this, he can betray and lie to the public about anything,” said Congressman Robert Garcia, D-Calif., in an interview. “It all goes together. The Epstein files case shines a light on how Donald Trump is only out for himself.”
Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., added that Democrats refuse to take their foot off the gas when it comes to the release of the files.
“We’re going to continue to support those efforts,” said Aguilar, chair of the House Democratic Caucus. “Donald Trump and his son and his closest friends spent years fanning the flame of this theory, and now we’re holding them accountable. Do they want to protect the rich and the powerful? Or do they want the truth?”