The Senate on this Tuesday passed without delay to legislation that will mandate the disclosure of case documents related to the deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, following a near-unanimous vote in the lower house and a shift by the president and his GOP allies. The White House relented after months of trying to forestall the bipartisan effort involving a case that has plagued the president since his return to the White House.
Expedited Approval in Congress
The Senate acted by general agreement, which requires approval from each senator but avoids a formal roll call vote, speeding up the process. Hours earlier, the House overwhelmingly approved the bill on a 427-1 tally.
“The American people have waited long enough. Those affected have waited long enough,” the Senate Democratic leader said in a address to the chamber on Tuesday, before requesting the chamber to adopt it by consent. “Uncover the facts. Let transparency reign.”
Future Action
The bill next heads to the president for his signature. Trump stated on the previous day that he would endorse the legislation.
Though Trump has for months rejected the uproar over the authorities' approach of the investigation as a “Democrat hoax”, he expressed his backing for the measure over the past few days, and said he would approve it if it comes to him.
Response
The Democratic party, along with survivors of Epstein and their representatives who were seated in a public section, applauded after the bill was approved. The sole “no” vote came from a Louisiana Republican, who stated he feared the measure would reveal personal information of witnesses, potential suspects and others implicated in the investigation.
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