Well, that was fast.
In an unexpected twist, the Senate has unanimously passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which will force the DOJ to release all documents they have pertaining to Jeffrey Epstein.
This happened very quickly, shortly after the House of Representatives passed the bill this afternoon.
Previously, the bill passed in the House by a near-unanimous vote, with only Republican Rep. Clay Higgins voting against it.
Per The Hill:
The Senate agreed by unanimous consent Tuesday to approve a House-passed bill to require the Justice Department to release all unclassified records and documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, sending the bill to President Trump’s desk for a signature.
The swift Senate action ends the protracted battle in Congress over the files, which caused months of turmoil in the House and gave Democrats political ammo to accuse Republicans of protecting rich and powerful people who participated in Epstein’s illicit activities.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) on Tuesday evening received unanimous consent to approve the Epstein Files Transparency Act upon receipt of the legislation from the House, only hours after the lower chamber voted 427-1 to approve it.
The Democratic leader received approval from all 99 of his colleagues to “deem” the bill “passed” as soon as the Senate receives the legislation from the House. Senate aides said they expected that formality to happen Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.
Schumer secured approval to quickly send the legislation to President Trump’s desk after the Senate Republican cloakroom ran a hotline to see if there were any objections on the Republican side of the aisle.
The Senate made no changes or amendments to the bill, as many people, including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, expected.
Now, the act heads to President Trump’s for a final signature before becoming law, which he has promised to do.
Politico has more:
Senate GOP leadership had previously downplayed the odds their chamber would take up the House’s Epstein bill, raising the likelihood that even if Massie and his allies were successful it would just be buried across the Capitol.
That all changed over the weekend and Monday when Trump reversed course and urged House lawmakers to pass the bill and said that he would sign it. That reflected concerns that the fight was threatening to overshadow the party’s message as Trump tries to focus on the rising cost of living.
Speaker Mike Johnson called on the Senate to add more privacy protections for victims and whistleblowers, a concern Higgins cited in explaining his vote against the bill. But that would have required the bill to come back to the House for final approval.
There is a broad desire in the GOP to pass the bill and move on to other legislative business, and Thune predicted that it would move “fairly quickly” through the Senate without changes.
Let’s get this signed, Mr. President…
Release the files!
It’s time we see justice for all the victims and Epstein’s ‘clients’ behind bars.
Hopefully, this isn’t all too good to be true:
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