The Senate on this Tuesday passed without delay to legislation that will require the publication of case documents concerning the deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, following a near-unanimous vote in the US House of Representatives and a change of position by the president and his GOP allies. The administration relented after an extended period of trying to block the joint action involving a scandal that has followed the president since his return to the White House.
Swift Passage in Congress
Senators proceeded by consensus, which requires approval from each senator but avoids a recorded vote, speeding up the process. Just before, the House passed by a huge margin the bill on a massive majority.
Citizens have waited long enough. Those affected have suffered long enough,” Chuck Schumer stated in a address to the chamber on Tuesday, before requesting the Senate to pass it unanimously. “Let the truth come out. Allow openness to prevail.”
Presidential Signature
The bill next goes to the president for his signature. The president stated on the previous day that he would endorse the legislation.
Even though Trump has for an extended period rejected the controversy over the official management of the Epstein case as a “false narrative”, he expressed his backing for the House bill over the weekend, and said he would give his assent if it comes to him.
Support and Opposition
Opposition lawmakers, along with victims and their advocates who were present in a viewing area, broke into applause after the bill was approved. Lone dissent came from a Louisiana Republican, who stated he worried the measure would make public specific data of witnesses, potential suspects and others caught up in the investigation.
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