Mike Johnson shuts US House early to avoid Jeffrey Epstein vote

US House Speaker Mike Johnson will send members of Congress home early to avoid a vote on releasing files relating to Jeffrey Epstein, as President Donald Trump’s allies seek to contain a spiralling crisis.

The House of Representatives is set to be in recess from Wednesday for five weeks, a day earlier than scheduled, and is not expected to return until September.

Johnson, the House’s top Republican, said on Tuesday that Democrats were playing “political games” by trying to force votes on measures that would require the US Department of Justice to release documents relating to the life and death of the disgraced financier.

He said Democrats were using the Epstein case as a “political battering ram”, adding: “We’re not going to allow them to engage in that charade anymore.”

However, several Republican House members have also called for the so-called Epstein files to be made public, with some of the loudest voices in Trump’s Maga movement demanding greater transparency.

“The public’s not going to let this die, and rightfully so,” said Ralph Norman, a Republican representative for South Carolina.

When asked whether the White House supported Johnson’s decision, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday she was “not sure if anyone here spoke to the Speaker about that”.

During his presidential campaign, Trump had vowed to release the files. But a memo published by the DoJ and FBI this month stated there was no “credible evidence” that Epstein “blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions” and that a “client list” did not exist. 

That sparked calls from some corners of the Maga movement for Trump to fire attorney-general Pam Bondi, and raised questions over whether FBI director Kash Patel and deputy director Dan Bongino would stay in their posts.

The furore was fuelled last week when the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had sent Epstein a birthday message in 2003 that referred to “secrets” and contained a lewd drawing. Trump called the story “false, malicious, and defamatory” and has sued the newspaper and its owner Rupert Murdoch.

Amid the outcry over the administration’s handling of the Epstein files, a top DoJ official said on Tuesday he would meet Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted for helping lure young girls for the late paedophile, for possible evidence.

“If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DoJ will hear what she has to say,” said deputy attorney-general Todd Blanche.

He added that he had contacted the lawyer for Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence, and intended to meet her “soon”.

The House oversight committee also voted on Tuesday to subpoena Maxwell for information about Epstein’s activities.

The moves came after Trump said last week that the DoJ should release “credible” evidence linked to Epstein. The justice department later filed a motion to release grand jury transcripts relating to the cases against Epstein and Maxwell.

Lawyers representing Maxwell on Tuesday said they had discussed the transcript request with Blanche, according to a court filing.

Trump has repeatedly railed against public interest in the case in recent weeks.

But asked about Blanche’s intervention on Tuesday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office: “I didn’t know that they were going to do it. I don’t really follow that too much . . . It’s a witch-hunt, just a continuation of a witch-hunt.”