The Senate on this Tuesday passed without delay to legislation that will mandate the disclosure of investigative files associated with the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, after a overwhelming vote in the US House of Representatives and a change of position by the president and his GOP allies. The White House gave in after an extended period of trying to delay the joint action involving a scandal that has dogged the president since his comeback to the White House.
Unanimous Passage in Congress
The Senate acted by unanimous consent, which requires approval from each senator but avoids a individual voting process, speeding up the process. Just before, the House passed by a huge margin the bill on a near-unanimous vote.
“The American people have endured sufficient delay. Jeffrey Epstein’s victims have waited long enough,” the top Senate Democrat declared in a Senate remarks on Tuesday, before urging the chamber to pass it unanimously. “Uncover the facts. Allow openness to prevail.”
Future Action
This legislation next goes to Donald Trump for his signature. Trump stated on the previous day that he would endorse the legislation.
Though the president has for months rejected the uproar over the authorities' approach of the scandal as a “Democrat hoax”, he voiced approval for the measure over the weekend, and said he would give his assent if it comes to him.
Response
The Democratic party, along with victims and their supporters who were present in a viewing area, cheered after the bill was enacted. Lone dissent came from a GOP representative, who expressed concern he feared the measure would disclose specific data of people, those under scrutiny and others implicated in the investigation.
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