The Epstein files are the most popular item on politicians’ Christmas list.

As of November 14th, 2025, both the Democratic and Republican leaders are pushing for the release of the infamous Epstein files. These files concern thousands of court documents surrounding convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Epstein was a wealthy financier who used his social status to abuse and traffic dozens of underage girls. The “files” are in reference to interviews with victims and witnesses, items that were seized from his property, flight logs, his “black book” of contacts, and extensive court documents from civil lawsuits. In recent light, both parties want the files released for different reasons. However, most people just want transparency.

Republican Congressman Thomas Massie recently went against the most powerful leaders of his party to push forward with a vote to release more Epstein files. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has actively tried to avoid this political issue, has only agreed to schedule the vote after Massie helped lead a bipartisan coalition of House members. Republican Representative Massie stated in a TIME interview that, “If they have ongoing investigations in certain areas, those documents can’t be released.”

On November 18th, 2025, the Senate unanimously agreed to pass the House-backed bill forcing the Department of Justice to release the Jeffrey Epstein files. Now that the rest is out of the Senate’s hands, the bill will be sent to President Donald Trump, who has said he’d sign the legislation.

It is unclear how the Department of Justice will respond to this new bill or what the timeline will be for the release of more information. On the upside, the new bill is a win for Epstein’s many victims.