Washington, DC [US], September 5 : United States President Donald Trump has dismissed demands for transparency in the Jeffrey Epstein case, calling the push for more disclosures a "Democrat hoax," CNN reported.
"It's really a Democrat hoax, because they're trying to get people to talk about something that's totally irrelevant to the success that we have had as a nation since I have been president, said Trump, responding to reporters.
The remarks come as pressure mounts in the US Congress for the release of the full set of Epstein case files.
According to CNN, Epstein survivors have warned they may move to compile their own list of alleged abusers from Epstein's network if the government fails to make the information public.
"It will be done by survivors and for survivors," Lisa Phillips says. "No one else is involved," said Epstein survivor Lisa Phillips, according to US media reports.
Further on Capitol Hill, the demand for disclosure is being pursued on two tracks. Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Mike Johnson has assured that the House Oversight Committee's probe will "uncover things that have never been uncovered before."
However, critics argue the investigation may not bring much beyond what is already available in the public domain, according to CNN.
In a separate effort, Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, along with Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna of California, is pushing a bipartisan bill to compel the release of the entire file. Massie is also attempting to use a discharge petition to force a floor vote on the legislation, requiring 218 signatures to succeed.
Massie wrote in an X post, "We have 214 signatures on the discharge petition to force a vote on a bill to release the Epstein files. I'm 99% certain we'll get 218. At that point @SpeakerJohnson may try to change the rules of the House, but chair of Rules Committee says she won't!"
CNN also noted that only four Republicans, including Massie, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert and Nancy Mace, have signed on.
Victims, lawmakers argue, risk being "sued into homelessness" if they attempt the same. Massie has suggested that while survivors could release such a list, it would likely not happen "any time soon."
In another post, he said, "Survivors at our press conference announced they are privately compiling their own Epstein list. They would be sued into homelessness for naming names, but@RepMTG and I are willing to name names in the House of Representatives under Constitutional "speech or debate" immunity.
https://x.com/RepThomasMassie/status/1963385897984168364
Meanwhile, both Johnson and the White House have urged Republicans not to support Massie's petition, with a White House official warning it would be seen as a "very hostile act to the administration," CNN reported.