House committee releases new Epstein documents, including ex-Trump secretary interview

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee published fresh files Friday connected to Jeffrey Epstein’s criminal dealings, including the transcript of a previous interview with former Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, who served under President Trump during his first term.

Acosta, the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, ultimately resigned from his post as secretary in 2019 after receiving scrutiny for authoring Epstein’s 2008 plea deal, which allowed the financier to serve 13 months in prison on two state prostitution charges. At the time, more than a dozen victims stepped forward and alleged that Epstein was running an international sex trafficking ring involving girls as young as 14. 

The former Labor secretary stood by his decision not to prosecute Epstein during his September testimony before the House Oversight Committee.

Acosta told lawmakers, “a billionaire going to jail sends a strong signal to the community that this is not, not right, that this cannot happen,” according to the 172-page transcript released Friday.

“His registering as a sex offender puts the world on notice — whether the world listened or not we can put to one side, but it puts the world on notice that he was offender and a sexual offender,” he added. 

Still, House Democrats slammed him over the comments after the files’ Friday release.

“He continues to deny he gave Jeffrey Epstein a sweetheart deal, despite cutting the investigation short and granting Epstein a non-prosecution agreement, even though 30 victims had been identified at the time,” Sara Guerrero, spokesperson for Oversight Democrats, said in a Friday release.

“Because of the deal Alex Acosta gave Epstein, he was able to continue assaulting and raping young women and girls for another decade. No matter how House Republicans try to spin this, Oversight Democrats will keep pushing for the truth,” she added. 

The committee on Friday also published letters from former Attorneys General Eric Holder and Merrick Garland as well as former FBI Director James Comey, stating they had no knowledge related to the House investigation.

A plethora of files and documents associated with Epstein’s dealings have been released related to the Oversight Committee’s investigation. Notable figures, including Elon Musk and Prince Andrew, have been named.

Trump has also been named in the files; however, he’s stated that he severed ties with Epstein after he acted like a “creep” at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

Still, on Capitol HIll, Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) have banded together with the hopes of triggering the full release of the Justice Department’s files related to Epstein. 

The two are awaiting a final signature on a discharge petition that would force the federal government to release new documents. Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) has said she will add her name to the petition after being sworn in, which would send it to the floor.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has delayed her swearing-in amid the government shutdown but promised to promptly provide a ceremony for Grijalva once the lower chamber is brought back in session. 

When asked if he’s prolonging it to stall her signature on the Epstein discharge petition, Johnson told reporters, “It has nothing to do with that at all.”

“We will swear her in when everybody gets back,” the House Speaker said in early October.