The US Senate on Tuesday moved to fast-track legislation requiring the release of investigative files tied to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, just hours after the House passed the measure in a lopsided 427–1 vote, a milestone in a bipartisan drive that Donald Trump had resisted for months.

Senators agreed by unanimous consent to automatically approve the bill as soon as it formally arrives from the House, clearing the path for Trump’s signature. The president, who recently abandoned his opposition when its passage became inevitable, has said he would sign it.

“The American people have waited long enough. Jeffrey Epstein’s victims have waited long enough,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declared in floor remarks. “Let the truth come out. Let transparency reign.”

The Senate had not yet received the legislation by adjournment on Tuesday night, though approval is expected swiftly once the chamber reconvenes.

Trump under pressure as scandal re-erupts

The renewed push for transparency has placed the White House under political strain and fractured parts of Trump’s conservative base, prompting accusations of an attempted “cover-up” from both sides of the aisle.

Trump repeatedly dismissed mounting concerns over the government’s handling of Epstein’s case as a “Democrat hoax" but began signaling support for the House bill over the weekend amid growing pressure from Republican constituents and lawmakers.

House Speaker Mike Johnson announced earlier on Tuesday that he would also support the measure, virtually guaranteeing its passage.

Cheers broke out in the House gallery, where Epstein survivors and advocates were seated, after the vote. The lone “no” vote came from Louisiana Republican Clay Higgins, who warned that releasing files could expose identifying information about witnesses, suspects, and individuals referenced in investigative records.

Republicans shift positions under public scrutiny

Even among Republicans who voted yes, support often came reluctantly. Some accused Democrats of using the bill for political advantage but conceded that the chamber could no longer delay action.

“As President Trump has stated, we have nothing to hide, nothing to hide here,” Republican Rep. Troy Nehls insisted. “I’m voting to release the files so that we can move on from the [smear] campaign the Democrats have manufactured. God bless Donald J Trump.”

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House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan questioned the timing, arguing that Democrats could have pushed for disclosure during Joe Biden’s presidency. “Why now, after four years of doing nothing? Because going after President Trump is an obsession with these guys.”

Johnson, even as he backed the bill, criticized it for not doing enough to protect Epstein’s victims and warned that revisions may still be needed. Any Senate amendments would require another House vote, potentially delaying final enactment.

Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley welcomed the progress, posting that he had “been calling for full transparency in the Epstein case since 2019” and urging a vote “ASAP”.

Renewed questions over investigation

Public pressure intensified in July when the Justice Department and FBI released a memo saying they had no further information to disclose on the case, a statement sharply at odds with previous remarks from Trump officials who promised fuller transparency once in office.

The memo helped energize a cross-party rebellion in the House, with Democrats and four GOP dissidents working together to force a vote over the speaker’s objections. The campaign succeeded through a rare discharge petition, signed by a majority of the chamber. Newly sworn-in Democrat Adelita Grijalva provided the decisive 218th signature moments after taking office.

Rep. Ro Khanna, one of the leading proponents, heralded Tuesday’s developments as “the first day of real reckoning for the Epstein class,” adding, “Because survivors spoke up, because of their courage, the truth is finally going to come out, and when it comes out, this country is really going to have a moral reckoning. How did we allow this to happen?”

Trump shifts stance under mounting pressure

Trump’s long-standing ties to Epstein remain a central political issue, not least because the disgraced financier moved in elite social circles in the US and abroad. In recent days, the president shifted from firm opposition to indifference and acceptance.

“I DON’T CARE!” he wrote on social media. “All I do care about is that Republicans get BACK ON POINT.”

Speaking in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump said he did not want the scandal to “deflect” from his administration’s accomplishments, calling the controversy “a hoax” and “a Democrat problem".

“We’ll give them everything,” he told reporters. “Let the Senate look at it, let anybody look at it, but don’t talk about it too much, because honestly, I don’t want to take it away from us.”

Rep. Thomas Massie, who co-led the push with Khanna, noted, “We fought the president, the attorney general, the FBI director, the speaker of the House, and the vice-president to get this win. But they’re on our side today, though, so let’s give them some credit as well.”

Survivors demand accountability

Epstein’s survivors have been increasingly vocal in demanding disclosure and pushing lawmakers and the president to follow through.

“This is a human issue. This is about children,” survivor Haley Robson said. She welcomed Trump’s pledge to sign the bill but admitted, “I can’t help to be skeptical of what the agenda is.”

On Monday night, activists projected an image of Trump and Epstein onto the Justice Department building along with the message: “Release the files now.”

With the legislation now poised for final approval, the coming disclosures could usher in a new and potentially transformative chapter in one of the most politically explosive scandals in recent American history.