House Speaker Mike Johnson has raised the possibility that President Donald Trump could veto a bill requiring the Justice Department to release files on the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The Epstein Files Transparency Act will head to Trump’s desk for his signature after the House and Senate both voted on Tuesday to publicly release the files.
While Trump has indicated he will sign the legislation, Johnson told reporters Trump was “deeply disappointed” that the Senate passed the bill without making amendments, adding that he and Trump “have concerns” about the bill.
When asked if Trump would veto the bill, Johnson said: “I’m not saying that, I don’t know.”
Newsweek reached out to the White House and Johnson by email outside of normal business hours for comment on this story.
Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing in connection to Epstein, and has said they fell out in the early 2000s. But on Wednesday, lawmakers released more than 20,000 pages of documents connected to Epstein, some of which mentioned Trump.
This has brought fresh scrutiny to the president’s relationship with the disgraced and wealthy financier, who had ties to many prominent figures before he died by suicide in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Read more: Uncommon Knowledge: On Epstein, Trump Has a Biden-Era Escape Hatch
Representative Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, introduced a petition earlier this year to compel a vote on the release of the files. The bill requires Attorney General Pam Bondi to release all materials related to Epstein and his co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell within 30 days of the law being enacted.
These documents include internal communications and investigative materials, flight logs and other materials related to Epstein that the Justice Department has in its possession.
The vote passed 427-1 on Tuesday with only Republican Clay Higgins of Louisiana voting against. Then, the Senate fast-tracked the bill without a formal vote.
Trump previously called the Epstein files “a Democratic hoax” but on Sunday, he said Republicans should vote with Democrats to release the files.
Johnson, who voted in support of releasing the files, told reporters he was “deeply disappointed in this outcome.”
“It needed amendments,” he added. “I just spoke to the president about that we’ll see what happens.”
When asked if Trump would veto the bill, Johnson said: “I’m not saying that, I don’t know.” But he added: “We both have concerns.”
Speaking to Newsweek, Thomas Gift, an associate professor of political science and the director of the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London, said: “There’s so much momentum behind releasing the Epstein files at this point that reversing course would amount to a major U-turn for Trump—and one that would carry real political consequences. If Trump were suddenly to block release, it would raise overwhelming questions about motive and fuel speculation that could be more damaging than whatever is actually in the files.”
Representative Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, wrote on X: “The president has said he will sign the Epstein Files Transparency Act that I introduced & @RepThomasMassie led the discharge petition. The Swamp is trying to get it amended in the Senate. Anyone who tried to amend a bill POTUS says he will sign is betraying the survivors.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Wednesday: “These emails prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong.”
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether Trump will sign the legislation. If he does, there will be a great deal of scrutiny on the released files.
