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Opinion
Recently, President Donald Trump made an unexpected and stark reversal from his previous position of opposing the release of the Epstein files. Credit: Shutterstock
PORTLAND, USA, Nov 19 2025 (IPS) – With the longest shutdown of the U.S. government now over, the White House, Congress, the media, and the public have shifted their attention to the contentious and highly political issue of releasing the files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
The White House’s resistance to releasing Epstein-related documents brings to mind the famous line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet that the U.S. president “doth protest too much, methinks.”
For many, the president’s continued denials of any wrongdoing suggest the opposite is true.
According to a Marist poll conducted in October, 77% of the U.S. public support the release of all files relating to Jeffrey Epstein. Another 13% want some of the Epstein files released, while only 9% don’t want any documents released (Figure 1).
Source: Marist poll.
According to other polls, a majority of the U.S. public, 67%, believe that the government is covering up evidence and 61% think the Epstein files contain embarrassing information about the president (Figure 2).
Source: Polls of The Economist/YouGov, the Washington Post, and University of Amherst.
A similar percentage, 63%, believe the president is hiding important information, while 61% disapprove of the president’s handling of the Epstein files. Additionally, 53% believe the files are sealed because the president is named in them.
Much of the country’s population believes that the president does not want the Epstein files released because the information contained within is criminal or embarrassing. In a national poll conducted in July, a majority of the U.S. public, 61%, thought that the Epstein files contain embarrassing information about the president.
Democratic lawmakers and some Republicans in Congress are pushing for the release of all Epstein files and actively working towards a Congressional vote to make it happen.
Furthermore, a bipartisan group of Congressional lawmakers believes that releasing the Epstein files is a moral imperative that will help bring justice to more than a thousand victims and prioritize truth over political convenience. In addition, a group of Epstein’s victims are featured in a new ad calling on Congress to pass the pending legislation.
In addition to acknowledging its widespread support among the U.S. public, the president’s reversal also seems to recognize that supporters of the measure to release the Epstein files have enough votes to pass it in the House. However, the president never truly needed the approval of Congress, as he has the power to release the files himself
Recent news reports indicate that the White House is now in panic mode. In addition to criticizing Democrats who are pushing for a Congressional vote, the president has spoken out strongly against Republican lawmakers who support the release of the Epstein files.