President Donald Trump is breaking his silence about the controversy surrounding the Jeffrey Epstein files. The president said on Friday that he is asking the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI to investigate the Democrats allegedly connected to the convicted sex offender. What does this mean for the overall investigation into Epstein's connections to some of the biggest names in Washington, D.C.? Read on for the latest news.

President Trump Directs DOJ Investigation Into Epstein Connection with Democrats

President Trump made the announcement about the increased scope of the investigation on Friday through a post on Truth Social. Trump said that he is asking U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to work with the FBI to investigate Epstein's relationships with Bill Clinton, Reid Hoffman, J.P. Morgan Chase, Larry Summers, and more. The request came the same week that Democrats serving on the House Oversight Committee released emails that came from Epstein's estate. The emails signaled that Trump "knew about the girls."

Just a few hours after Trump's post, the DOJ directed the top New York federal prosecutor to look into the president's demand for an investigation. The request essentially is a directive from Bondi to jumpstart the exploration. Bondi assigned the federal probe to Jay Clayton, the top prosecutor in New York’s southern district.

Trump's Friday social media post also criticized members of his own party for working with Democrats to advocate for the full release of the Epstein files. The president called the rogue Republicans "soft and foolish," asking them to stop investigating his connection with Epstein.

It has long been known that Epstein ran in celebrity circles, including several prominent politicians and financiers. Many of these former connections were put under the microscope after Epstein was indicted on charges of sex trafficking in 2019. For example, former President Clinton once hosted Epstein at the White House while in office. According to the recently released emails, Summers, Clinton's Treasury secretary, also maintained a casual relationship with Epstein after he had pleaded guilty to child prostitution charges in Florida.

The president also seemingly called out J.P. Morgan Chase for allegedly facilitating Epstein's sex trafficking ring. The bank agreed to a nine-figure settlement with a group of Epstein's victims after they sued the bank for their alleged role in Epstein's finances.

DOJ Inquiry Comes as Pressure to Release Files Reaches Fever Pitch

Trump's decision to push for an inquiry into the Democrats comes as the House ratchets up its campaign to release all of the Epstein files. Democrats are slowly gaining the support that they need to override the GOP majority leaders in the House to push a bill to the floor requiring the DOJ to release the remaining files. As of Friday, there were four Republicans who had signed on to this bill. The most notable is Trump supporter Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia.

Other GOP supporters of the bill to force the release of the files include Reps. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Nancy Mace of South Carolina, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky. Massie is leading the charge alongside Democrat Ro Khanna of California.

The recent swearing-in this week of Arizona Rep. Adelita Grijalva gave the discharge petition the necessary 218 votes to send the bill to the floor for a vote. Should it pass the House, it would then need to get through the Senate.

Massie has been vocal in his criticism of the Trump administration for trying to kill the petition, calling out Trump, Bondi, and FBI Director Kash Patel for their resistance. The House is scheduled to vote on the petition next week. This vote is predicted to garner significant support from a wider range of the GOP.

The pressure on the president is increasing following this week's release of a new batch of emails. The president has defended the scrutiny by saying that they had a falling out because Epstein was a "creep." The White House has reliably pushed back on the allegations that Trump was involved in Epstein's crimes. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt continued the administration's assertion that "these emails prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong."

While the president broke his silence on the issue on Friday, he has declined to field questions from the media since the email release on Wednesday. Now that the government shutdown has been resolved temporarily, it is likely that the Epstein matter will command all of the attention in the nation's capital.

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