Thomas Massie Warns GOP Colleagues Against Opposing Epstein Files Release

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) offered a warning to his fellow Republicans on Wednesday and urged them to vote for a bill that would compel the Department of Justice to release its Jeffrey Epstein files.

The House will vote on the measure after a discharge petition to bring the bill to a vote received its 218th signature. Massie is one of just a handful of Republicans who signed, along with Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and Nancy Mace (R-SC), whom President Donald Trump phoned to urge them to reconsider.

Earlier in the day, House Democrats released emails from Epstein, the deceased child sex trafficker, in which he wrote that Trump – then a private citizen – “spent hours at my house” with someone whose name had been redacted and was instead referred to as “Victim.” House Republicans pushed back, stating that the redacted name was that of Virginia Giuffre, an Epstein victim who committed suicide this year. Giuffre maintained that she did not witness Trump commit any wrongdoing.

CNN’s Manu Raju caught up with Massie outside the Capitol, where he urged his Republican colleagues to join the effort of calling on the DOJ to release the Epstein files. Massie said he is hoping for a “snowball” effect of such proportions that the bill will pass with a veto-proof majority.

“And how many Republicans do you think will vote for this on the floor?” the reporter asked.

Massie responded:

Well, I’ve already had a couple Republicans tell my office privately that they’re going to vote for it. And I think that could snowball. I mean, you know, the deal for Republicans on this vote is that Trump will protect you if you vote the wrong way.

In other words, if you vote to cover up for pedophiles, you’ve got cover in a Republican primary. But I would remind my colleagues that this vote is gonna be on your record for longer than Trump is gonna be president. And what are you gonna do in 2028 and 2030 when you’re in a debate either with a Republican or a Democrat and they say, “How can we trust you? You covered up for a pedophile back in 2025.”

If the bill passes in the House, it would require 60 votes in the Senate to overcome a procedural hurdle. Trump would have to sign the legislation into law. If he vetoes it instead, the House and Senate could override it via a two-thirds majority in both chambers.

Watch above via CNN.

The post ‘You Covered Up for a Pedophile’: Thomas Massie Warns GOP Colleagues Against Opposing Epstein Files Release first appeared on Mediaite.