Top Trump administration official defends partial release of Epstein
files as Democrats cry foul
[December 22, 2025]
By AAMER MADHANI AND ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on
Sunday defended the Justice Department’s decision to release just a
fraction of the Jeffrey Epstein files by the congressionally mandated
deadline as necessary to protect survivors of sexual abuse by the
disgraced financier.
Blanche pledged that the Trump administration eventually would meet its
obligation required by law. But he stressed that the department was
obligated to act with caution as it goes about making public thousands
of documents that can include sensitive information.
Friday's partial release of the Epstein files has led to a new crush of
criticism from Democrats who have accused the Republican administration
of trying to hide information.
Blanche called that pushback disingenuous as President Donald Trump's
administration continues to struggle with calls for greater
transparency, including from members of his political base, about the
government’s investigations into Epstein, who once counted Trump as well
as several political leaders and business titans among his peers.
“The reason why we are still reviewing documents and still continuing
our process is simply that to protect victims,” Blanche told NBC's "Meet
the Press." “So the same individuals that are out there complaining
about the lack of documents that were produced on Friday are the same
individuals who apparently don’t want us to protect victims.”
Blanche's comments were the most extensive by the administration since
the file dump, which included photographs, interview transcripts, call
logs, court records and other documents. But some of the most
consequential records expected about Epstein were nowhere to be found,
such as FBI interviews with survivors and internal Justice Department
memos examining charging decisions. Those records could help explain how
investigators viewed the case and why Epstein was allowed in 2008 to
plead guilty to a relatively minor state-level prostitution charge.
Trump, who was friends with Epstein for years before the two had a
falling-out, tried for months to keep the records sealed. Though Trump
has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, he has
argued there is nothing to see in the files and that the public should
focus on other issues.
Federal prosecutors in New York brought sex trafficking charges against
Epstein in 2019, but he killed himself in jail after his arrest.
Democrat see a cover-up, not an effort to protect victims
But Democratic lawmakers on Sunday hammered Trump and the Justice
Department for a partial release.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., argued that the Justice Department is
obstructing the implementation of the law mandating the release of the
documents not because it wants to protect the Epstein victims.
“It’s all about covering up things that, for whatever reason, Donald
Trump doesn’t want to go public, either about himself, other members of
his family, friends, Jeffrey Epstein, or just the social, business,
cultural network that he was involved in for at least a decade, if not
longer," he said on CNN's “State of the Union.”
Blanche also defended the department's decision to remove several files
related to the case from its public webpage, including a photograph
showing Trump, less than a day after they were posted.
The missing files, which were available Friday but no longer accessible
by Saturday, included images of paintings depicting nude women, and one
showed a series of photographs along a credenza and in drawers. In that
image, inside a drawer among other photos, was a photograph of Trump,
alongside Epstein, Melania Trump and Epstein’s longtime associate,
Ghislaine Maxwell.
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Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during an event with
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Oct.
15, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell, file)
Blanche said the documents were removed because they also showed
victims of Epstein. Blanche said that Trump photo and the other
documents will be reposted once redactions are made to protect
survivors.
“It has nothing to do with President Trump,” Blanche said. “There
are dozens of photos of President Trump already released to the
public seeing him with Mr. Epstein.”
The thousands of Epstein-related records posted publicly offer the
most detailed look yet at nearly two decades worth of government
scrutiny of Epstein’s sexual abuse of young women and underage
girls. Yet Friday's release, replete with redactions, has not dulled
the clamor for information given how many records had yet to be
released and because some of the materials had already been made
public.
Justice Department has just learned the names of more potential
victims, Blanche says
Blanche said that the department continues to review the trove of
documents and has learned the names of additional potential victims
in recent days.
The deputy attorney general also defended the decision by the
federal Bureau of Prisons, which Blanche oversees, to transfer
Maxwell to a less restrictive, minimum-security federal prison
earlier this year soon after he interviewed her about Epstein.
Blanche said that the transfer was made because of concerns about
her safety.
Maxwell, Epstein's onetime girlfriend, is serving a 20-year federal
prison sentence for her 2021 conviction for sex trafficking crimes.
“She was suffering numerous and numerous threats against her life,”
Blanche said. “So the BOP is not only responsible for putting people
in jail and making sure they stay in jail, but also for their
safety.”
Meanwhile, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., have
indicated they could draft articles of impeachment against Attorney
General Pam Bondi for what they see as the gross failure of the
department to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
“It’s not about the timeline, it’s about the selective concealment,”
Khanna said on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” adding that the redactions in
the released files are excessive. He said he believes there will be
"bipartisan support in holding her accountable, and a committee of
Congress should determine whether these redactions are justified or
not."
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York said on ABC's
“This Week” that there needs “to be a full and complete explanation
and then a full and complete investigation as to why the document
production has fallen short of what the law clearly required,” but
he stopped short of backing impeachment.
Blanche dismissed the impeachment talk.
“Bring it on,” Blanche said. “We are doing everything we’re supposed
to be doing to comply with this statute.”
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Gómez Licón reported from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
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