TRANSCRIPT: Standing With Senate Democrats, Leader Schumer Calls On Trump Administration To Release The Full, Unedited Epstein Files
Washington, D.C. – Today, at a media availability in the Capitol, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called for the Trump administration to comply with the law passed with overwhelming bipartisan support and release the full, unedited Epstein files immediately. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks:
27 days ago, every single senator sent Donald Trump a clear and simple message: release the Epstein files. Congress passed a law, not a suggestion, not a request. The law requires DOJ to release the files by Friday, December 19th. In three days, President Trump has a choice: follow the law and release the files or break the law and continue to hide the truth from the American people. Let me be blunt. We fully expect Trump, Bondi and their minions to dodge, delay or partially release these files. If they release some documents and hide others, the American people will see right through it, and they'll ask the obvious question. We are all asking the obvious question that looms. President Trump, what are you trying to hide? President Trump, what are you trying to hide? That's the question the American people are asking.
Now over the past few weeks, Senate Democrats, including my colleagues here with me, have been preparing for every scenario. We're working with the victims' attorneys, we're working with legal experts, we're working with people very familiar with this case to ensure full compliance of the law. If the administration withholds some documents unlawfully, we will know. If they abuse narrow exemptions to hide the truth, we will know. And there will be serious legal and political consequences. This law passed with near unanimous support. The survivors deserve the truth, and the American people are demanding it. This isn't political. Democrats and Republicans agree, the American people deserve the truth. So, Donald Trump, release the Epstein files. Stop hiding, stop delaying, come clean with the American people. And if you don't, the question will only get louder and louder and louder. Trump, what the hell are you trying to hide?
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Q&A
Reporter: What is your sense in terms of the time frame? Is it end of day on Friday or is it, when you need to have these documents? And if you don't, is there a legal recourse that you are already planning?
Schumer: Okay. The first question. We don't know when exactly they'll release it. They may try to do it at 11:59 p.m. They have to do it by the 19th. That's the law. If they don't release the documents, there's going to be such an outcry from one end of America to the other that I think they'll be forced to do it. Just as they've resisted all along but were at this point, the public pressure, you know, as Abe Lincoln said, public sentiment is everything. You've rarely seen so many different political wings of each party come together and say we need this. So we believe they'll be required to do it. Obviously, we would pursue every legal, legislative, and administrative ways to get this done as well. But public pressure will be everything. Yes?
Reporter: How are you planning on addressing this if they do release it? And it’s so heavily redacted that there’s nothing to see?
Schumer: Well, the people who wrote the legislation drafted it very carefully. We've been consulting our lawyers on just that issue. And we will be able to first make the point that some of the redacted stuff doesn't have to – much of the redacted stuff doesn't have to be redacted, and we'll have chapter and verse on that. And second, we will be prepared to argue that in court. But again, our number one ally in this is the American people. And they are going to demand that it be released. And when we say this and this and this shouldn't have been redacted, what are they hiding there? It's going to increase a lot of heat on them.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: And clearly, as Senator Schumer knows, having met with them, the victims are not also going to allow this to happen.
Klobuchar: They’re gonna be leading the way. They wanna know what’s in these documents.
Senator Ron Wyden: The victims are already filing lawsuits using the information we've gotten. They are not going to let this just go by the board. Yes.
Reporter: What is your plan for making progress on Senator Wyden's bill with regard to the –
Schumer: Well, why don't I call on Senator Wyden?
Wyden: We're going to keep pushing to find out what is behind Scott Bessent's stonewalling. The fact of the matter is, on Valentine's Day, before the administration, the Biden administration left, we went to look at the SARs, these Suspicious Activity Reports. And we have the staff of senior Republicans. And we're going to keep pushing on a bipartisan basis to, A, get all the facts out, because as Senator Schumer has said this is not a blue and red fight, and, B, to make the reforms that are necessary so this never happens again. Too many banks looked the other way. Too many auditors decided this wasn't important. This was, again and again, a textbook case of disinterest and suffering and families and young girls. And we're not going to let it happen again.
Schumer: We're also not going to bifurcate this. It's part of one large investigation, one large disclosure. And just as we will do everything we can to alert the public what has happened on the non-financial parts of the documents, with all the horrible things that they did to these women, we're going to continue to keep pressure on the financial parts, too. Yes?
Reporter: So, let's say they do get released. Is it just going to be a public release? And you all just going to let the American people go through them and come to their own conclusions? Or will Senate Democrats, will there be a coordinated campaign? Will there be anything that we can expect next year?
Schumer: Well, the first step is to get them all released. That will be our first job. And then, once we have the releases, obviously it's going to be clear as could be to the American people what has gone on here. But, you know, Democrats will be actively involved, letting people know how disgraceful this has been.
Senator Jeff Merkley: The American people should see everything we see.
Schumer: Yeah, they'll see it. Yes?
Reporter: In terms of the timing, if you need to go to court after the release because it’s, you know, there are too many redactions, or just evidence that’s not there, is that something that can happen quickly? Days? Weeks?
Schumer: You know, we have great lawyers who are ready to go, and we will leave it to them as to the best sense of timing. But certainly, we want to let public pressure build and build and build.
Reporter: Are you working with the Republicans on the court action? Because the law was bipartisan, um, with -
Schumer: We expect that we will have lots of bipartisan support. Thank you everybody. Oh, last one.
Reporter: What steps are you guys taking when it comes to learning more about why Ghislaine Maxwell was moved? I don’t know if you saw but, Susie Wiles, the President’s Chief of Staff said she had no idea. The President had no idea. I’m curious, I don’t know whether those will be –
Schumer: She should not have been moved. And I think when the files are made public, the pressure to disclose how that happened, why that happened, and to undo it will be very, very real and strong.
Reporter: Is that a focus of one of these tasks force?
Schumer: That is, one of the focuses is on what happened and what they have tried to do to cover up everything, including what happened with Ghislaine.
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