The Senate and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) ignored House Speaker Mike Johnson‘s (R-LA) wishes and passed the much-anticipated House bill on releasing the Epstein files, setting up a scenario where President Trump could sign a measure making public a large trove of materials from the DOJ case against the late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Johnson had expressed a belief that, despite nearly unanimous support in the House, the Senate should make amendments to the bill, asserting that in its current form it failed to “protect” victims and was also dangerous to law enforcement sources who had played a role in compiling the evidence against Epstein.
Hearing Johnson’s desire for changes, Thune responded that the 427-1 vote in the House appeared to send the message that the bill was adequate as written.
Johnson still hoped for changes and said he was “deeply disappointed in this outcome,” which moves the bill to Trump’s desk — where any hope for total Epstein transparency likely faces still more challenges before receiving the President’s signature.
“Will Trump veto the bill?” Johnson was asked as he ascended a staircase after a State Dinner in honor of the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.
Johnson replied: “I didn’t say that. I don’t know.” Johnson claimed that he didn’t know about Trump’s plans because he’d been unable to speak with the President at length about the Epstein files due to the presence of the Saudi leader. (“I was standing with the Crown Prince, we couldn’t talk,” Johnson said.)
Speaker Johnson at tonight’s dinner at the WH pic.twitter.com/VIHYy1Atx3
— Acyn (@Acyn) November 19, 2025
However, Johnson did admit to speaking substantively with Trump about the bill, saying: “It needed amendments. I just spoke with the President about that.” Concerning the potential veto and the acceptability of the bill’s current form, Johnson said he and Trump “both have concerns about it.”
Speaker Mike Johnson finally reacted to the clean Epstein bill and it’s pure damage control.
He says he’s ‘deeply disappointed,’ claims Schumer ‘rushed it to the floor,’ and whines that it ‘needed amendments.’
Translation: Johnson lost control, the bill moved without his edits,… pic.twitter.com/N0du7SGnzP
— Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) November 19, 2025
NOTE: Despite the bill passing both chambers, the level of transparency it will compel remains in doubt, as the DOJ — under Trump’s control — retains latitude to withhold information that could jeopardize any federal investigation. On that point, the DOJ could announce investigations into any area where material Trump wanted withheld would be part of the evidence. Casting further doubt about the success of the bill’s ability to effectuate total transparency is the fact that Trump did not need a congressional vote to release the files. He could have released them at any time.