Trump makes a U-turn on the Epstein files. Here's a timeline of his shifting stance

In a major about-face, President Donald Trump has called on House Republicans to vote to release the files of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, after months of refusing to do so and mounting pressure from Republicans and Democrats alike.

Epstein was found dead in 2019 in the Manhattan facility where he was being held on charges that he operated a sex-trafficking ring preying on young women and underage girls. Officials later concluded he died by suicide.

But public skepticism about his death — and allegations that his wealthy, powerful network helped facilitate and cover up his crimes — persist, dogging the Trump administration in particular.

The names of a number of powerful figures have appeared in already-released documents related to Epstein's case, including Trump and former President Bill Clinton, both of whom socialized with Epstein. Appearing in Epstein's flight logs and other records, however, is not an indication of wrongdoing.

Trump has long resisted the release of additional files from the Justice Department's investigation into Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, despite promising on the campaign trail that he would do so if reelected. That unfulfilled promise has been the center of growing public controversy, conspiracy theories and pressure from Congress in the months since he took office.

Prominent Republicans from House Speaker Mike Johnson to former Vice President Mike Pence have called for more transparency on the Epstein case, along with influential right-wing conspiracy promoters, including media figures such as Tucker Carlson and Laura Loomer.

And Democrats on the House Oversight Committee continue to apply pressure by subpoenaing and releasing thousands of pages of records from the Justice Department, many of which spotlight Epstein's onetime friendship with Trump.

The White House has consistently downplayed that relationship — which Trump says ended before Epstein was indicted for soliciting prostitution in 2006 — and dismissed the controversy as a hoax pushed by Democrats.

But after months of opposing the files' release, Trump said on Sunday that "we have nothing to hide" and that it was time to move on from what he says is a "Democrat hoax … to deflect from the Great Success of the Republican Party."

A House vote is expected on Tuesday, but it would be just the first step in a longer process. The House and Senate would both need to vote to release the unclassified files in order for the matter to reach his desk for a signature.

Here's a timeline of the Trump administration's shifting tone and actions on the Epstein case.

A demonstrator holds a sign quoting U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi about the Epstein files during a protest against the Trump administration in Los Angeles in July.

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Feb. 21: Attorney General Pam Bondi says the Epstein client list is "sitting on my desk" in an appearance on Fox News, in response to a question from John Roberts.

"The DOJ may be releasing the list of Jeffrey Epstein's clients? Will that really happen?" Roberts asks Bondi.

"It's sitting on my desk right now to review. That's been a directive by President Trump. I'm reviewing that," the attorney general replies.

Bondi later says she was referring to the Epstein files, not a client list. But her remark has echoed through discussions of the Epstein story so far this year.

Political commentator Rogan O'Handley, aka DC Draino (left), TikToker Chaya Raichik, commentator Liz Wheeler and conservative activist Scott Presler carry binders bearing the seal of the U.S. Justice Department reading "The Epstein Files: Phase 1" as they walk out of the West Wing of the White House on Feb. 27.

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Feb. 27: The White House gives binders to far-right influencers bearing a Department of Justice seal and labels reading, "Epstein Files: Phase 1" and "Declassified." But much of the information turns out to have been released before, and Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, chairwoman of the Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets, calls it "old info."

July 7: The Justice Department releases a memo saying it has found "no incriminating 'client list'" for Epstein, contradicting Bondi's February statement. The agency says it turned up more than 300 gigabytes of data and physical evidence. It also states that "Epstein harmed over one thousand victims." But the DOJ says those victims' sensitive information is "intertwined" in the materials and it concludes "no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted."

The memo addresses several hot topics on social media. In addition to rebutting the notion of a client list, it says there's no credible evidence that Epstein blackmailed prominent figures or that his death was anything other than a case of suicide.

July 12: "We're on one Team, MAGA, and I don't like what's happening," Trump says on Truth Social in response to his supporters' criticisms of Bondi. The president accuses critics of trying to hurt his administration, "all over a guy who never dies, Jeffrey Epstein."

People should let Bondi do her job, Trump says, "and not waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about."

July 15: Bondi refuses to address questions about her handling of the Epstein files. Trump voices his support, saying his attorney general has "really done a very good job."

Trump also suggests people who are fixated on Epstein should move on: "He's dead for a long time. He was never a big factor in terms of life. I don't understand what the interest or what the fascination is, I really don't. And the credible information's been given."

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks at a news conference in Arlington, Va., on July 15.

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July 16: Trump lashes out at fellow Republicans for fixating on Epstein, calling it a hoax.

"It's all been a big hoax. It's perpetrated by the Democrats and some stupid Republicans and foolish Republicans fall into the net. And so they try and do the Democrats' work," Trump tells reporters in the Oval Office.

Trump also suggests he would approve of Bondi releasing some Epstein documents if they meet a standard: "Whatever's credible, she can release. If a document is credible, if a document's there that is credible, she can release."

As NPR's Dominico Montanaro later reports, it's one of many instances of Trump emphasizing that "credible evidence" from the Epstein records should be shared.

July 17: Trump slams The Wall Street Journal after the paper publishes what it says is a risqué birthday note Trump wrote to celebrate Epstein's 50th birthday, stating, "the supposed letter they printed by President Trump to Epstein was a FAKE."

"These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don't draw pictures," Trump writes on Truth Social.

July 18: Trump files a defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal over its coverage of his relationship with Epstein, including the birthday note that Trump says he didn't write.

On the same day, the DOJ files a motion in the Southern District of New York to unseal grand jury testimony related to Epstein's 2019 indictment charging him with sex trafficking offenses, citing "extensive public interest" following the agency's July 6 memo.

The DOJ later asks to unseal related exhibits, including a PowerPoint presentation and four pages of call logs.

The agency files similar motions in New York regarding the criminal case against Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's longtime partner who was sentenced to a 20-year prison term, as well as in Florida, where Epstein agreed to a plea deal with U.S. prosecutors in 2007 over the abuse of minor girls.

July 19: Trump posts on Truth Social about his administration's grand jury request, saying he "asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval."

July 22: Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche says he is talking with Maxwell's lawyer and expects to meet with her, at Bondi's direction. Trump says he thinks the plan "sounds appropriate."

July 23: The Wall Street Journal reports that Bondi and other Justice Department officials told Trump in May that his name "is among many in the Epstein files." The newspaper says the officials feel the files contain "unverified hearsay" about hundreds of people, including Trump, who were in the same social orbit as Epstein.

The same day, federal judge Robin Rosenberg in Florida denies release of grand jury transcripts related to Epstein.

Donald Trump and his girlfriend at the time, Melania Knauss, Jeffrey Epstein and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell pose together at the Mar-a-Lago on Feb. 12, 2000.

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July 24: Blanche meets with Maxwell in prison for two days, according to Democratic senators. The DOJ says it's mulling whether to release transcripts of their meeting.

July 29: Trump says he and Epstein had a falling out over Epstein hiring girls from his Mar-a-Lago resort, resulting in Epstein being kicked out. A prominent Epstein accuser, the late Virginia Giuffre, had said she was a teenager working at Mar-a-Lago when she first met Maxwell and Epstein.

Aug. 1: The Bureau of Prisons says it has moved Maxwell from a low-security prison in Tallahassee, Fla., to a women's minimum-security prison camp in Bryan, Texas.

Aug. 5: The House Oversight Committee subpoenas the Department of Justice for records related to Epstein and Maxwell. It seeks "all documents and communications relating or referring to" the pair and their respective court cases, setting a deadline of Aug. 19.

Aug. 11: Federal judge Paul Engelmayer in New York denies Bondi's request to unseal grand jury materials from the Maxwell case, saying most of the records are already public. In a rebuke to the DOJ, the judge adds that an observer "might conclude that the Government's motion for their unsealing was aimed not at 'transparency' but at diversion — aimed not at full disclosure but at the illusion of such."

Aug. 18: House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., says the DOJ will send the first batch of Epstein documents to the panel on Aug. 22, three days after the committee's original deadline. "It will take the Department time to produce all the records and ensure the identification of victims and any child sexual abuse material are redacted," Comer says.

Aug. 20: Federal judge Richard M. Berman denies Bondi's request to unseal records related to the Epstein case in New York, citing longstanding precedents of keeping grand jury proceedings secret and stating that the government did not prove "special circumstances" that might justify unsealing the records.

Aug. 22: The House Oversight Committee receives the first batch of thousands of Epstein-related files from the Justice Department's investigation, some of which it says will eventually become public.

Sept. 8: House Democrats release a copy of Epstein's 50th birthday book with notes from friends and associates, including the tawdry note — framed by a hand-drawn outline of a woman's body — that appears to bear Trump's signature, despite his denial in July. The White House again dismisses that claim, calling it "FAKE NEWS to perpetuate the Democrat Epstein Hoax!"

Sept. 23: A statue of Epstein and Trump skipping hand-in-hand, above a satirical plaque honoring their friendship, appears on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson tells NPR that "it's not news that Epstein knew Donald Trump, because Donald Trump kicked Epstein out of his club for being a creep."

U.S. Park Police abruptly removed the statue for what the Department of Interior later said was permit noncompliance. The protest group behind the bronze installation has since displayed it two more times, on the Mall in October and in front of a D.C. restaurant in November.

Oct. 6: On the same day that the Supreme Court declines to hear Ghislaine Maxwell's appeal of her 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking, Trump leaves the door open to potentially granting her a pardon — which he previously told reporters he was "allowed" to do.

"I haven't heard the name in so long. I can say that, that I'd have to take a look at it," Trump said. "I will speak to the DOJ."

Nov. 12: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt rules out a Trump pardon of Maxwell, telling reporters, "It's not something he's talking about or even thinking about at this moment in time."

That same day, the federal government reopens after a record 43-day shutdown. The House returns to session to swear in Democratic Rep. Adelita Grijalva of New Mexico, seven weeks after she won a special election to succeed her late father. Grijalva had promised to support forcing a vote on the Epstein files' release, and became the decisive final signature that same day.

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee release three new emails from Epstein's estate that specifically mention Trump. In one from 2011, Epstein referred to Trump as "the dog that hasn't barked" and says he spent "hours at my house" with one of the alleged sex trafficking victims.

A billboard shown in Times Square on Monday highlights Jeffrey Epstein's 2019 comment about Donald Trump that "of course he knew about the girls."

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The White House downplays the emails, with Leavitt saying they were "selectively leaked" and "prove absolutely nothing other than the fact that President Trump did nothing wrong." Later that day, Republicans release another 20,000 documents, which include emails from Epstein expressing displeasure with Trump and his presidency.

Nov. 14: At Trump's public urging, Bondi confirms that the Justice Department will investigate Epstein's alleged "involvement and relationship" with banks and several prominent Democrats, including Clinton.

That same day, Trump withdraws his support of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., a longtime ally of the president who publicly broke with him over the Epstein issue. She was one of three Republican women to sign the petition to force a vote on the files' release. Another, Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, had met with White House officials earlier in the week, apparently about Epstein, but was not persuaded to change course.

Nov. 16: In a late-night Truth Social post, Trump says House Republicans should vote to release the files.

He stresses that the Justice Department has already turned over tens of thousands of pages of records and opened an investigation into Epstein's links to Democrats, and urges Republicans to get "back on point."

"Nobody cared about Jeffrey Epstein when he was alive and, if the Democrats had anything, they would have released it before our Landslide Election Victory," he adds.
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