The Senate voted against an amendment forcing the DOJ to release all documents related to Epstein

The Senate voted against an amendment seeking the release of all documents related to Jeffrey Epstein. In the midst of debate on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Chuck Schumer introduced this amendment through a procedure that forced Republicans to vote on whether to accept or reject it without debate.

The vote ended with 51 votes against and 49 in favor. All Republicans were opposed, except for Josh Hawley of Missouri and Rand Paul of Kentucky.

"This has been my consistent position. My longstanding position is that we should release these files and trust the American people, just as we did with the MLK and JFK files. I think this is a similar deal," Hawley told reporters after the vote.

Despite the outcome of the vote, some Republicans, including Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Joni Ernst (R-IA), called for greater transparency regarding the case. "If there was an amendment on the floor that would have the force of law, I'd vote for it in a heartbeat," said the North Carolina Republican, who, like his Iowa colleague, will not seek re-election in 2026.

"We'll see how it goes. We need to have a discussion about it but I think transparency is always good," Ernst said for his part. John Thune, Republican majority leader in the Senate, called the vote a "political stunt."

"Thune appeared annoyed by Schumer's surprise maneuver Wednesday morning, when he offered his amendment directing the Justice Department to release all Epstein-related files," The Hill reported on the matter.

For his part, Senator Schumer said the vote served to show who really wants to get to the bottom of the Epstein case. "There's been so much lying, obfuscation, cover-ups. The American people need to see everything that's in the Epstein file, and my amendment would make that happen," continued the New York senator, the Democratic minority leader.