President Donald Trump urged the Justice Department to release the names of any Democrats in the Epstein files, saying the agency should “embarrass them,” even as he questioned the amount of time being spent on the issue.
Trump signed legislation Nov. 19 requiring the release of the federal government’s records related to Jeffrey Epstein, who committed suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
The legislation set a 30-day deadline for the records to be released, and the Justice Department began making them public on Dec. 19. Hundreds of thousands of documents have been made available, but many more have yet to come out, prompting some lawmakers to accuse the Trump administration of violating the law.
Donald Trump’s name appears in these Epstein files released by DOJ
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Ghislaine Maxwell and Donald Trump are shown in this image released by the Department of Justice on Dec. 23, 2025 as part of a new trove of documents from its investigations into the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The Justice Department said on Dec. 24 that the FBI and federal prosecutors found more than a million additional Epstein-related documents and that it would take weeks to review them.
“Now 1,000,000 more pages on Epstein are found,” Trump said in a Dec. 26 social media post. “DOJ is being forced to spend all of its time on this Democrat inspired Hoax. When do they say NO MORE.”
At the same time, Trump took aim at Democrats and encouraged the Justice Department to out those linked to Epstein.
“The Dems are the ones who worked with Epstein, not the Republicans,” Trump said in a Dec. 26 social media post. “Release all of their names, embarrass them.”
President Donald Trump participates in NORAD Santa tracker phone calls, on Christmas Eve, from the Mar-a-lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., December 24, 2025.
Wealthy and well-connected, Epstein socialized with the rich and famous and had a long friendship with Trump before the two had a falling out.
Some of the newly released documents mention Trump, including his trips on Epstein’s plane. Others include pictures of former Democratic President Bill Clinton and other famous individuals. Many of the documents are heavily redacted.
Neither Trump nor Clinton has been accused of any wrongdoing by authorities.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump urges DOJ to ’embarrass’ any Democrats in Epstein files