• House Oversight Committee Republicans distributed internal talking points to lawmakers Tuesday
  • Memo focuses on discrediting Democratic document releases and media coverage ahead of December 19 deadline
  • Trump administration faces legal requirement to release Justice Department Epstein files by end of week

WASHINGTON, DC (TDR) — House Oversight Committee Republican staff distributed a talking points memo to GOP lawmakers Tuesday morning outlining messaging strategy for discussions about the Jeffrey Epstein files, as the Trump administration faces a December 19 deadline to release Justice Department documents related to the convicted sex offender.

The memo, first reported by Fox News, instructs Republicans on how to respond to recent Democratic releases of Epstein-related documents and focuses primarily on allegations of selective information disclosure by committee Democrats. The guidance comes as bipartisan legislation passed in November requires Attorney General Pam Bondi to publicly release all unclassified Justice Department files related to Epstein and his convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell within 30 days of the bill’s signing.

Memo Contents Focus on Democratic Conduct

According to the document obtained by Fox News, the Republican talking points memo accuses Democrats of “misrepresenting witness testimony, selectively leaking cherry-picked documents, and manipulating emails and images” to create what Republicans characterize as a false narrative about President Donald Trump‘s connection to Epstein.

The memo specifically directs Republicans to highlight interactions between Epstein and three Democrats: Virgin Islands Delegate Stacey Plaskett, Arizona Representative Yassamin Ansari, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Plaskett exchanged text messages with Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing investigating Trump, which she has described as gathering evidence from various sources in her role as a former prosecutor. Ansari posted photos from the Epstein investigation with redacted faces, while a fundraising firm used by Jeffries sent a solicitation email to Epstein in 2013, though Jeffries has stated he has no recollection of the communication and never met Epstein.

The talking points also encourage Republicans to criticize what the memo terms “Legacy Media” for amplifying Democratic claims without adequate fact-checking. The document states this combination of “partisan distortion and media malpractice undermines the Committee’s work, misleads the public, and distracts from the serious responsibility of ensuring accountability, transparency, and justice for the American people.”

Democratic Response and Document Releases

House Democrats have released multiple batches of Epstein documents in recent months, including emails from Epstein’s estate that reference Trump. In one 2011 email, Epstein told Ghislaine Maxwell that Trump “spent hours at my house” with a victim. Another email from 2019 stated Trump “knew about the girls.”

“These latest emails and correspondence raise glaring questions about what else the White House is hiding and the nature of the relationship between Epstein and the President.”

Representative Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, has consistently called for full transparency. Republicans counter that Democrats released only three emails from a tranche of more than 20,000 pages of documents, which Republicans subsequently made public.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that Democrats “selectively leaked emails to the liberal media to create a fake narrative to smear President Trump,” adding that Trump kicked Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago decades ago for inappropriate behavior toward female employees.

Legislative Deadline Looms

The Epstein Files Transparency Act passed the House 427-1 and the Senate unanimously in November after Trump reversed his earlier opposition to the measure. Trump signed the legislation into law on November 19, creating the December 19 deadline for document release.

The law requires the attorney general to make publicly available all unclassified records related to Epstein while protecting victim identities and excluding materials that could harm ongoing investigations. However, the legislation prohibits redactions based on “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity” to government officials or public figures.

Trump and Epstein had a well-documented social relationship in the 1980s and 1990s before a falling-out in the 2000s. Trump has consistently denied involvement in any of Epstein’s crimes. Epstein died by apparent suicide in federal custody in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

Will the December 19 document release provide the transparency both parties have publicly advocated for, or will partisan disagreements over selective disclosure continue to dominate the narrative?

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