Congress

DOJ silent on Epstein files since start of the shutdown

Published

6 months ago

October 16, 2025

The congressional probe into the Jeffrey Epstein case now appears to be caught in the crossfires of the government shutdown.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s monthslong investigation into the late convicted sex offender and disgraced financier has been largely put on pause as employees across the federal government are put on furloughs.

Two people granted anonymity to discuss internal dynamics say that committee investigators have not heard from DOJ around the subpoena since federal funding lapsed Oct. 1, grinding to a halt what had until that point been a modest stream of information flowing between the agency and Capitol Hill thanks to a congressional subpoena.

Oversight Democrats have reached out for more information from DOJ and received no response, according to one of the two people. And now, Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the panel’s top, is openly accusing the department of slow-walking.

“Despite multiple requests from Committee staff for an accounting of materials still within DOJ’s possession or plans to produce additional materials, DOJ has failed to provide any substantive or insightful information as to when the Committee may expect further productions of documents,” Garcia wrote in a letter Thursday to Attorney General Pam Bondi.

Garcia’s letter made no mention of what effect the shutdown could be having on DOJ operations. A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The delays are, in any event, the latest chapter in the political quagmire the Epstein case has created on Capitol Hill.

Democrats have for months tried to leverage President Donald Trump’s relationship with Epstein to stoke divisions among the MAGA base and argue the administration is reneging on its promises of transparency in the matter.

Speaker Mike Johnson has also been working to quell an insurgent effort among lawmakers to force a floor vote that would compel the Justice Department to oversee a wholesale release of materials in the Epstein case. Democrats say a desire among GOP leadership to avoid such an outcome is the reason Johnson refuses to swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, the Arizona Democrat who would be the 218th signer on the discharge petition to bring up the bill.

House GOP leaders have repeatedly brandished the Oversight probe as the appropriate vehicle to obtain information related to the Epstein case, and DOJ has been somewhat responsive since being slapped with the subpoena. But Democrats — along with rank-and-file Republicans — have complained that the department is transmitting information too slowly, and in piecemeal fashion, and that much of the material that has been sent to Hill investigators so far represents information that has previously been made public.

Garcia argued in his letter Thursday that the administration had refused “for nearly two months to provide substantive information regarding progress producing files relating to Jeffrey Epstein,” adding, “the only production of documents by DOJ consisted almost entirely of documents that were either already public or in the Committee’s possession.”

The Justice Department has not handed over any information to the Oversight Committee since Aug. 22. Republican leadership says lawmakers must give the agency time to responsibly release materials without jeopardizing the privacy of Epstein’s victims. But the Justice Department has not provided any insight into when the committee can expect more information, Garcia said.

Garcia also questioned Bondi on why her department had not responded to questions over why Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell was given what he called “preferential treatment” by the Bureau of Prisons. Maxwell was relocated from a federal prison in Florida to a minimum security prison camp in Texas shortly after she sat for an interview with deputy attorney general Todd Blanche, where she said she had no recollection of Trump’s involvement in inappropriate situations with Epstein.

Congress

Cherfilus-McCormick resigns amid ethics investigation

Published

2 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) has resigned in the face of corruption charges at home and calls for her ouster in Washington, she announced in a statement on Tuesday.

News broke minutes before the House Ethics Committee was about to meet for a public hearing Tuesday afternoon to determine a punishment for the third-term Democrat, who was charged with stealing $5 million in Covid relief funds.

Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement the Ethics proceedings did not constitute a “fair process” and that she was “choos[ing] to step aside” rather than “play these political games.”

Congress

Rick Scott holds up Coast Guard promotions

Published

2 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Florida Sen. Rick Scott is blocking quick confirmation of hundreds of Coast Guard promotions as he tries to resolve a dispute involving a shipbuilder in his home state.

The Republican said in an interview Tuesday that he has placed a hold on the Coast Guard promotions, which prevents the Senate from easily clearing them unanimously and would force Majority Leader John Thune to set up time-consuming roll call votes on promotions that are usually agreed to with little fanfare.

“I’ve been talking … since Trump came into office about trying to resolve an issue they have with a boat builder in Florida. And they … won’t put the time in to get a result,” Scott said.

“I’ve met with everybody that I can meet with, and I want them to focus,” Scott said of the Coast Guard, adding that he wasn’t trying to dictate the outcome to the administration but emphasizing “you have to get this resolved.”

Scott didn’t specify which shipbuilder he was referring to. But Scott has been a longtime booster of a Coast Guard contract with Panama City-based Eastern Shipbuilding Group to deliver four new advanced cutters. A person granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter said the hold is related to the company.

Then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem scrapped plans for two of the boats last year, and ESG announced in November it would stop work on the two remaining boats “due to significant financial strain caused by the program’s structure and conditions.”

The tussle over the nominations comes as Thune is trying to quickly assemble and approve a new personnel package, telling reporters Monday night that confirming another tranche of President Donald Trump’s nominees is a priority alongside resolving the DHS shutdown and renewing soon-to-lapse surveillance powers.

Congress

Johnson touts ‘bipartisan’ path for FISA reauthorization, but obstacles remain

Published

5 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Speaker Mike Johnson is raising the possibility of a “bipartisan” path forward on extending a key spy authority after negotiations among House Republicans blew up late last week.

“We’re confident that we’ll be able to find strong bipartisan consensus that builds off of the really meaningful reforms that we included in the legislation the last time we reauthorized it,” Johnson said during a news conference Tuesday morning.

The emergency short-term reauthorization Congress cleared last week expires April 30, putting pressure on lawmakers to reach a deal quickly.

Among the options GOP leaders are discussing: If the Senate can advance a three-year extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, with policy changes, the House could then pass it with a majority of Republicans and some Democrats, according to three people granted anonymity to share direct knowledge of ongoing conversations.

It’s also possible Johnson could put that measure on the House floor under an expedited procedure that does not require prior adoption of a party-line rule, but would need a two-thirds majority voting in the affirmative to secure passage. House GOP leaders still need to appease hard-liners who have very specific demands for new guardrails on warrentless surveillance practices as part of any reauthorization measure.

House Democratic leaders, meanwhile, aren’t promising cooperation — and they’re skeptical Johnson is as close to a deal as he might suggest.

“His confidence meter was always pretty high, and then he put a bill on the floor that had zero consensus among his caucus, and looked like the disaster that it was after midnight,” House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar of California told reporters Tuesday.

He added that he has not had “any discussions” yet with Republican counterparts on next steps for Section 702, and “absent those conversations, it’s going to be hard to find bipartisan consensus.” Aguilar also said that Democrats would follow the leads of House Intelligence Chair Jim Himes of Connecticut and Jamie Raskin of Maryland.

Johnson is planning to meet Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania and Darin LaHood of Illinois later Tuesday as the pair of Republicans works with Democrats on a bipartisan FISA extension plan, according to two people granted anonymity to share private scheduling.