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House Republicans rejected a Democratic amendment to cryptocurrency legislation that would have released the Jeffrey Epstein files, sparking bipartisan anger at the DOJ's document handling.

"The question with Epstein is: Whose side are you on?" Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), the author of the Epstein measure, told Axios ahead of the vote.

"Are you with the rich and powerful, or … the people?" he asked, vowing to reintroduce the amendment repeatedly.

The House Rules Committee voted 5–6 against Khanna's amendment to a procedural measure related to the GENIUS Act and a defense funding bill.

The measure would have forced Attorney General Pam Bondi to publish all Epstein-related documents on a publicly accessible website within 30 days. Another failed vote took place on a five-page resolution demanding their release.

Republicans said the first amendment was not pertinent to the GENIUS Act, which would create the first regulatory framework for stablecoins, or the defense funding bill.

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) voted with Democrats to attach the amendment but against the second measure (4–8). "The public's been asking for it. I think there are files. All of a sudden not to have files is a little strange. We'll see how it plays out. ... I think the president will do the right thing," he told Axios. 

"I think most of us believe what's appropriate will be released when it is time for the president to release it," Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), the chair of the Rules Committee, said after the vote.

Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas), who sponsored the first measure, expressed concern over the administration’s handling of the file. “What I want is for there to be transparency,” Veasey told Time Magazine.

Ahead of the 2024 election, Trump vowed to disclose more Epstein files, but the initial release disappointed, as flight logs and Ghislaine Maxwell's redacted address book were already public. Maxwell, an Epstein associate, is currently serving 20 years for child sex trafficking.

Key figures in his administration, including Vice President J.D. Vance, FBI Director Kash Patel, and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, had previously promoted governmental cover-up allegations. Attorney General Pam Bondi also stated she was reviewing an Epstein "client list."

Last week, the Justice Department and FBI released a memo concluding that convicted sex offender Epstein didn’t have a “client list” and that his 2019 death in jail was a suicide, aiming to quell theories to the contrary.

“The MAGA constituents want to know what’s in these files, Democratic constituents want to know what’s in these files,” Veasey said. “People want to know what the truth is.”

Amid controversy, President Trump urged people to move on from discussing Epstein, calling it a "waste" of time. Bondi clarified her February remarks, stating she referred to the case file, not a "client list."

No further charges are expected, the memo said. "We did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties."

Democrats also demanded more information on the Epstein-Trump relationship last month in a scathing letter to no avail. A White House spokesperson condemned the effort as “another baseless stunt” from “left-wing lunatics” that “bears no weight in fact or reality.”

On Saturday, Trump questioned on Truth Social why the "Obama, Crooked Hillary, Comey, Brennan, and the Losers and Criminals of the Biden Administration" files were being publicized.

“They created the Epstein Files,” he claimed.