DOJ Releases 300 Names in Epstein Files, Faces Backlash Over Transparency

The Department of Justice released a list of 300 public figures named in the Epstein Files. On February 14, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a letter to Congress that the names of politically exposed persons appeared in documents related to convicted s– offender and child abuser Jeffrey Epstein.

The list includes President Donald Trump, former President Barack Obama, former First Lady Michelle Obama, former President Bill Clinton, Vice President JD Vance, and former Vice President Kamala Harris. Tech leaders like Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg were also named.

Other public figures mentioned include Prince Harry, Bruce Springsteen, Woody Allen, and Beyoncé. Some deceased public figures also appeared on the list, including Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Ronald Reagan, Janis Joplin, and Pope John Paul II.

The department said that being named in the Epstein Files does not indicate wrongdoing or guilt. In the letter addressed to the House and Senate Judiciary committees, the department said some individuals had known connections to Epstein. Others are referenced only in press reports.

The letter read, “Names appear in the files released under the Act in a wide variety of contexts. For example, some individuals had extensive direct email contact with Epstein or Maxwell while other individuals are mentioned only in a portion of a document (including press reporting) that on its face is unrelated to the Epstein and Maxwell matters.”

The department also said all files related to Epstein were released in accordance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. However, critics argue that the Justice Department has released 3 million of an estimated 6 million documents. Blanche earlier said officials had overestimated the number of files.

The DOJ has also faced criticism for redacting names from documents that could implicate individuals with political influence. In the letter, Bondi and Blanche said no records were withheld because of reputational harm. They noted omissions may have occurred because of the volume of documents and the deadline for release.

They wrote, “Any omissions from the list are unintentional and, as explained in the previous letters to Congress, a result of the volume and speed with which the department complied with the Act.”

California Rep. Ro Khanna, a co-author of the law, accused the DOJ of using the list to protect Epstein’s co-conspirators. Shortly after the release, Khanna took to X and wrote, “The DOJ is once again purposefully muddying the waters on who was a predator and who was mentioned in an email.”

Khanna added, “To have Janis Joplin, who died when Epstein was 17, in the same list as Larry Nassar, who went to prison for the s—-- abuse of hundreds of young women and child p—-------, with no clarification of how either was mentioned in the files is absurd. Release the full files. Stop protecting predators.”