Politics

The ‘Crazy’ Plot to Release the Epstein Files

How an unlikely duo of lawmakers partnered with victims to try to hold the powerful accountable

First published in The Atlantic on February 27, 2026.

by Sarah Fitzpatrick, The Atlantic
March 5, 2026 | reading time: 16 Min.

Early last year, Republicans from the House Judiciary Committee were invited to a private dinner at the Justice Department. Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky remembers asking his then girlfriend, now wife, what he should ask Attorney General Pam Bondi. She suggested he bring up Jeffrey Epstein. At first, he waved off the suggestion. But as he sat at the long formal table, set with formal china and surrounded by top Justice officials, he changed his mind.

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