New Delhi: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (November 19) signed legislation that would allow the release of documents related to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.  

The move comes after sustained pressure from both sides of the political arena, with many in the Republican party too asking Trump, who is also a convicted sex offender, to release the ‘Epstein files’.

“Democrats have used the Epstein' issue, which affects them far more than the Republican Party, in order to try and distract from our AMAZING Victories,” Trump said in a social media post after he signed the Bill.

The US Justice Department now has 30 days to release all documents related to Epstein along with all information about the investigation into his death in a federal prison in 2019.

While information regarding ongoing investigations can be redacted, the department is not allowed to withhold information that could cause “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity,” news agency PTI reported.

After months of opposition to the release of this information, Trump’s assent to the Bill is being seen as a remarkable turn of events. The US President has claimed that his decision to release the files was not due to mounting political pressure, but to prevent the Democrats from further capitalising on the issue.

“I just don't want Republicans to take their eyes off all of the victories that we've had,” Trump said in a social media post.

The legislation was passed with a single dissenting vote (427-1), with Rep. Clay Higgins being the only one to oppose the files’ release.

Last week, US lawmakers released over 20,000 pages of documents related to Epstein, which mention Trump multiple times.

Trump has claimed that while he was friends with Epstein, he’d cut ties with him years ago and never knew of his crimes.

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