The Epstein Files Deadline Arrives - And the DOJ Blinks

The law required the Justice Department to release all Epstein records today. Instead, officials say only some are coming — with more “in two weeks.”

The law said all the DOJ Epstein files had to come out today. But surprise, surprise: Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche says only part of them are being handed over now, and the rest might come in “a couple of weeks.” That’s the old “in 2 weeks” line the Trump administration trots out whenever it wants to stall.

Congress passed a law in late November that forces the Department of Justice to make public all unclassified documents related to Jeffrey Epstein by midnight Friday, Dec. 19. The statute is unambiguous: every record, communication, and investigative file DOJ holds, searchable and downloadable.

This deadline matters because it’s not just paperwork. These files touch on powerful people, unanswered questions, and the eerie opacity that has surrounded Epstein’s life and crimes for years. People have waited six years since his death in a federal jail to see what the government really knew and who shows up in the documents.

But here’s the twist: Blanche told Fox & Friends that only “several hundred thousand” documents will come out today — a fraction of what the law actually demands — with “several hundred thousand more” later.

The official line from DOJ is about protecting victims — redacting names and details that could hurt survivors or interfere with ongoing cases. Fine, that’s reasonable in theory. But the law already allows redactions only where the release would jeopardize an active investigation or reveal personal data. It doesn’t give a blank check to drip-feed everything in stages.

If the files truly can’t be released all at once, the question is simple: why not?

Attorney General Pam Bondi is the one responsible under this law. Not Blanche, not some undersecretary, not a spokesperson with a mute button on their mic. She is legally obligated to release everything that’s allowed under the statute — and to justify what’s withheld.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have threatened consequences if material is concealed or redacted without a solid legal basis. Some Democrats have even said Bondi could face contempt of Congress or prosecution if she doesn’t comply.

Here’s what we know now:

• The DOJ is releasing a large batch of files today, but not all of them.

• Additional files are expected in the coming weeks, not today, not right now.

• Congress explicitly required the full release by today.

• Bondi is on the hook for compliance — and her office must explain every redaction and omission.

There’s no elegant way to put this: if the law says “all files,” then “some now, some later” is a dodge. It’s bureaucratic theater.

Whether this opens a legal can of worms for Bondi remains to be seen. But the clocks have already struck midnight on the deadline side of the deal. Anything short of full compliance invites confrontation between the executive branch and Congress — and that’s not a sideshow. That’s governance.

We’ll see if the rest of the files actually show up — and what they contain. But anyone expecting grand honesty with a two-week encore might be settling for the script, not the truth.