Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday voted down four efforts from Democrats to subpoena records related to Jeffrey Epstein.
Democrats began their effort with a motion to subpoena the financial transactions of Epstein, flagged as “suspicious activity reports,” and later similar such records from the Treasury Department.
They also sought testimony from FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino on the Epstein files as well as files related to the transfer of Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell to a lower security prison.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), a lead sponsor of a resolution seeking to force the release of all the Epstein files, was the only Republican to break with his party to support the subpoena effort.
The vote was a departure from similar efforts in the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, where members of both parties have backed subpoena efforts.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) expressed an interest in four banks: J.P. Morgan, BNY, Bank of American and Deutsche Bank.
“These four banks have flagged to the government $1.5 billion in suspicious transactions related to the sex trafficking crimes and conspiracy of Epstein, [his associate Ghislaine] Maxwell and all of their collaborators,” Raskin said.
The move was not likely to supply much new information.
The Oversight Committee has already subpoenaed suspicious activity reports (SARs) from the Treasury Department, a request that would encompass all SARs reported to the Treasury Department rather than just from four banks. The department has said it will comply.
Nonetheless, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told reporters Wednesday he would have been happy to comply with such a subpoena.
“We regret any association with that man at all. And, of course, if it’s a legal requirement, we would conform to it. We have no issue with that,” Dimon told reporters after leaving a Senate GOP lunch. “I think what happened to those women is terrible and any role we played in it.”
The rejected subpoena on Maxwell’s prison transfer comes after Democrats have sought details about her transfer, noting it came abruptly after her meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
“These actions raise substantial concerns that the administration may now be attempting to tamper with a crucial witness, conceal President Trump’s relationship with convicted sex offenders, and coax Ms. Maxwell into providing false or misleading testimony in order to protect the President. The transfer also appears to violate both DOJ [Justice Department] and Bureau of Prisons (BOP) policies,” Raskin wrote last month in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and BOP Director William K. Marshall III.
