Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., told Newsmax on Tuesday that “there’s no harm” in releasing the Justice Department’s files on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as long as “these reports are properly redacted” to protect victims and witnesses.
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., announced on Tuesday morning his plans to file a discharge petition to force a vote on a measure co-sponsored by Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., that would compel the Justice Department to unseal files related to Epstein.
When asked about Massie’s plan, Harris said on “Wake Up America” that Congress will likely vote "this week or next week" on the measure.
He added: “We have to be very careful, though. You know, when investigations are conducted, people's names get into those investigations who are never found to be guilty in any way, shape, or form. And, you know, releasing … the name of someone whose name came up in an investigation but was obviously not charged, obviously there's no evidence that they have committed a crime.”
Harris said this makes releasing the full unreacted file “a little hazardous.” He added, “We ought to think twice about that, but … if these reports are properly redacted from that kind of information, then I think most people agree that there's no harm” in releasing them.
“But … there has to be some protection, not only for the victims in those reports, but for the people whose names are mentioned in the reports but who had no guilt at all,” he added.
Harris, who also chairs the House Freedom Caucus, said he is “not at all” worried about its future ahead of the midterm elections, after which many of their members are set to retire.
“We're going to have more people who want to join the Freedom Caucus now that they realize that actually, some of our leading members go on to higher things in their own states, including governorships [and] U.S. Senate. So I think we're actually going to have an easier time getting members to join the Freedom Caucus now."
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Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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