by Frankie Taggart

US lawmakers voted overwhelmingly Tuesday for releasing government files on sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, after President Donald Trump dropped his opposition to opening the books on a scandal that has roiled politics, law enforcement and the country's elite.

The president had put allies in Congress under intense pressure not to make the material public, but the Republican leader threw in the towel over the weekend as it became clear that much of his party was poised to defy him.

The House of Representatives approved the Epstein Files Transparency Act in a near-unanimous vote compelling publication of unclassified documents detailing the investigation into the disgraced financier's operations and jailhouse death, which was ruled a suicide.

Lawmakers say the public deserves answers in a case with over 1,000 alleged victims.

Trump says the files will expose powerful Democrats' connections to Epstein, but the president himself faces uncomfortable scrutiny over his years-long friendship with the man alleged to have supplied underage girls to rich and influential men.

The bill now goes to the Senate. Killing the bill in the Senate after a lopsided House vote would be awkward to defend, and Trump has pledged not to veto the legislation if it reaches his desk. 

But expectations of damning new revelations could prove premature.

The Justice Department has wide latitude to hold back any information if release "would jeopardize an active federal investigation" and Trump ordered officials in a widely criticized intervention last week to probe Epstein's ties with high-profile Democrats.

The saga has exposed rare fissures in support for the Republican leader, who previously campaigned on releasing the files but changed course after taking office, accusing Democrats of pushing a "hoax."

After multiple attempts by Republican leaders to block the vote, all Democrats and four Republicans signed a "discharge petition" -- an extraordinary procedure forcing the bill to the House floor against the wishes of the leadership.

Relenting on his longstanding resistance, Trump said on social media late Sunday that Republicans should vote to release the files "because we have nothing to hide."

"I have nothing to do with Jeffrey Epstein," Trump told reporters Tuesday at an Oval Office event with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "I threw him out of my club many years ago because I thought he was a sick pervert."

- Long association -

However, Trump had a well documented relationship with Epstein, who was famous for throwing parties and other networking opportunities for the rich and powerful.

The U-turn marks a rare occasion when a revolt from Trump's allies has forced his hand, and Epstein survivors at a news conference ahead of the vote questioned the president's motives.

"I can't help to be skeptical of what the agenda is," said Haley Robson, who was recruited to massage Epstein when she was 16. "I am traumatized -- I am not stupid."

At the time of his death, Epstein was facing federal trial over an alleged sex trafficking operation said to have exploited underage girls and young women, following a 2008 conviction for procuring a minor for prostitution.

For years, Trump's right-wing movement encouraged followers to believe that the government was covering up a major conspiracy.

But Trump's Justice Department said in July officials had completed an "exhaustive review" of the case and had "no basis to revisit the disclosure" of any Epstein materials.

The White House escalated efforts last week to mothball the vote, with Trump and his allies making last-minute appeals to two of Republican signers of the discharge petition.

This caused an uproar in Trump's base.

The rupture widened when Trump pulled his endorsement of top loyalist Marjorie Taylor Greene in a stunning break that she said "has all come down to the Epstein files."

"The real test will be, will the Department of Justice release the files? Or will it all remain tied up in investigations?" she said at the news conference.