MORGAN, Minn. — Minnesota GOP congressmembers said Tuesday they support transparency but did not commit to specific action to force the release of more information from the federal Jeffrey Epstein investigation.
“I’ve always said we want transparency,” said Rep. Pete Stauber, R-8th District, when asked about the Epstein files ahead of a forum at Farmfest, an annual agriculture showcase in southern Minnesota.
The Epstein story has dogged GOP members of Congress since a Justice Department memo last month said a review “revealed no incriminating ‘client list’” for the wealthy financier’s alleged underage sex trafficking ring. The memo appeared to contradict previous claims promoted by Attorney General Pam Bondi, who reportedly told President Donald Trump in May that his name appeared multiple times in the Epstein documents.
Stauber said he’s confident the Trump administration will be transparent, and he questioned why the issue is being pushed by Democrats now.
Related: D.C. Memo: Epstein saga continues to dominate Washington, unnerve Trump
“Right now I think it’s people using it politically,” Stauber said. “The reason I say that is the last four years they weren’t pushing for it to be released. It’s unfortunate it’s becoming political. But anybody that was involved in any illegal activity, as a former law enforcement officer, I want them held to the highest count of the law.”
Rep. Brad Finstad, R-1st District, initially took umbrage at a question about Epstein.
“First of all, what does that have to do with Farmfest?” he said, before answering with, “I’m all for releasing and getting anything and everything out there that is available to the public that makes our country safer and smarter.”
Obviously, he said, protecting the victims needs to be a consideration. That’s a reason House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and other congressional Republicans say they oppose lawmaker efforts to seek the “Epstein file.”
“But transparency is good for everybody,” Finstad said.
The official agenda of the day was farming issues, from provisions in the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” to tariff strategies to the likelihood of the approval of an overdue Farm Bill this year.
MinnPost chose to also ask Minnesota congressmembers about the Epstein files, as public opportunities for constituents and the media to pose questions have been scarce in recent months.
The Justice Department has promised to seek information from Epstein grand juries in Florida and New York and release what “is credible.” But most Americans, including a majority of Republicans, do not approve of the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein files and want a fuller release of information.
That includes Rep. Angie Craig, the sole Democrat on the forum panel with Stauber, Finstad and Rep. Michelle Fischbach, R-7th District. The 2nd District Congresswoman, also a Senate candidate, said she would “absolutely” sign a discharge petition to force a vote on legislation to release information related to Epstein.
“I’ll be signing it as soon as I get back,” she said. “We got sent home from Congress literally because they didn’t want that discharge petition to ‘ripen.’”
A discharge petition usually ripens by being held in a committee for a number of days. A majority of the House would need to sign the petition to bypass the committee and bring a bill directly to the floor.
Related: The DFL loathes One Big Beautiful Bill. But what do Minnesota legislative Republicans think?
Regardless of whose names are in Epstein files, Craig said she wants the information to see the light of day.
“America should know that 100%,” she said. “And I can’t believe any member of Congress would oppose making the Jeffrey Epstein files public.”
On Epstein’s longtime girlfriend, Ghislane Maxwell, who was convicted of sex trafficking and sentenced to prison in 2022, Craig said the Trump administration hasn’t been transparent about its communications with her. The Justice Department interviewed Maxwell and her attorneys last month.
The Justice Department also transferred Maxwell from her prison in Florida to a minimum-security facility in Texas.
Democrats say Trump will pardon Maxwell in exchange for favorable testimony.
“I would be adamantly opposed to Trump or any president pardoning a child sexual trafficker,” Craig said.
Fischbach’s office didn’t respond to MinnPost’s request for comment on the Epstein files. As a member of the House Rules Committee, she voted against amendments that would’ve forced a broad release of information about Epstein.
MinnPost reporter Ana Radelat contributed to this story.
The post ‘We want transparency’: Minnesota’s Congressional delegation comments on Epstein files appeared first on MinnPost.
