House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries faced [1] questions this week about why Americans should trust House Democrats on matters related to the Jeffrey Epstein files after past reporting showed that a Democratic member of Congress had exchanged text messages with Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing.
The issue was raised after a reporter referenced a Washington Post report detailing that Del. Stacey Plaskett had communicated with Epstein in real time during a House hearing.
According to the report, Epstein sent messages to Plaskett as she questioned an anti-Trump witness, and she used information from those messages during her line of questioning.
The report also noted that Epstein told her “good job” during the exchange.
Plaskett had previously received donations from Epstein prior to his death in federal custody in 2019.
A reporter asked Jeffries, “Why should Americans trust you and House Democrats on the Jeffrey Epstein files when one of your own—Congresswoman Plaskett—was found to be texting with Jeffrey Epstein during a hearing, getting information from him, using that in her questioning during a congressional hearing, at one point he tells her ‘good job’?”
Jeffries did not address Plaskett directly.
He responded, “This is a bipartisan effort to make sure that, consistent with what the survivors have requested, that there’s full and complete transparency and every single predator that may be in those Justice Department files doesn’t escape accountability.”
Questions about Democratic handling of Epstein-related information have also resurfaced following the release of a previously undisclosed email.
The email showed that a Democratic-aligned funding group contacted Epstein in 2013 regarding Jeffries, referring to him as “an impressive guy” who “will be a progressive voice in New York politics for years to come.”
The message requested that Epstein contact the group by email or phone.
The contact occurred five years after Epstein had been convicted in 2008 by a Florida state court of procuring a child for prostitution and of soliciting a prostitute.
Democratic efforts to link President Trump to Epstein have also drawn scrutiny after several claims circulated publicly and were later corrected or withdrawn.
In one instance, documents released online included a redacted victim name.
The individual had previously stated under oath that President Trump never acted inappropriately with her and that she never saw him with Epstein.
In another instance, a claim that Trump spent Thanksgiving with Epstein was removed after it was publicly challenged.
The House Oversight Committee posted a series of documents and messages last week focusing on inconsistencies and errors in prior Democratic statements regarding Epstein-related material.
President Trump has stated that he supports House Republicans voting to release the Epstein files.
In a recent statement, he said House Republicans “should vote to release the Epstein files” and added that the Department of Justice had already provided “tens of thousands of pages” to the public.
He said the House Oversight Committee could access whatever material it was legally entitled to review.
House committees are preparing for additional actions concerning the release of Epstein-related records.
Lawmakers from both parties are expected to continue receiving questions about the handling of documents, past communications, and the scope of forthcoming disclosures.