• House takes major step: The chamber has overwhelming passed a bipartisan bill to compel the Justice Department to release all of its case files tied to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a dramatic turnaround after months of GOP infighting. The House voted 427-1 to advance the measure, with GOP Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana the only member voting against it.
• Next steps: The legislation now heads to the Senate, where GOP leaders must quickly decide if they will send it to President Donald Trump’s desk. The president has said he’ll sign the bill if Congress passes it, after a stark reversal in his position.
• Victims speak out: At a news conference earlier, Epstein abuse survivors urged Congress to advance the bill. “These survivors are not political tools for you to use,” the brother of late Epstein abuse victim Virginia Giuffre said.
• Saudi meeting: Meanwhile at the White House, Trump defended Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as he dismissed questions about the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Catch up on other key lines here.
Majority Leader John Thune said he expects the Senate to take up the Epstein files bill quickly and said it’s unlikely the chamber will make changes to the legislation.
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