Ahead of Hearing, Ranking Member Raskin Presses FBI Director Patel on Epstein Cover-Up: “Who Exactly Are You Protecting and Why”?

Washington, D.C. (September 11, 2025)—Yesterday, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel ahead of his scheduled appearance before the Committee on September 17, demanding he provide the Committee with documents and information regarding the extent to which officials at the FBI and Department of Justice (DOJ) suppressed evidence of ties between President Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

“Who exactly are you protecting by refusing to release the Epstein files? In 2023, on Benny Johnson’s podcast you were asked why the FBI was ‘protecting the world’s foremost predator’ by refusing to release the Epstein client list. Your answer: ‘Simple. Because of who’s on that list.’ Now that you are Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), you know precisely who is implicated in the Epstein files, yet you refuse to release them. Who are you protecting and why?” wrote Ranking Member Raskin.

Upon taking office in February, Director Patel pledged to the American people that “There will be no cover-ups, no missing documents, and no stone left unturned.” This promise was followed by a fast-tracked, unprecedented review of 100,000 pages from the Epstein files—an immense effort that involved redirecting hundreds of FBI employees from the Bureau’s New York and Washington Field Offices to review documents that to date have not been released to the public. 

Instructed to review, flag, and redact “any mentions of Mr. Trump” during the crammed, multi-day scouring sessions, employees slept on their desks while awaiting further documents, with the Chief of the Record/Information Disinformation Section reportedly resigning after disagreements with his supervisors. However, once this “exhaustive” review was completed, FBI and DOJ leadership suddenly determined that no further disclosures to the American people were warranted about the content of the Epstein files. 

This surprising decision is followed by a flurry of revelations that have showcased the deep and damning ties between Trump and Epstein and the extent to which Trump loyalists in the DOJ and FBI have gone to cover up these connections. In May, Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly revealed to Trump that his name appeared in the Epstein files. Soon after, DOJ and FBI released a memo indicating that no further disclosures regarding Epstein would be forthcoming, leading Deputy Director Dan Bongino to threaten resignation and cryptically post that he would “never be the same after learning what I’ve learned.” Last month, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Epstein accomplice and convicted felon Ghislaine Maxwell, an alarming move that culminated in Maxwell’s transition from a restrictive BOP facility to a minimum security facility in Texas: a move Maxwell’s lawyer recently admitted was a “quid pro quo.”

Just this week, the Epstein estate provided the House Oversight Committee with a birthday bookcompiled by Maxwell that includes a lewd note to Epstein allegedly signed by Trump, with a drawing of the silhouette of a naked female. The book also includes a picture of Epstein displaying a novelty check bearing Trump’s name, with a caption saying that “Jeffrey […] Sells ‘fully depreciated’ [woman] to Donald Trump for $22,500.”

In response to these revelations, Ranking Member Raskin requested that Director Patel provide the Committee with documents, information, and communications related to the FBI’s review and redactions of Epstein files, in order to understand the full extent of the apparent abuse of law enforcement resources to protect President Trump.

Click here to read the letter.