Lummis Views Unredacted Epstein Files, Says ‘Now I See What The Big Deal Is’

Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis was among the members of Congress who traveled to the Department of Justice on Monday to review a portion of the roughly 3 million unredacted documents related to the federal investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. After seeing a fraction of the material, the Republican senator acknowledged a significant shift in her understanding of the case and the years-long push for transparency.

“I’ve not been one of the members who has glommed onto this as an issue,” Lummis told reporters outside the DOJ. “I’ve sort of intentionally deferred to others to find out about it. But 9-year-old victims … wow.” She added, “Initially, my reaction to all this was I don’t care. I don’t know what the big deal is. But now I see what the big deal is, and it was worth investigating, and the members of Congress that have been pushing this were not wrong.”

Lummis is the only member of Wyoming’s congressional delegation to view the files thus far. Her office emphasized she has long supported justice for Epstein’s victims. Fellow Wyoming Republican Senator John Barrasso declined to review the documents, with a spokesperson stating the redacted files were already sufficient to confirm Epstein was “a disgusting monster.” Congresswoman Harriet Hageman voiced support for the investigation and upcoming House Oversight depositions.

Several lawmakers, including the bipartisan sponsors of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, reported that while many redactions were lifted, the names of six individuals remained blocked. Those names were subsequently released publicly on Tuesday by Representative Ro Khanna, D-California. Colorado Republican Lauren Boebert, who also viewed the files, stated she believes some individuals are “definitely implicated as co-conspirators” and that Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s accomplice, should not receive clemency.