Calls grow for Congress to subpoena Jeffrey Epstein's flight logs despite Democrat 'stonewalling'
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., joins Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., in demanding the records
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Calls are growing for Congress to subpoena convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's flight logs in order to identify possible perpetrators who may have partaken in his sex trafficking ring.
In a Monday letter to the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said there were still many unanswered questions surrounding Epstein's operation, including the identities of "America's most powerful and well-known people" who may have been involved.
"The American people have a right to know who took part in Epstein's disgusting business that ruined so many lives," Burchett wrote. "More importantly, their victims deserve justice and accountability."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Burchett also accused Senate Democrats of recently blocking an effort by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., to subpoena the flight logs. In a statement following the letter, Burchett accused Democrats of "stonewalling" attempts to get them.
"This shouldn’t be a partisan issue, but Senate Democrats completely disrespected my friend Marsha’s attempts to find out who participated in Epstein’s disgusting business so we can hold them accountable," Burchett said. "We should all be concerned about the horrors of sex trafficking, especially when it involves kids, but I’ll call on Republicans to show some leadership in this field if the Democrats insist on stonewalling it like this."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Blackburn first moved for the flight records to be subpoenaed in early November in response to efforts by Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee to target justices on the Supreme Court. She then unsuccessfully moved to force a subpoena during a hearing on Nov. 30.
The failure of that effort Blackburn blamed on Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the committee chair.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) participates in a meeting of the House Oversight and Reform Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on January 31, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
"[Durbin] BLOCKED my request to subpoena Jeffrey Epstein’s flight logs. What are Democrats trying to hide?," Blackburn posted on X after calling it a "sad day in the history of the prestigious Judiciary Committee."
In a statement following the failed subpoena attempt, Blackburn said Democrats "don’t want to have a conversation about the estate of Jeffrey Epstein to find out the names of every person who participated in Jeffrey Epstein’s human trafficking ring."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Democrat aide to the committee told Fox News Digital that Durbin made clear he was willing to stay all day in order to allow Republicans to offer as well as debate the 177 amendments that they filed ahead of the hearing, and that the committee would vote on the subpoena authorization after.
However, several Republicans on the committee allegedly began to filibuster and didn't allow Blackburn to offer the first amendment to the authorization, the aide added.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., questions Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen during a Senate Finance committee hearing about President Joe Biden's proposed budget request for the fiscal year 2024, Thursday, March 16, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
Dubbed by some in the media as "The Lolita Express," Epstein's plane was allegedly used to fly underage girls to his private island in the Carribean, as well as his other homes around the U.S. and other parts of the world.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A number of big-name actors, politicians and other public figures have reportedly been passengers on the plane at some point, including former Presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker, Prince Andrew, billionaire businessman Bill Gates and a number of others.
There is currently no evidence to suggest anyone who flew on Epstein's plane participated in any crime.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in Cambridge, MA on 9/8/04. Epstein is connected with several prominent people including politicians, actors and academics. Epstein was convicted of having sex with an underaged woman. (Rick Friedman/Rick Friedman Photography/Corbis via Getty Images)
Epstein pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking and sex trafficking conspiracy in July 2019 in a New York court after being accused of having preyed on dozens of victims as young as 14.
He was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell the following month. His death was ruled a suicide.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Epstein previously pleaded guilty in Florida to charges of soliciting and procuring a person under age 18 for prostitution.