Although Blanche claims all documents have been released, U.S. media and lawmakers emphasize this is not true. In an interview with Fox News, Blanche was asked whether he agrees with assessments that the process of releasing the Epstein investigation documents was poorly executed. On that occasion, he defended his predecessor Pam Bondi, stressing that President Donald Trump's decision to dismiss her has nothing to do with the Epstein case.
"Look, the Epstein documents issue dragged on throughout last year. After the president signed the transparency law, the Justice Department, along with then-State Attorney Bondi, released all documents related to this case. A few weeks ago, Bondi and I voluntarily appeared before Congress to answer all their questions," said Blanche.
He added that lawmakers can also come and review the original, unredacted documents in the Justice Department offices.
"Given that the Epstein documents were part of this department's focus last year, I believe they should not be part of anything that follows," stated the acting Attorney General.
Are documents related to Trump being hidden?
However, The Hill reports that the Justice Department definitely has not released all files. Although it was initially stated that the documents contain about six million pages, only about three million have been presented to the public so far. The Department defends itself by claiming that the unpublished materials are merely duplicates and copies of pages.
What makes the situation significantly more controversial are accusations that the Justice Department is intentionally withholding documents related to Donald Trump. The Hill notes that this also includes a document about a woman who spoke with FBI agents four times, claiming that Trump abused her when she was a minor.
Public pressure forced the Justice Department to revisit this case and release additional documents they claimed were "withheld by mistake." However, journalists analyzing page numbering discovered that about 30 pages are still missing from that specific file.
Due to these developments, lawmakers from both American political parties have accused the Justice Department of violating the law mandating transparent document disclosure.
Congressman Robert Garcia, the highest-ranking Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee investigating this case, was particularly sharp.
"That is a lie. Fifty percent of the documents still have not been released, and according to our court order, that is illegal," Garcia wrote on platform X.
Republican Thomas Massie agrees with him, reacting shortly after it was announced that Blanche would take over the position.
"You now have 30 days to release the remaining documents before you become criminally liable for violating the transparency law regarding the Epstein files," Massie stated on network X.