{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://grijalva.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-grijalva-statement-on-house-passage-of-the-epstein-files-transparency-act", "Congresswoman Grijalva Statement on House Passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act", "2025-11-18", "2025", "2025-11", "Democrat", "House", "AZ", "Adelita S. Grijalva", "G000606", "grijalva.house.gov", "grijalva", "https://grijalva.house.gov/media", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, following the House passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva (AZ-07) issued the following statement:\n\n\u201cToday\u2019s vote is long overdue. Survivors deserve justice, the American people deserve transparency, and no one \u2013 no matter how powerful \u2013 should be protected by secrecy,\u201d said Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva. \u201cI\u2019m proud to stand with the survivors whose courage and persistence made this possible. Their voices forced Washington to act, and their advocacy will continue to drive this fight until every file is released and justice can finally be served.\u201d\n\nPrior to the vote, Rep. Grijalva delivered remarks on the House floor underscoring that this legislation is fundamentally about ensuring accountability and delivering justice for the survivors.\n\nThis morning, Rep. Grijalva joined Senator Mark Kelly, House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Robert Garcia, and Epstein survivors and advocacy organizations at a press conference to call for passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.\n\nHer full remarks are included below:\n\nThank you, and thank you especially to the survivors, family members, and advocates who are here today and who have never given up.\n\nI also want to thank the organizations who are standing with us today: The Sexual Violence Prevention Association (SVPA), The National Center on Sexual Exploitation, The National Women\u2019s Law Center (NWLC), and Ultraviolet\n\nAnd the more than 40 other organizations and dozens of survivors calling on Congress to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act\n\nI am not standing here because Congress suddenly found courage \u2014 I am standing here because survivors forced Washington to pay attention.\n\nYour voices, your persistence, and your truth got us to this moment.\n\nToday is about something very simple: The American people deserve the truth, survivors deserve justice, and no one \u2013 no matter how powerful \u2013 should be protected by secrecy.\n\nThis vote, this transparency, and this accountability are long overdue.\n\nWe now know the thousands of pages released so far are only the tip of the iceberg \u2013 and that matters, because without full transparency, we cannot have justice.\n\nLet me be clear:\n\nThis is not a Democratic issue.\n\nThis is not a Republican issue.\n\nThis is a human rights issue \u2013 and a matter of justice.\n\nThe momentum behind this did not come from politicians \u2014 it came from survivors and the public who demanded answers.\n\nThat is why the discharge petition crossed 218 signatures \u2013 despite Speaker Johnson doing everything in his power to prevent this from happening, including calling an early summer recess, and delaying my swearing in for seven weeks.\n\nThe public pressure cannot stop now.\n\nThere are going to be people trying to frame this as a hoax, a distraction, or a partisan fight.\n\nTo them I say: you cannot call it a hoax when real survivors are standing right here.\n\nThe truth is the truth \u2014 and no one\u2019s name, party, wealth, fame, or title should prevent the truth from coming out.\n\nWe don\u2019t know yet what every document will show \u2014 but that is exactly why they must be released.\n\nWhile the House will hopefully pass this legislation today, this is just the first step.\n\nThe bill must pass the Senate, the President must sign it, and even then, the DOJ must implement the law fully and responsibly.\n\nSo today is a milestone, not the finish line.\n\nNo one should ever have to fight this hard for truth, but the survivors\u2019 courage inspires all of us.\n\nBecause sunlight is the best disinfectant, and justice cannot survive in the dark.\n\nThank you.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:52:45Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://grijalva.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-grijalva-statement-on-house-passage-of-the-epstein-files-transparency-act"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5543350018560886, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}