WASHINGTON — The rift within the Republican Party over the release of documents related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein continued to widen, with top congressional allies of President Donald Trump — including House Speaker Mike Johnson — calling for his administration to exercise greater transparency.

The growing controversy has threatened to fracture Trump’s political base, tarnishing his image as a fearless, no-holds-barred reformer in the eyes of his fervent supporters while offering Democrats a wedge to exploit.

Even as the president has sought to tamp down the growing uproar regarding the deceased sex offender, indications on Capitol Hill Tuesday were that the dispute was far from over. Rep. Thomas Massie, an arch-conservative Kentucky Republican who has frequently broken with Trump, said he would offer a discharge petition that could force a vote on releasing files related to the case.

Ralph Norman, a South Carolina Republican, joined Democrats who attempted to amend cryptocurrency legislation to force the release of all Epstein-related documents. Tim Burchett, a Tennessee Republican, said he wants to hear from Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021 of participating in Epstein’s sex crimes.

And Johnson, in one of the highest-profile instances of the Trump loyalist disagreeing with the White House, told right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson that Attorney General Pam Bondi should “come forward and explain” her comments on Epstein’s purported client list.

Many Trump supporters reacted in fury after the Justice Department declared there was no additional information to release, pointing out that Bondi said earlier this year, in a Fox News interview, that an Epstein client list was sitting on her desk for review.

“I like Pam, I think she’s done a good job but we need the DOJ focusing on the major priorities,” Johnson said. “I’m anxious to put this behind us.”

Notably, the Louisiana Republican added that he believed “transparency” was the best approach to the controversy.

Trump has enjoyed fervent support from his base since his first term in office and has delivered on a number of campaign promises this year, including an immigration crackdown and passing a tax bill. Yet the handling of the Epstein case — long a focus of his supporters and the source of many conspiracy theories — has become a serious point of tension. Since last weekend, the president has been trying to tamp it down.

“I don’t understand why the Jeffrey Epstein case would be of interest to anybody. It’s pretty boring stuff,” Trump said Tuesday. “It’s sorted, but it’s boring, And I don’t understand why it keeps going, I think, well, really only pretty bad people, including fake news, want to keep something like that going.”

Earlier Tuesday, Trump voiced support for Bondi, saying that she had handled the situation “very well” even though his daughter-in-law, Fox News anchor Lara Trump, told Benny Johnson that there should be “more transparency” in the investigation.

Trump indicated Bondi had provided him a “very quick” briefing on the Justice Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation review of the Epstein case, before pivoting to suggesting, without evidence, that the files had been “made up” by former FBI Director James Comey, former President Barack Obama and the Biden administration.

At a cabinet meeting earlier this month, Bondi attempted to explain the apparent discrepancy between the announcement that the Justice Department didn’t have an Epstein client list to distribute and her earlier statement that it was on her desk.

“I was asked a question about the client list, and my response was it’s sitting on my desk to be reviewed, meaning the file, along with the JFK, MLK files as well — that’s what I meant by that,” she said.

Trump spent much of the weekend defending Bondi and attempting to temper the tumult, including in a post on his Truth Social media platform. He placed calls to attendees at Turning Point USA’s Student Action Summit in Florida, urging them to drop the issue, according to a person familiar.

Bondi on Tuesday said she had no intention of resigning, promising to be in the role as long as Trump wishes, but declined to answer questions about whether more will be released on the Epstein case. She said the Epstein saga hasn’t disrupted Justice Department operations, and she’s working closely with FBI Director Kash Patel on law enforcement priorities.

However, she declined to describe her relationship with FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, who previously raised questions about the handling of the Epstein case as a podcaster.

Trump told reporters on Sunday that he believed Bongino, a former Secret Service agent, planned to stay in the administration.

“Oh, I think so,” he said. “I spoke to him today. Dan Bongino, very good guy. I’ve known him a long time, I’ve done his show many times. And he sounded terrific, actually. No, I think he’s in good shape.”

A CNN poll conducted by SSRS and released Tuesday underscored the political vulnerability that Trump and his allies face over the case, with just 3% of Americans saying they are satisfied with the amount of information that the government has released regarding Epstein. Four out of every 10 Republicans say they’re actively dissatisfied with the information shared by the administration, while 52% of independent voters say the same.

Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to Florida charges, including procurement of minors to engage in prostitution. He died in a Manhattan jail in 2019 as he was awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges involving underage girls. Both a medical examiner and an investigation by the FBI determined that Epstein died by suicide.

Conservative lawmakers have for months been struggling to straddle the line between the president’s legislative agenda and promises they’ve made to voters who demanded steep deficit cuts and have long called for greater transparency on Epstein.

House Democrats on Tuesday tried to force Republicans into a vote on the issue. A day earlier, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Congress should force the release of the files if the administration doesn’t release them on its own.

“The American people deserve to know the truth,” the New York Democrat told reporters at the Capitol. “What, if anything, is the Trump administration and the Department of Justice hiding?

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(With assistance from Erik Wasson.)

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