LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire is among the many Democrats who had been pressing for a vote so Epstein's victims could have, quote, "answers, accountability and the truth." And she joins me now. Good morning, Senator.
MAGGIE HASSAN: Good morning, Leila. Thanks for having me.
FADEL: Thank you for being here. Does the passage of this bill satisfy your calls for greater transparency?
HASSAN: Well, it's certainly a beginning, and it's long overdue. The president needs to sign this into law. But I think what's really important to be thinking about today is the pain that the survivors and victims have suffered at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. I hope that the president's signature will mean that there is a prompt release of the files, and that that can bring some accountability and some closure. I just finished the memoir of Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein and Maxwell's victims...
FADEL: Yeah.
HASSAN: ...And it is really clear that without their voices, without their strength and bravery, which required that they relive pain over and over and over again, this wouldn't have happened. It's also a really important example, I think, to all Americans, about the difference you can make when you speak up and are persistent in the cause of this kind of justice and accountability.
FADEL: Do you have any concern that if this bill is signed into law, for some reason, the Justice Department won't release the files? We heard Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, who, as you know, has long backed the releasing of these files, say he's worried that President Trump's demand for a Justice Department investigation into Democrats with Epstein ties will be used to prevent the release of the documents.
HASSAN: Well, I certainly understand that concern, but what I hope is that the Trump administration has received the message loudly and clearly that there was unanimous passage of this bill in Congress, that the people of the United States are united in wanting answers here, that this long history of treating Epstein and Maxwell as a special class of people needs to end. And I think, you know, I'm hopeful that they will understand that the pressure from the American people and particularly from survivors and victims of Epstein and Maxwell is not going to subside simply because he signs a bill. He's going to have to follow through. The Justice Department is going to have to follow through here.
FADEL: The bill passed with unanimous consent, as you mentioned in the Senate. The lone holdout in the House was Louisiana Republican Clay Higgins, who said he voted no on principle. In his words, quote, "it abandons 250 years of criminal justice procedure in America." And we also heard House Speaker Mike Johnson - who did vote for it - say he was upset that what passed the Senate didn't include changes that he'd wanted, things like victim and whistleblower name protections. How would you respond to those concerns?
HASSAN: Well, first of all, the legislation provides for privacy protections for victims and survivors. But let's also just think this through for a minute. Two hundred and fifty years of criminal justice procedure and law has also shielded abusers of children and women and people who traffic them. And the victims and survivors, in this case, have been unbelievably brave. They're the ones who have been calling for the release of these files for transparency, and they understand how important it is for people to understand the horror, the physical pain, the psychological pain this and trauma that Epstein and Maxwell and people like them and people who participated in this trafficking and abuse caused. And, you know, this is a really important moment because women and girls are not invisible, and they should be listened to and have the same rights and be able to hold the powerful to account the same way everybody else can.
FADEL: What do you say to the Republicans who voted for the release of these files, but also say Democrats are using this as a way to attack the president, versus go after - protect the victims or get justice for victims?
HASSAN: Look, the victims and survivors are the people who are speaking up and wanting this transparency. This was a - of course, a campaign promise that President Trump made that he would release the files. It is, of course, one of many campaign promises that this president has broken. But what I think is really critical is for people to understand that Epstein and Maxwell had reached well beyond the United States. They attempted to intimidate these victims wherever they were around the world. In Virginia Giuffre's case, threatening her as she was living in Australia, trying to silence her. And I think it's really important for the truth to come out here. And again, for us to take a step forward to say, trafficking of girls and boys, sexual abuse of girls and boys and women and men is wrong. And we need to stand together as a country and address this horror.
FADEL: Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire. Thank you for your time.
HASSAN: Thank you. Take care. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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