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According to a recent Reuters/Ipsos survey reported by The Hill, a majority of Americans believe that the documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender, highlight a troubling trend where the affluent and influential often evade accountability.
The survey revealed that approximately 69 percent of participants feel that the Epstein files underscore the notion that powerful individuals in the United States frequently escape consequences, with these views resonating “very well” or “extremely well” with them.
Additionally, 17 percent of those surveyed indicated that this sentiment aligns with their perspective “somewhat well,” whereas 11 percent disagreed with the statement.
Both Democrats and Republicans largely concur on this issue, with 89 percent of Democrats and 86 percent of Republicans either strongly or somewhat agreeing that the wealthy and powerful are not held accountable.
The poll further highlights that 53 percent of respondents “strongly agree” that these revelations have diminished their trust in political and business leaders, complemented by 24 percent who “somewhat agree.” This distrust is more pronounced among Democrats, with 71 percent expressing strong agreement, while among Republicans, 33 percent strongly agree and 35 percent somewhat agree.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) released its final tranche of files — 3 million emails, photos, documents and other materials — last month. The files also carried a plethora of redactions, which were intended by law to hide the identities of victims, survivors and anyone under criminal investigation. Members of Congress have pressured the DOJ to reveal several redacted names in the files after lawmakers found that there were several heavy “unnecessary” redactions in the documents.
“Release the full files,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) one of the co-sponsors of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, wrote on the social platform X on Saturday. “Stop protecting predators. Redact only the survivors’ names.”
Critics argue that the Trump administration has not been transparent in its handling of the Epstein files and its investigation into Epstein’s crimes.
DOJ officials have fought back, with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Friday accusing lawmakers of forcing the department to unmask “completely random people” with no connection to Epstein and his crimes.
The Reuters/Ipsos survey was conducted Feb. 13-16 and included 1,117 respondents. The margin of error is 3 percentage points.