We needed Republicans and Democrats to care about Epstein's victims months ago | Opinion

After a merry-go-round of Republicans and Democrats demanding the Epstein files to be released, everybody finally got what they wanted: See how easy that was?

On Nov. 18, the House of Representatives voted 427 to 1 to pass legislation that forces the Justice Department to release as much of the remaining Epstein files as legally possible. Tuesday evening, the Republican-led Senate unanimously agreed to pass the bill, sending it to the president's desk. Trump has said he'll sign it.

It's time to get real: There's a lot of obfuscation and vague accusations being thrown around on both sides of the political aisle, muddying the waters on something that should have been very simple.

The Epstein files should have been released already, but weren't. All the while, the process has undermined the women who were victims of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein when they were just girls and delayed the justice they deserve.

I have questions for both parties on the Epstein files

I have questions for both parties. Democrats, on behalf of the more than 77 million people, mostly Republicans, who voted to reelect President Donald Trump, I'd like to know what are your charges against the president, exactly? Where is the evidence that the president was engaged in illegal activity?

Democrats must put their money where their mouths are or halt their smear campaign. It's that simple.

To my fellow Republicans: Why weren't the Epstein files released months ago when Attorney General Pam Bondi originally said they were going to be? News reports say Trump was told his name was in the emails. The truth must come out.

I have found myself siding with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia, someone who was far too MAGA for me but who has proved to be one of the last voices of reason and clarity calling for the release of the Epstein files, purely for the victims' sake.

If Trump has been involved in or knew about criminal activity, Republicans have not helped him by covering for him. If he has not, they have not helped clear his name, either.

Don't forget the Democrats connected to Epstein

The Epstein estate has turned over tens of thousands of documents to Congress already, and multiple batches have been released to the public. I've looked through what I can, thanks to this Epstein files dump, where Trump's name appears about 1,500 times. I saw nothing written by the president.

If Trump had known or participated in illegal activity, it seems that would have appeared in the bevy of confession-like emails. Yet so far, there is nothing. It seems like Epstein felt Trump, too, was unprincipled, at least in his business dealings, and was envious that he continued to be successful while he had already been arrested.

If anything, the documents show that Epstein's circle was full of prominent, influential, crooked men and women, including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers − whom thankfully prominent Democrats have disavowed − and former President Bill Clinton.

Epstein even fed questions to Democrat Stacey Plaskett, a delegate of the Virgin Islands, in the middle of a House hearing, coaching her on how to expose Trump. Yet I have not heard congressional Democrats admit to this.

The problem is, and always was, Epstein and the powerful people who covered for him. Now perhaps we can know for certain just what that entails. It certainly raises questions about politicians and their corrupt ties.

What about the Epstein victims?

As a mother of teen girls, I'm disappointed there has not been more focus on the victims. If Democrats or Republicans really cared about this, they would have been pushing for the release of the files months, if not years, ago. It's clear Democrats are using this to smear Trump, and Republicans avoided it, hoping it would go away.

Although it's possible we may never fully know the entire truth of Epstein's activities, we do know that a final release of all documents will help put the puzzle pieces together. It is Congress' duty, but lawmakers shouldn't have even had to take a vote to force it. The Trump administration must release them now. Not to reassure the Republican Party of his absence in the files, or satiate the Democratic Party's smear campaign. But to honor and bring justice to the approximately 1,000 victims, abused as innocent girls.

I'm disappointed that so few politicians, Republicans or Democrats, seem to care about the real people at the heart of the Epstein files. I don't think that's Trump, but there's only one way to find out.

Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.