I voted for President Donald Trump, and I support a lot of his policies and politics: Lowering taxes, brokering peace deals and ordering strikes on Iran's nuclear sites.

I've never supported Trump because he had stellar character, integrity or a squeaky-clean past. I don't think he does, nor do I even know Republicans who believe he's a model of ethics.

Democrats, intent on exposing this, started releasing − piecemeal at first − emails between convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and other parties. After a few emails were released, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released approximately 20,000 documents on Nov. 12.

Epstein died by suicide in federal prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Democrats posit that the emails show Trump knew of Epstein's alleged child sex trafficking ring and the abuse of women and girls.

Trump has denied he knew about Epstein's illegal activities.

Let me be clear on this: If Trump has a sordid past that includes knowing about a child sex trafficking ring, as a mother and a Republican, I want to know about it. I have a right to know, and so does every other American.

I'd like to know when Democrats became aware of these emails linking Epstein and Trump. If these are so damning − and they might be − why haven't they been mentioned sooner for justice to be done?

I'd also like to know whether Republicans knew about these emails already, and when and why the House Oversight Committee waited until the leaked emails were published before dumping documents.

What did Donald Trump know about Jeffrey Epstein?

The Washington Post reports that among the released emails is one Epstein wrote to himself in 2019: “Trump knew of it. and came to my house many times during that period. He never got a massage.”

Another 2019 email to author and journalist Michael Wolff says, “Of course (Trump) knew about the girls.” Epstein's email says Trump asked Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's convicted accomplice, “to stop” but doesn’t say more.

Admittedly, the language in these emails does not look good. But right now, there's also evidence suggesting Trump didn't know what was going on.

In sworn testimony and in her posthumously published memoir, victim Virginia Giuffre refuted claims that Trump was involved in Epstein's crimes.

Maxwell was convicted in New York federal court in 2021 on charges related to sex trafficking and sentenced to 20 years in prison. While questioned by the Department of Justice, she claimed Trump and Epstein were casual acquaintances, not friends, and denied that Trump was actively involved in or knew about Epstein's sex ring.

If Trump knew about the sex ring, it's important to find out what he knew and even why he kept quiet.

Republicans and Trump can end this swirling news cycle by simply releasing the files. The longer he delays, the more suspicious it looks. If Trump is in them, let due process commence and justice be done for the victims. If he remains innocent of the charges, whatever those are, we can all move on. Republicans, for the sake of their party's integrity, should demand more information.

We can't ignore the timing of Democrats pushing the Epstein emails

That said, the timing of the Democrats' release of these emails raises questions for me.

The House Oversight Committee originally subpoenaed Epstein's estate and demanded basically all communications "on or before September 8, 2025."

On Sept. 16, the Oversight Committee issued a news release about the Epstein investigation. The statement by committee Chairman James Comer, R-Kentucky, said that staff had been conducting "an in camera review" of documents received from Epstein, and that on Sept. 12 his committee had "released a second set of documents received from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein."

The first batch was released Sept. 8; the third batch was released Nov. 12.

So where did these new emails come from? If Democrats had them in September, would they not have been as damning then? The timing suggests a witch hunt rather than a quest for justice that the victims deserve.

The Epstein matter is not complicated, nor does it need to remain so. The Epstein files must be released so the American people can know the truth − whatever that may be.

Editor's note: Michael Wolff was a freelance USA TODAY contributor from 2012 to early 2017. USA TODAY had no knowledge of any relationship between him and Jeffrey Epstein, nor any actions beyond his submissions for publication. We are committed to integrity and transparency, as we uphold our editorial standards and maintain the trust of our readers.

Nicole Russell is a columnist at USA TODAY and a mother of four who lives in Texas. Contact her at nrussell@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @russell_nm. Sign up for her weekly newsletter, The Right Track, here.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: I didn't vote for Trump for his character. But we deserve the truth about his past. | Opinion

Reporting by Nicole Russell, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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