Epstein Survivors Weaponize Opposition Research Against Congress
Congress Can’t Hide: Survivors Demand the Truth
On September 24, investigative journalist Tara Palmeri sent shockwaves through Washington with a single X/Twitter post:
“The Epstein survivors are fed up. They’re using Washington’s own playbook — opposition research — on lawmakers blocking the Epstein files. I’m publishing the first piece in ‘The Reckoning’ series in The Red Letter on a GOP senator with close ties to Ghislaine Maxwell.”
This was not just a media tease. It was a warning shot from a movement that has grown tired of waiting for justice.
The survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse, long ignored and betrayed by the justice system, are now wielding the very tools of power that have been used against them for decades.
Their target: members of Congress who are obstructing the full release of the Epstein files.
The New Playbook: Opposition Research as a Weapon for Justice
For years, opposition research has been the dark art of Washington insiders, a way to dig up dirt on rivals and control the narrative. Now, Epstein survivors are flipping the script.
They are meticulously gathering and publishing information about lawmakers who are blocking transparency, exposing not just their votes but their connections, motivations, and, in some cases, their personal ties to the Epstein-Maxwell network.
This is not a smear campaign. It is a demand for accountability. Survivors and their advocates are naming names, holding press conferences, and flooding social media with evidence.
They are making it politically costly for any lawmaker to stand in the way of the truth.
Naming Names: The First Targets
The campaign’s first major target is Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). Once seen as a possible ally for transparency, Murkowski is now under fire for her vote to block the release of the Epstein files.
But the survivors’ campaign goes further: they have uncovered and publicized her longstanding connections to Ghislaine Maxwell’s husband, Scott Borgerson, and documented multiple public appearances with Maxwell and Borgerson.
These revelations, first reported by Palmeri in “The Reckoning,” have raised serious questions about conflicts of interest and the real reasons behind Murkowski’s resistance.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is also in the crosshairs. Survivors accuse him of using closed-door hearings and excessive redactions to delay or obscure the release of the files, allegedly to protect powerful figures - including Donald Trump - who are named in the documents.
A Demand for Justice
What makes this campaign so potent is its refusal to play by partisan rules. Survivors are framing their fight as a bipartisan or nonpartisan struggle for justice and accountability.
Their message is simple: no one, regardless of party, should be allowed to shield abusers of children from the consequences of their actions.
The Power of Public Pressure
The survivors’ tactics are working. After months of lobbying, rallies, and viral social media campaigns, the House Oversight Committee has begun releasing some Epstein-related files.
But the releases have been heavily redacted, and many documents were already public, fueling suspicions of a cover-up .
Survivors and their allies are not backing down. They are demanding the unredacted release of all files, with victims’ identities protected, and they are making it clear that any lawmaker who stands in their way will be held accountable—not just in the press, but at the ballot box.
Help fund more reporting that calls out political prosecutions and protects the rule of law. Join as a free or paid subscriber now.
“The Reckoning” and the Road Ahead
Tara Palmeri’s “The Reckoning” series is amplifying the survivors’ voices and shining a light on the political, financial, and social ties that have protected abusers for far too long.
By publishing detailed opposition research and leveraging media attention, the series is putting unprecedented pressure on Congress to act.
This is more than a campaign for transparency. It is a movement to restore trust in the justice system, to expose the networks of power that have enabled abuse, and to ensure that survivors are never silenced again.
The Survivors Will Not Be Silenced
The Epstein survivors’ campaign is a masterclass in grassroots advocacy and political strategy. By using the tools of power against those who have wielded them for decades.
They are forcing a reckoning - not just for the politicians who stand in their way, but for a system that has too often protected the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable.
The message is clear: the era of silence is over. The survivors are speaking, and this time, Washington is being forced to listen.