Washington DC - House Speaker Mike Johnson recently weighed in on the backlash against President Donald Trump and his administration over their refusal to release files on Jeffrey Epstein as promised.

In an interview on Tuesday, Johnson said that he was "for transparency" and used a quote from former President Ronald Reagan to argue that the American people should be able to judge the files.

"It's a very delicate subject, but we should put everything out there and let the people decide it," Johnson said.

"The White House and [its] team are privy to facts that I don't know – I mean, this isn't my lane, I haven't been involved in that," he continued. "But I agree with the sentiment that we need to put it out there."

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Johnson went on to say that Attorney General Pam Bondi "needs to come forward and explain" what she meant when she said in February that the Epstein files were "sitting on her desk" for review.

"We need the [Department of Justice] focusing on the major priorities. So let's get this thing resolved," he concluded.

Johnson's remarks came after the DOJ and the FBI released their final report on the case, which claimed theories that Epstein was murdered or kept a "client list" featuring prominent figures were false.

While it was meant to bring closure, the report has only infuriated critics and Trump's MAGA base – with many on the right blaming Bondi for failing to release everything related to the case as Trump repeatedly promised.

When asked about it on Tuesday, Trump, who had tried to end discussions about it after the release of the report, said anything "credible" should be released, but emphasized it was all up to Bondi.

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Many critics have called attention to Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence for aiding his crimes, suggesting she should testify before Congress about everything she knows.

Despite Johnson's remarks, and similar rhetoric from MAGA, House Republicans voted down a measure brought forth by Democrats on Tuesday to force the files to be made public.