I think there must be... because the FBI and DOJ have taken the original files and have created a new, redacted version of them. Not sure how that could not be considered a copy? https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/atto...leases-first-phase-declassified-epstein-files Key Details on the FBI FOIA Team and Epstein Files: Public Releases: The FBI has released heavily redacted documents in phases. A significant number of documents were first published to "The Vault" in response to multiple FOIA requests on the same subject, a requirement under the 2016 FOIA amendments. The Department of Justice (DOJ) under Attorney General Pamela Bondi also announced a "first phase" of declassified file releases in February 2025. Review Process: Hundreds of FBI agents and staff were reportedly involved in an extensive review of more than 300 gigabytes of data and physical evidence. Redactions and Controversy: The FBI FOIA team applied redactions to the documents, using the nine FOIA exemptions as their guide. There has been significant controversy and political scrutiny over these redactions, particularly regarding the decision to redact the names of high-profile individuals, including President Donald Trump, citing privacy protections for private citizens. Accessing the Files: The publicly available files can be accessed through the official FBI Records: The Vault website.
I get that there is one source of truth for the documents... but there are many forks of that initial repository that have been modified and processed.
That's true, but the request from congress is not going through the DOJ or the AG, they are going through the court who are the ones who have given the DOJ and the AG copies of the court documents which they tried to modify and manipulate to make the release of the files go away, but they couldn't contain it after Bondi fucked up and said she wouldn't be releasing any additional information to the public. You can't get a federal court to release case files that are sealed unless you have a REALLY good reason to. In this case the reason was Trump wanted them so he could modify and release the parts he wanted to release to make it look like he and rich donors weren't guilty, but that backfired fabulously in his face because, as with everything else he touches, he has ZERO clue what he's doing. If you read the language of the bill it basically states the DOJ has to give up all of the files they have related to the case which will be cross checked against the original files for any redactions/alterations/deletions etc. If they fail to do so, they are 1000% without question breaking the law and can be held accountable as such. THE ONLY way things could potentially go south is if Bondi and by extension Trump completely disobey the house and senate and try to pass off their redacted and altered files as the real thing. This does delay them releasing the real files and under normal circumstances would be cause for impeachment and removal of Trump, but that gets into a gigantic mess and hopefully things don't go that route. I don't think they would use this option as Trump already has everything he wants to grift his way through the next 3 years of his presidency. He doesn't care about the GOP or the American people or anyone but himself, so even if he's all over the files, there's not much that's going to be done with members of congress having backed him this whole time. They can't turn on him without completely destroying their party or their election chances (as seen by the fall of MTG the past few days), so the Dems sweep the midterms, limit his damage over the next two years, gain the trifecta again in 2028 under Newsome and the GOP dies defending Trump while the far far right sits and festers in the background and tries to reclaim power in 2032 counting on all of the punitive damage that will be laid on the right after this.