Rep. Mark Harris Urges Focus on Trump’s Agenda Amid Epstein Scandal

By Newsmax Wires | Tuesday, 18 November 2025 01:14 PM EST

Rep. Mark Harris, R-N.C., emphasized that Congress must prioritize advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda and addressing major policy priorities over the revelations surrounding Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to Democrat figures and congressional activity. Harris stated on Newsmax, “Bottom line, we have too many important things to deal with in Washington,” noting the Jan. 30 continuing resolution as a key deadline. Members of Congress must get back to moving Trump’s America First agenda forward, focusing on affordability and items important to the American people. Harris highlighted the significant development in reports about Epstein, noting that he exchanged texts with Rep. Stacey Plaskett, D-Virgin Islands, during a 2019 congressional hearing that influenced her questions to Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney. “Yes, that was a mind-blowing turn of events when it pointed out that Epstein was actually feeding questions in that hearing,” Harris said, adding that this is the more serious story of everything we’re dealing with today. While over 50,000 pages of documents connected to Epstein have been released, the outstanding issue is accountability. “The question we need to ask is, Where are the prosecutions? We need to start prosecuting some of these individuals,” he said. Harris warned that handling the discharge petition regarding the Epstein Files Transparency Act must not jeopardize ongoing investigations, stating, “Are we setting some kind of judicial precedent here that’s going to jeopardize any of the investigations? I hope not, but I think it’s a concern.” Turning to the federal crackdown on criminal illegal immigrants in Charlotte, North Carolina, Harris criticized Democrats for misplaced priorities, saying, “It is a sad commentary on the Democrats where there seems to be lost on them that our Border Patrol agents, our ICE agents, they are law enforcement, and we need to treat them with respect.” He noted arrests in Charlotte have climbed to about 200 in two days, emphasizing the severity of criminal activity. “When you think of people being taken off the streets, wanted for murder, aggravated assault, and other crimes, the criminal illegal aliens are being taken out,” he said. The administration does not pre-announce enforcement locations due to ongoing security risks. “Let’s be clear, we’re at war from the invasion during the Biden administration,” Harris said, “This administration is cleaning up this mess; this is about making cities and streets safer.”