CNN's Michael Smerconish credits Trump administration for releasing Epstein files within 30 days

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: CNN host Michael Smerconish acknowledged on air that President Donald Trump’s Justice Department deserves some credit for releasing thousands of documents linked to convicted offender Jeffrey Epstein within the thirty-day deadline set by Congress.

Smerconish highlighted that meeting the deadline under such pressure was significant.

Michael Smerconish applauds Epstein files release

On the Saturday, December 20 episode of 'Smerconish', the host argued that the administration deserves some credit because it was “not an easy task to achieve in 30 days,” despite complaints about redactions, website glitches, and there not being a full release of the files.

Smerconish described the release as a “mammoth task” and noted some issues with the DOJ website. According to him, a search on Friday night of the files found zero results for Trump. 

On Saturday morning, it found more than 600. Smerconish said the same thing occurred for other names he searched, too.

“I know we’re all frustrated with the level of redactions and the complexity of the site. It was not an easy task for them to achieve in thirty days. I think that needs to get said,” Smerconish said.

Ankush Khadori agrees with the CNN host

Smerconish's guest, former federal prosecutor Ankush Khadori, agreed with him.

“I’m a little less upset about the fact that there’s going to be a rolling production than I think a lot of people are,” he said.

“But look, I will say, a lot people are, I would say, upset and disappointed about what is emerging and what looks like it will emerge in subsequent productions, we shall see. You are right, though, right? This exercise was never going to produce new credible information that any of us could rely upon,” Khadori added. 

DOJ publishes thousands of Epstein files

The Justice Department's release on Friday included thousands of documents tied to Epstein and his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell, marking one of the most extensive disclosures related to the case so far.

The documents were published ahead of a statutory deadline set by Congress and include a sprawling digital archive of court filings, correspondence, and photographs.

Some of the images had not previously been made public and were partially redacted.

According to the Justice Department, several images were described as graphic in nature, though no additional context was provided about when or where the photos were taken.

The newly released photographs showed Epstein and Maxwell socializing with high-profile figures, including former President Bill Clinton and pop star Michael Jackson.