WASHINGTON — The Republican-led Senate narrowly voted Wednesday to defeat an amendment introduced by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to compel the Justice Department to release all of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

The vote was 51-49 in favor of tabling the amendment. Two Republicans — Rand Paul of Kentucky and Josh Hawley of Missouri — joined all 47 Democrats in voting against tabling the amendment.

“My position has long been I think we ought to release those files and trust the American people," Hawley told reporters, "just like we did with the MLK files and the JFK files.”

In a surprise move earlier Wednesday, Schumer had used a procedural tactic to force a floor vote on the Epstein files.

He pitched an amendment to the sweeping defense policy bill being debated by the Senate. His amendment mirrored the language of bipartisan legislation from Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., who have vowed to force a similar vote in the House.

“There has been so much lying, obfuscation, cover-ups, the American people need to see everything that’s in the Epstein file, and my amendment would make that happen,” Schumer told reporters.

“Look, the bottom line is the American people need to see this. Donald Trump has lied about this,” he continued. “There has been so many lies, so much prevarication, so much cover-up. The American people, Democrats, independents, Republicans are demanding it be made public, and it should be. We hope Republicans will vote for it. They should.”

Wednesday evening's vote was significant because Senate Republicans have largely avoided discussing or voting on the issue of the Epstein files. Now, all senators have been put on record on the matter.

Both Hawley and Paul have been thorns in the White House’s side at different points this year. Hawley this summer triggered an uproar among fellow Republicans and from Trump himself when he voted with Democrats to advance a bill to ban members of Congress, the president and the vice president from trading stocks. He also was sharply critical of the Medicaid cuts in Trump’s signature legislation, the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” and proposed legislation to reverse the cuts after he voted to pass the bill.

Five people familiar with the discussions told NBC News last month that in both Congress and the White House, Hawley is thought of as readying himself for a 2028 presidential bid.

Paul, meanwhile, has argued against Trump’s wide-ranging tariff agenda and publicly taken issue with other administration moves. On Saturday, he lambasted Vice President JD Vance for saying that striking a boat of alleged drug traffickers “is the highest and best use of our military.”

“JD ‘I don’t give a s---’ Vance says killing people he accuses of a crime is the ‘highest and best use of the military,’” Paul wrote, adding, “What a despicable and thoughtless sentiment it is to glorify killing someone without a trial.”

The Senate is plodding through consideration of the annual defense policy bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, which isn’t expected to be completed this week.

Schumer's surprise move — which Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., dismissed as a "political stunt" and a "hostile act" — comes just two days after the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating the Epstein case, released a new trove of documents stemming from a subpoena it sent to Epstein's estate.

That trove included a lewd note Trump allegedly sent Epstein that was part of a book compiled for Epstein's 50th birthday. Trump has repeatedly denied that he wrote the note and filed a lawsuit in July against The Wall Street Journal, which first reported on its existence. Speaking to NBC News on Tuesday, Trump called the letter a "dead issue."

“I don’t comment on something that’s a dead issue,” Trump said in a brief phone call. “I gave all comments to the staff. It’s a dead issue.”

In the House, the “discharge petition” to force a vote on the Massie-Khanna legislation is on track to succeed. It has 216 signatures — including all Democrats and four Republicans — and needs just two more. Those two are expected to arrive this month in the form of a newly elected Democrat in a Virginia special election and another safe blue seat in Arizona that will get a special election in late September.

Massie told NBC News on Tuesday that the four Republicans who have signed on are solidly behind the effort and won’t bow to pressure to remove their names. He said other GOP lawmakers have signaled to him they are open to signing the petition but prefer not to get crosswise with Trump or party leaders publicly if their votes aren't needed to pass it.

“There’s some on the fence,” Massie said. “My pitch to them is we’re going to get there anyways, you might as well be on the right side of history while there’s still two slots. But that hasn’t compelled anybody.”

Massie said he’s certain the vote count on the bill will be larger than the number of signers of the discharge petition, which is seen as a hostile move against House GOP leaders, as it effectively takes control of the floor away from them.

He said an overwhelming House vote would pressure the Senate to take up and pass the legislation.

“I would like to get at least a two-thirds vote here in the House and send that message. That’s my goal,” Massie said. “Maybe it’s ambitious, but I also think even if it passes with simple majorities in both chambers, that’s a hard veto for the president to make — a really hard veto, especially given his personal connection to Jeffrey Epstein.”