🔗 Share this article

A Democratic Party representative has demanded the ex-royal Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the US House of Representatives committee that is carrying out an inquiry into the government’s handling of the Epstein case.

Bipartisan Demands for Testimony

The statement from Ro Khanna, a California Democratic representative who serves on the House oversight committee, follows a UK trade minister, Chris Bryant, indicated that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal status, he should respond to requests for details about his dealings with Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who took his own life while in federal custody six years ago.

“Just as with any ordinary member of the public, if there were formal requests from overseas of this kind, I would expect any reasonable individual to honor that request,” Bryant said.

The congressman commented: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the oversight committee. The public deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

Political Environment and Probe Progress

GOP members control the majority in the House of Representatives, but following public pressure over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein matter authorized an investigation by the House committee into how the government handled his prosecutions. Public interest flared in July, after the justice department announced that a much-rumored list of Epstein’s associates was non-existent, and it would provide no additional information on the case.

The congressional probe has so far led to the publication of thousands of documents – including an explicit sketch reportedly drawn by Trump for Epstein’s birthday – as well as sworn statements from former top government officials.

Legislative Efforts and Obstacles

As a minority party member, the representative lacks the authority to compel the former prince’s appearance. Spokespeople for the Republican committee chairman, Chairman Comer, declined to comment about whether he thinks the ex-royal should be interviewed.

Khanna and Republican Congressman Massie have proposed legislation to force the release of Epstein-related documents, but Mike Johnson, a top ally of the president, has refused to bring it up for a vote. Massie and Khanna have distributed a petition that will require the bill be voted on, if 218 members of the House sign it.

“This is what my campaign with Congressman Massie has been about: transparency and accountability for the victims who have been bravely sharing their stories,” the lawmaker said.

The appeal has been signed by all 213 Democratic representatives, as well as four GOP members. The 218th signature is expected to be Representative-elect Grijalva, who was elected in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits swearing in by the Speaker. However, the House leader has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell representatives to return to Washington until the Senate approves a measure to resolve the federal shutdown.