A Democratic representative has demanded the ex-royal Andrew Windsor to testify before the House of Representatives committee that is carrying out an investigation into the official handling of the Epstein case.
Bipartisan Demands for Evidence
The statement from Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who serves on the investigative House oversight committee, follows a UK trade minister, Chris Bryant, suggested that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal titles, he should respond to requests for details about his dealings with Epstein, an accused 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 anticipate any reasonable individual to comply with that request,” the minister said.
Khanna commented: “Andrew should be called to testify before the investigative committee. The people have a right to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”
Partisan Landscape and Probe Progress
Republicans hold the majority in the House of Representatives, but amid public outcry over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein case authorized an investigation by the House committee into how the government handled his legal proceedings. Public interest flared in July, after the justice department revealed that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s associates was non-existent, and it would provide no additional information on the case.
The congressional probe has thus far resulted in the release of tens of thousands of pages – including an explicit sketch reportedly drawn by Donald Trump for Epstein’s birthday – as well as sworn statements from ex-government leaders.
Legal Actions and Challenges
As a minority party member, the representative does not have the power to compel Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Representatives for the Republican committee chairman, James Comer, did not respond to questions about whether he believes the former prince should be questioned.
The Democrat and Republican Congressman Massie have proposed legislation to force the release of files related to Epstein, but House Speaker Johnson, a key presidential supporter, has blocked a vote on it. Massie and Khanna have distributed a petition that will force a vote on the bill, if a majority of representatives endorse it.
“This is what my effort with Congressman Massie has been about: openness and justice for the victims who have been courageously speaking out,” Khanna said.
The appeal has been endorsed by all 213 House Democrats, as well as four GOP members. The final required signature is expected to be Adelita Grijalva, who won a special election in Arizona last month, and awaits swearing in by the Speaker. However, the House leader has refused to do so until the House comes back into session, and says he will not tell representatives to come back to the capital until the Senate passes a measure to end the ongoing government shutdown.
