🔗 Share this article

A Democratic Party congressman has publicly called for the former prince Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the House of Representatives investigative panel that is currently conducting an investigation into the government’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

Bipartisan Pressure for Testimony

The statement from Congressman Khanna, a California Democratic representative who is a member of the House oversight committee, comes after a UK trade minister, Chris Bryant, indicated that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal titles, he should respond to requests for details about his connections to Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who died by suicide while in government 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 decently minded person to honor that request,” Bryant said.

Khanna stated: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the investigative committee. The public deserves to know who was exploiting women and minors with Epstein.”

Political Landscape and Probe Progress

GOP members hold the majority in the House of Representatives, but amid public outcry over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein matter approved an inquiry by the oversight committee into how the authorities managed his legal proceedings. Interest in the case flared in July, after the Department of Justice announced that a much-rumored list of Epstein’s sex trafficking clients did not exist, and it would share nothing further on the case.

The House investigation has so far led to the publication of thousands of documents – including a lewd drawing reportedly drawn by Donald Trump for Epstein’s 50th birthday – as well as depositions from ex-government leaders.

Legislative Efforts and Obstacles

As a member of the minority, Khanna does not have the power to subpoena Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Representatives for the Republican committee chairman, Chairman Comer, declined to comment about whether he believes the former prince should be interviewed.

The Democrat and Republican Congressman Massie have introduced a bill to force the release of files related to Epstein, but Mike Johnson, a key presidential supporter, has blocked a vote on it. The two congressmen have circulated a discharge petition that will force a vote on the bill, if 218 members of the House endorse it.

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

The petition has been signed by all 213 Democratic representatives, as well as four Republicans. The 218th signature is anticipated to come from Representative-elect Grijalva, who was elected in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by Johnson. However, the House leader has refused to do so until the House comes back into session, and says he will not tell lawmakers to return to Washington until the Senate approves a measure to end the ongoing government shutdown.