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A Democratic congressman has publicly called for the former prince Andrew Windsor to appear before the House of Representatives committee that is currently conducting an investigation into the official handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

Bipartisan Pressure for Evidence

The statement from Congressman Khanna, a California Democratic representative who is a member of the investigative House oversight committee, follows a British trade official, Chris Bryant, suggested that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal status, he should respond to requests for details about his connections to Jeffrey Epstein, an accused sex trafficker who took his own life while in government custody six years ago.

“Just as with any regular citizen, if there were formal requests from overseas of this kind, I would anticipate any decently minded person to honor that request,” the minister said.

The congressman commented: “Andrew should be called to testify before the investigative committee. The public deserves to know who was exploiting women and minors alongside Epstein.”

Partisan Landscape and Probe Progress

Republicans hold the majority in the House, but amid public outcry over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein matter approved an inquiry by the House committee into how the government handled his legal proceedings. Public interest flared in July, after the Department of Justice announced that a much-rumored list of Epstein’s sex trafficking clients was non-existent, and it would provide no additional information on the case.

The congressional probe has thus far resulted in the publication of tens of thousands of pages – including a lewd drawing apparently made by Donald Trump for Epstein’s birthday – as well as depositions from former top government officials.

Legislative Efforts and Challenges

As a member of the minority, the representative lacks the authority to compel Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Representatives for the Republican committee chairman, Chairman Comer, declined to comment about whether he thinks the former prince should be questioned.

Khanna and Thomas Massie have introduced a bill to force the release of files related to Epstein, but Mike Johnson, a key presidential supporter, has refused to bring it up for a vote. Massie and Khanna have circulated a discharge petition that will require the bill be voted on, if 218 members of the House sign it.

“This is what my campaign with Representative 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 anticipated to come from Representative-elect Grijalva, who won a special election in Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by the Speaker. However, the House leader has declined to act until the House comes back into session, and says he will not tell lawmakers to come back to the capital until the Senate passes a measure to resolve the federal shutdown.