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

Bipartisan Pressure for Evidence

The declaration from Ro Khanna, a California Democratic representative who serves on the investigative House oversight committee, comes after a British trade official, Chris Bryant, suggested that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal status, he should answer demands for information about his dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who took his own life 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 comply with that request,” Bryant said.

Khanna commented: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the investigative committee. The people have a right to know who was abusing women and young girls with Epstein.”

Political Landscape and Investigation Developments

GOP members control the majority in the House, but following public pressure over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein case approved an inquiry by the House committee into how the authorities managed his prosecutions. Interest in the case flared in July, after the justice department announced that a widely speculated 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 release of thousands of documents – including a lewd drawing reportedly drawn by Donald Trump for Epstein’s 50th birthday – as well as sworn statements from ex-government leaders.

Legal Actions and Obstacles

As a member of the minority, the representative does not have the power to subpoena the former prince’s appearance. Representatives for the Republican committee chairman, Chairman Comer, did not respond to questions about whether he believes the ex-royal should be interviewed.

The Democrat and Republican Congressman Massie have proposed legislation to mandate the disclosure of files related to Epstein, but Mike Johnson, a top ally of the president, has refused to bring it up for a vote. Massie and Khanna have circulated a discharge petition that will force a vote on the bill, if 218 members of the House sign it.

“This is what my campaign with Congressman Massie has been about: transparency and justice for the victims who have been courageously speaking out,” the lawmaker 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 won a special election in Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by Johnson. However, the speaker has refused to do so until the House comes back into session, and has stated he won’t instruct representatives to return to Washington until the Senate passes a bill to end the ongoing government shutdown.