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A Democratic representative has demanded the ex-royal Andrew Windsor to testify before the House of Representatives investigative panel that is currently conducting an investigation into the government’s handling of the Epstein case.

Bipartisan Pressure for Evidence

The statement from Ro Khanna, a California Democratic representative who is a member of 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 died by suicide while in federal custody six years ago.

“Just as with any regular citizen, if there were requests from another jurisdiction of this kind, I would expect any reasonable individual to honor that request,” Bryant said.

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

Partisan Environment and Investigation Developments

GOP members hold the majority in the House of Representatives, but following public pressure over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein case authorized an investigation by the House committee into how the authorities managed his prosecutions. Public interest surged in July, after the justice department 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 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.

Legislative Efforts and Challenges

As a member of the minority, Khanna does not have the power to compel the former prince’s appearance. Spokespeople for the committee’s Republican chair, James Comer, declined to comment about whether he believes the former prince should be interviewed.

Khanna and Republican Congressman Massie have proposed legislation to force the release 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 effort with Representative Massie has been about: transparency and justice for the victims who have been courageously speaking out,” the lawmaker said.

The petition has been endorsed by all 213 House Democrats, as well as four Republicans. The 218th signature is expected to be Adelita Grijalva, who won a special election in Arizona last month, and awaits swearing in by Johnson. However, the speaker has declined to act until the House comes back into session, and has stated he won’t instruct representatives to return to Washington until the Senate approves a measure to end the ongoing government shutdown.