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A Democratic representative has publicly called for the ex-royal Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the US House of Representatives committee that is currently conducting an investigation into the government’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case.

Cross-Party Pressure for Evidence

The declaration from Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who is a member of the investigative House oversight committee, comes after a UK trade minister, Chris Bryant, indicated that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal status, he should answer demands for information about his dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, an accused sex trafficker who died by suicide 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 expect any decently minded person to honor that request,” the minister said.

Khanna commented: “Andrew should be called to testify before the oversight committee. The people have a right to know who was exploiting women and minors alongside Epstein.”

Political Landscape and Investigation Developments

GOP members hold the majority in the House of Representatives, but following public pressure over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein case approved an inquiry by the House committee into how the authorities managed his legal proceedings. Interest in the case surged in July, after the justice department announced that a widely speculated 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 publication of thousands of documents – including a lewd drawing reportedly drawn by Trump for Epstein’s 50th birthday – as well as depositions from former top government officials.

Legislative 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 committee’s Republican chair, James Comer, did not respond to questions about whether he thinks the ex-royal should be interviewed.

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

“This is what my campaign with Congressman Massie has been about: transparency and accountability for the victims who have been courageously speaking out,” the lawmaker said.

The appeal has been signed by all 213 House Democrats, as well as four GOP members. The final required 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 speaker has refused to do so until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell lawmakers to return to Washington until the Senate approves a bill to resolve the federal shutdown.