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A Democratic Party representative has publicly called for the former prince Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the US House of Representatives committee that is carrying out an inquiry into the official handling of the Epstein case.

Bipartisan Demands for Testimony

The statement from Ro Khanna, a California Democratic representative who serves on the House oversight committee, comes after a UK trade minister, Chris Bryant, indicated that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal status, he should answer demands for information about his connections to Epstein, an accused 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 requests from another jurisdiction of this kind, I would expect any decently minded person to honor that request,” Bryant said.

The congressman commented: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the investigative committee. The public deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls with Epstein.”

Partisan Landscape and Investigation Developments

GOP members hold the majority in the House, but following public pressure over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein case authorized an investigation by the oversight committee into how the government handled his legal proceedings. Public interest flared in July, after the justice department revealed that a much-rumored list of Epstein’s associates did not exist, and it would provide no additional information on the case.

The congressional probe has so far led to the release of thousands of documents – including a lewd drawing apparently made by Trump for Epstein’s 50th birthday – as well as depositions from former top government officials.

Legal Actions and Challenges

As a member of the minority, Khanna lacks the authority to subpoena Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Representatives for the committee’s Republican chair, James Comer, declined to comment about whether he thinks the ex-royal should be questioned.

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 blocked a vote on it. 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 Representative Massie has been about: openness and justice for the survivors who have been bravely sharing their stories,” Khanna said.

The petition has been signed by all 213 House Democrats, as well as four GOP members. The final required signature is expected to be Adelita Grijalva, who was elected in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits swearing in by Johnson. However, the speaker has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell lawmakers to return to Washington until the Senate passes a bill to resolve the federal shutdown.