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A Democratic representative has demanded the ex-royal Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the US House of Representatives investigative panel that is carrying out an inquiry into the government’s handling of the Epstein case.

Bipartisan Demands for Evidence

The declaration from Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who is a member of the investigative House oversight committee, follows a UK trade minister, Chris Bryant, indicated that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal titles, he should answer demands for information about his dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who took his own life while in federal 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 anticipate any reasonable individual to honor that request,” the minister said.

Khanna 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 Landscape and Probe Developments

Republicans control the majority in the House, but amid public outcry over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein matter authorized an investigation by the oversight committee into how the government handled his legal proceedings. Public interest surged in July, after the justice department revealed that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s associates was non-existent, 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 reportedly drawn by Donald Trump for Epstein’s birthday – as well as depositions from former top government officials.

Legislative Actions and Challenges

As a minority party member, the representative lacks the authority to compel the former prince’s appearance. Spokespeople for the Republican committee chairman, James 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 Epstein-related documents, but Mike Johnson, a top ally of the president, has blocked a vote on it. The two congressmen have circulated a discharge petition that will require the bill be voted on, if a majority of representatives endorse it.

“This is what my campaign with Representative Massie has been about: transparency and justice for the survivors who have been courageously speaking out,” Khanna said.

The petition has been endorsed by all 213 Democratic representatives, as well as four GOP members. The 218th signature is expected to be Representative-elect Grijalva, who won a special election in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by Johnson. However, the House leader has declined to act until the House comes back into session, and says he will not tell representatives to return to Washington until the Senate passes a bill to end the ongoing government shutdown.