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

Cross-Party Pressure for Evidence

The declaration from Congressman Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who is a member of the House oversight committee, follows a British trade official, Chris Bryant, indicated that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal titles, he should respond to requests for details about his connections to Jeffrey Epstein, an accused 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 expect any reasonable individual to honor that request,” Bryant said.

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

Political Environment and Investigation Progress

Republicans hold the majority in the House, but following public pressure over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein matter authorized an investigation by the oversight committee into how the authorities managed his legal proceedings. Public interest surged in July, after the justice department revealed that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s sex trafficking clients did not exist, and it would provide no additional information on the case.

The congressional probe has thus far resulted in the release of tens of thousands of pages – 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 lacks the authority to compel the former prince’s appearance. Representatives for the committee’s Republican chair, Chairman Comer, declined to comment about whether he thinks the former prince should be questioned.

The Democrat and Thomas Massie have introduced a bill to mandate the disclosure of files related to Epstein, but House Speaker Johnson, a top ally of the president, has refused to bring it up for a vote. The two congressmen have circulated a discharge petition that will require the bill be voted on, if 218 members of the House endorse it.

“This is what my effort with Congressman Massie has been about: openness and justice for the survivors who have been courageously speaking out,” the lawmaker said.

The petition has been endorsed by all 213 Democratic representatives, as well as four Republicans. The final required signature is anticipated to come from Adelita 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 comes back into session, and says he will not tell representatives to come back to the capital until the Senate passes a measure to resolve the federal shutdown.