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

Bipartisan Pressure for Testimony

The statement from Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who is a member of the House oversight committee, comes after a British trade official, Chris Bryant, indicated that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal status, he should respond to requests for details about his connections to Epstein, an alleged 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 anticipate any decently minded person to comply with that request,” Bryant said.

The congressman stated: “Andrew should be called to testify before the investigative committee. The public deserves to know who was abusing women and young girls alongside Epstein.”

Partisan Landscape and Probe 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 oversight committee into how the government handled his legal proceedings. Public interest surged in July, after the Department of Justice announced that a much-rumored list of Epstein’s sex trafficking clients did not exist, and it would provide no additional information on the case.

The House investigation has thus far resulted in the release of thousands of documents – including a lewd drawing apparently made by Trump for Epstein’s birthday – as well as depositions from former top government officials.

Legal Actions and Obstacles

As a minority party member, the representative lacks the authority to subpoena the former prince’s appearance. Representatives for the Republican committee chairman, James Comer, declined to comment about whether he believes the former prince should be questioned.

Khanna and Thomas Massie have introduced a bill to force the release of Epstein-related documents, but House Speaker Johnson, a top ally of the president, 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 a majority of representatives sign it.

“This is what my effort with Representative Massie has been about: openness and justice for the survivors who have been bravely sharing their stories,” the lawmaker said.

The appeal has been signed by all 213 House Democrats, as well as four Republicans. The 218th signature is anticipated to come from Adelita Grijalva, who won a special election in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by Johnson. However, the speaker has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell representatives to come back to the capital until the Senate passes a bill to resolve the federal shutdown.