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

Cross-Party Demands for Evidence

The statement from Ro Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who serves on the investigative House oversight committee, comes after a British trade official, Chris Bryant, indicated that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal titles, he should respond to requests for details about his dealings with Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who died by suicide while in federal 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 honor that request,” the minister said.

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

Political Landscape and Probe Developments

GOP members control 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 House committee into how the government handled his prosecutions. Public interest surged in July, after the Department of Justice announced that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s associates did not exist, and it would share nothing further on the case.

The House investigation has so far led to 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.

Legislative Efforts and Obstacles

As a member of the minority, Khanna does not have the power to compel the former prince’s appearance. Spokespeople for the committee’s Republican chair, Chairman Comer, declined to comment about whether he believes the former prince should be interviewed.

The Democrat and Republican Congressman Massie have introduced a bill to force the release 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 distributed a petition that will force a vote on the bill, if 218 members of the House sign it.

“This is what my campaign with Congressman Massie has been about: transparency and accountability for the survivors who have been courageously speaking out,” 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 Representative-elect Grijalva, who was elected in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by the Speaker. However, the speaker has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell representatives to return to Washington until the Senate passes a measure to resolve the federal shutdown.