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

Cross-Party Demands for Testimony

The statement from Congressman Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who is a member of the investigative House oversight committee, comes after a British trade official, Chris Bryant, suggested that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal titles, he should answer demands for information about his dealings with Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who died by suicide while in government custody six years ago.

“Just as with any regular citizen, if there were requests from another jurisdiction of this kind, I would expect any reasonable individual to comply with that request,” Bryant said.

Khanna stated: “Andrew should be called to testify before the oversight committee. The people have a right to know who was exploiting women and minors alongside Epstein.”

Political Landscape and Investigation Progress

GOP members hold the majority in the House, but amid public outcry over former President Trump’s management of the Epstein case approved an inquiry by the oversight committee into how the authorities managed his prosecutions. Public interest flared 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 congressional probe has thus far resulted in the publication of thousands of documents – including an explicit sketch 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 does not have the power to compel Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Spokespeople for the Republican committee chairman, James Comer, did not respond to questions about whether he believes the former prince should be interviewed.

The Democrat and Thomas Massie have introduced a bill to force the release of files related to Epstein, but Mike Johnson, a key presidential supporter, has refused to bring it up for a vote. The two congressmen have circulated a discharge petition that will force a vote on the bill, if 218 members of the House endorse it.

“This is what my effort with Representative Massie has been about: transparency and justice for the victims 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 expected to be Representative-elect Grijalva, who won a special election in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits swearing in by the Speaker. However, the House leader has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and says he will not tell lawmakers to return to Washington until the Senate approves a bill to end the ongoing government shutdown.