Massie-Khanna petition would force House vote on release of ‘complete’ Epstein files – Washington Examiner
Representatives Thomas Massie (R-KY) and ro Khanna (D-CA) have filed a discharge petition aiming to bypass House leadership and force a vote on releasing the “complete” Jeffrey Epstein files held by the Department of Justice (DOJ). This move comes amid divisions within the Republican Party following the DOJ’s memo stating that Epstein died by suicide and that no client list was found during the federal investigation. Massie and Khanna stress the public’s right to clarity about the files, hoping to reveal the full extent of corruption implicated. The petition requires 218 signatures to succeed, a challenging task since members often avoid opposing party leadership. President Donald Trump has expressed frustration over the ongoing focus on Epstein, urging his supporters to move on and dismissing the case as unimportant. Khanna is pushing for a vote to ensure public accountability about where legislators stand on this issue.
Massie-Khanna petition would force House vote on release of ‘complete’ Epstein files
Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) filed a discharge petition to bypass their leadership and force a vote to push the Department of Justice to release the “complete” so-called Epstein files.
The Republican Party has been riled by rare divisions under President Donald Trump after the president’s DOJ published a memo concluding that sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein did kill himself in 2019, and a federal investigation didn’t uncover a “client list.” Massie, who recently earned the ire of Trump over his opposition to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, and Khanna co-sponsored a Hail Mary effort to force the DOJ to release anything it has on the list.
“We all deserve to know what’s in the Epstein files, who’s implicated, and how deep this corruption goes,” Massie wrote in a post on X. “Americans were promised justice and transparency. We’re introducing a discharge petition to force a vote in the US House of Representatives on releasing the COMPLETE files.”
Khanna said in his post that Massie “is working on the rule to ensure there is a vote. The public deserves to know where every member stands.”
The liberal Democrat has been spearheading the effort to use internal discord over Trump’s handling of Epstein to drive a wedge between him and his base.
A discharge petition requires 218 signatures to bypass leadership and prompt a floor vote. The measures rarely succeed, with the majority party members cautious about defying their leadership.
Trump has struggled to get his base to move on from the controversy, voicing frustration that the affair was taking attention away from his other priorities.
“Let’s not waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about,” the president wrote on Truth Social over the weekend. He then suggested that previous administrations made up the list.
MAGA ANGER OVER EPSTEIN FILES GIVES TRUMP LIMITED OPTIONS TO QUELL DIVISIONS
This was Trump’s first “ratioed” post on the platform since it launched over three years ago, a rare sign of dissent from his base.
The president expressed bafflement over why his base wasn’t moving on from the case again on Tuesday, telling reporters that Epstein “was never a big factor in terms of life” and that the only people interested in the “boring” case were “bad people.”
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