U.S. House ending session early as Republicans clash over Epstein vote
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson is rebuffing pressure to act on the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, instead sending members home early for a month-long break from Washington after the week's legislative agenda was upended by Republican members who are clamouring for a vote.
Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, said Tuesday morning that he wants to give the White House 'space' to release the Epstein information on its own, despite the bipartisan push for legislation that aims to force the release of more documents.
'There's no purpose for the Congress to push an administration to do something they're already doing,' Johnson said at his weekly news conference, his last before lawmakers depart Washington on Wednesday for their traditional August recess.
The speaker's stance did little to alleviate the intra-party turmoil unfolding on Capitol Hill as many of U.S. President Donald Trump's supporters demand that the administration meet its promises to publicly release a full accounting of the sex trafficking investigation into Epstein, who killed himself in his New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial. Under pressure from right-wing online influencers, as well as voters back home, rank-and-file Republicans are demanding that the House intervene in the matter.
'The public's not going to let this die, and rightfully so,' said Rep. Ralph Norman, a South Carolina Republican.
Will Ghislaine Maxwell's deposition happen?
Even before Johnson spoke Tuesday morning, the powerful House Committee on Oversight was advancing a resolution to subpoena Epstein's former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, for a deposition.
The Republican chair of the committee, Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, said there will be a negotiation with Maxwell's attorney over the terms of the deposition and that it could happen at the prison where she is serving a lengthy sentence for helping Epstein sexually abuse underage girls. The U.S. Justice Department also indicated Tuesday it was separately seeking to interview Maxwell.
While Democrats on the House Oversight Committee supported the action, the top Democrat on the committee, Rep. Robert Garcia of California, warned that her testimony should be treated with skepticism.
'We should be looking and continue to push for a full release of the files,' Garcia told reporters. 'I think it's important for people to know that she obviously is a documented liar and someone that has caused enormous harm to young girls and women.'
Trump didn't address the issue during a reception for House Republicans at the White House on Tuesday night but heaped praise on Johnson, saying he would 'go down as one of the great speakers at any time in history.' In remarks alongside Trump, Johnson made no mention of it either.
Speaker Johnson's control of the House is under threat
Johnson decided to end the House's legislative business early this week after he essentially lost control of the powerful House Rules Committee, which sends bills to the floor for debates and votes. Late Monday evening, business on that panel ground to a halt when the Republicans on the committee abruptly recessed proceedings rather than risk more proposals from Democrats pushing them to release Epstein files.
Republicans had teed up votes on legislation to increase penalties for migrants who enter the country illegally, to ease permitting for water infrastructure and to roll back several Biden-era regulations. All those bills were put on hold, at least until after the August recess.
Frustration in the House has been running high since last week, when Republican leaders signaled possible support for a vote on the Epstein files as they raced to pass a US$9-billion package of spending cuts. Johnson unveiled a resolution that has no legal weight but would urge the Justice Department to produce more documentation. Trump, meanwhile, has asked U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to seek the release of testimony from secret grand jury proceedings in the case, though that effort is unlikely to produce new revelations.
Echoing Trump's position, Johnson insisted he, too, wants the files released, but only those that are 'credible.' Johnson, who has relied heavily on Trump to hold onto leadership in the House, cast the president's reticence to release information as out of concern for the victims of Epstein.
'We have a moral responsibility to expose the evil of Epstein and everybody who was involved in that — absolutely — and we're resolved to do it,' Johnson said. 'But we also have an equal moral responsibility to protect the innocent, and that is a fine needle to thread.'
In the Senate, Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., also told reporters he believed Trump and Bondi would 'make the right decisions' on the files, but opened the door to committees examining the matter.
Epstein has become a political wedge among GOP
Even with the month-long break, the pressure on Johnson is unlikely to end. Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican whose contrarian stances are often a thorn in the side of leadership, is gathering support for a legislative manoeuvre to force the bipartisan bill to a House vote, even without leadership's consent.
'Now, there are a lot of people here in the swamp who think that, 'Oh, well, if we spend five weeks on vacation, the pressure for this will dissipate. I don't think it's going to dissipate.'' Massie told reporters Monday evening.
Democrats have watched it all unfold with glee and worked to inflame the conflict among Republicans by making their own calls for transparency on the Epstein investigation. They have repeatedly tried to force votes on the matter, casting it as an issue of trust in the government.
'It's about transparency in government. It's about whose side are you on? Are you on the side of the rich and powerful, protecting men? Or are you on the side of young girls and America's children?' said Rep. Ro Khanna, the California Democrat who put forward the legislation alongside Massie.
Epstein sexually abused children hundreds of times over more than a decade, exploiting vulnerable girls as young as 14, authorities say. He couldn't have done so without the help of Maxwell, his longtime companion, prosecutors contend.
Massie said the case is palpable enough to carry significant political consequences.
'This will be an issue that does follow Republicans through the midterms, and it will follow each individual Republican through the midterms. It will follow people into their primaries. Did you support transparency and justice, or did you come up here, get elected and fall into the swamp?' he told reporters.
He added, 'I think it is a watershed moment for the speaker of the House and the president.'
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Stephen Groves And Lisa Mascaro, The Associated Press
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