WASHINGTON ― Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) on Tuesday formally filed a motion that could force the House to vote on a bill requiring the Justice Department to release its files on the late sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein.
The so-called discharge petition allows any House member to bring a bill to the floor for a vote ― even against the wishes of the speaker ― if the member can gather signatures from a majority of House members.
Several Republicans have previously said they’d back Massie’s effort, and the congressman has said he’s confident most Democrats will go along with it as well.
In an apparent effort to knock Massie’s petition off track, however, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) scheduled a possible vote this week on a symbolic resolution directing the House Oversight Committee to continue its already ongoing investigation into the Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein case.
President Donald Trump was friends with Epstein and has demanded his supporters quit clamoring for more information, calling the story a Democratic hoax.
