Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., speaks during a press conference calling for the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday Sept. 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
That explains why the issue isn’t ebbing any time soon.
"It is very much a possibility that Jeffrey Epstein was an intelligence asset working for our adversaries," declared Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., after talking to the Epstein victims at the Capitol. "I think this is going to be a criminal investigation for sure. I will say that what's been released, obviously, the American people have wanted for a long time."
Before the recess, Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., teamed up to potentially bypass Johnson and compel the House to vote on releasing the Epstein files. The Epstein milieu quickly infected virtually every single legislative effort in Congress, effectively hamstringing the body. So Johnson cut everyone loose a bit early.
But the issue festered over the recess. Massie and Khanna were back with their parliamentary gambit to go over Johnson’s head and force an Epstein vote.
Lawmakers from both sides routinely convene press conferences at a spot just outside the Capitol called the "House Triangle." Lawmakers often use this venue to feature non-members or people specific to the legislation they’re pushing at the news conference.
Sometimes members bring a throng of people with them. A crowd occasionally gathers, depending on the issue.
But I had never before witnessed the multitude of people who showed up at the House Triangle on Wednesday morning to hear Massie, Khanna and victims talk about their effort to pry open the files. People spilled out onto the walkways and plaza. That forced U.S. Capitol Police to restrict access to the area.
Some of the victims recounted their Epstein stories in harrowing detail.
"When I got into the massage room, Jeffrey Epstein undressed and asked me to do things to him, my eyes welled up with tears. And I have never been more scared in my life," said Epstein accuser Haley Robson.
"I was even taken on a trip to Africa with former President Bill Clinton and other notable figures. In those moments, I realized how powerless I was," said Epstein victim Chauntae Davies.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., left, and President Donald Trump shake hands during an Invest America roundtable in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on June 9, 2025. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"The Speaker is wrestling with [whether] he's going to have to choose between supporting Donald Trump’s new position that the files shouldn't be released, or finding justice for these victims and survivors. The Speaker probably doesn't appreciate that he's going to have to choose one," said Massie. "The Speaker's position depends on him not just rubber-stamping but reinforcing anything Donald Trump wants, even if Donald Trump is wrong. So the Speaker is in a tough spot."
The materials coughed up by the Oversight panel did include a new video of the so-called "missing minute." It fills in absent footage from Epstein’s New York jail cell on the night he died.
But Massie insists on the release of more material.
"What's clear is they're not redacting, just to protect victims. They are redacting to protect the reputations of people," said Massie.
One Republican aligned with the President threatened to out those linked to Epstein.
"I'm not afraid to name names," said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., at the press conference. "So if they want to give me a list, I will walk into that Capitol on the House floor, and I'll say every damn name that abused these women."
Khanna was buoyed by the support of Greene.
"I've never done a press conference with Marjorie Taylor Greene before," said the progressive Khanna. "I don't think Marjorie Taylor Greene would be part of a stunt against President Trump."
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We’ll know soon if the House has the votes to thwart the GOP leadership and consider the Massie/Khanna resolution. And tangling with the Epstein matter could even start to impact the ability of the House to wrestle with routine legislation again.
And so, the Epstein saga continues. The same as it was before the August recess.
Chad Pergram currently serves as a senior congressional correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/jeffrey-epstein-saga-continues-congress-returns-recess