How the government shutdown is thwarting efforts to shed light on Epstein’s case

By Emily Goodin Miami Herald The executive shutdown is delaying proceedings in Congress examination into Jeffrey Epstein affecting a measure to require the release of files in the possession of the federal regime and holding up testimony from key figures Related Articles JD Vance dismisses bipartisan outrage over racist and offensive Young Republican group chat Brown University rejects Trump s offer for priority funding citing concerns over academic freedom Journalists turn in access badges exit Pentagon rather than agree to new reporting rules Judge dismisses young state activists lawsuit challenging Trump on fossil fuels Judge temporarily blocks the Trump administration from firing workers during the authorities shutdown Speaker Mike Johnson a Republican has kept the House of Representatives out of session for two weeks and counting as part of his party s strategy to pressure Senate Democrats into voting for their resolution to fund the administration That has slowed down the House Oversight Committee s inspection into the late pedophile and held a petition demanding the release of the files at bay Bill and Hillary Clinton were expected to testify before the panel over the past minimal weeks but have yet to appear And Johnson has declined to swear into office Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva a Democrat from Arizona who would be the crucial th vote on a discharge petition from Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie that would demand a vote on the release of the ruling body s Epstein files Republicans on the Oversight panel argue there are no delays and the Clintons will eventually appear There are no delays and the postponement of the depositions has nothing to do with the leadership shutdown We are in communication with the Clintons attorneys to schedule their appearance before the Committee a spokesperson for the Republicans on the committee narrated the Miami Herald Both Clintons were subpoenaed in early August by Republicans Hillary Clinton had been expected to testify on Oct and Bill Clinton was scheduled for Tuesday Bill Clinton flew on Epstein s private jet and was one of numerous figures who contributed a message to a birthday book for him The former president has declared he wishes he had never met Epstein A spokesperson for the Clintons didn t respond to a request for comment Democrats on the panel fault the Republicans and the shutdown for the delay House Republicans would rather keep our ruling body shut down than further this Epstein scrutiny stated Sara Guerrero a spokesperson for Oversight Committee Democrats The majority should be having hearings enforcing subpoenas like the one they sent to Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell and working day and night to get to the bottom of this Oversight Democrats are here and ready to work for the American people Other committee hearings have been affected due to the shutdown Attorney General Pam Bondi was scheduled to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on Oct but that was postponed Meanwhile Arizona is threatening to sue Johnson for not seating their newly-elected congresswoman Grijalva s success was officially certified on Tuesday She is replacing her late father in his House seat Johnson commented he will swear her into office once the governing body reopens She won her electoral contest after the House was out of session so we ve not had a full session the speaker communicated reporters on Capitol Hill on Tuesday She deserves to have all the pomp and circumstances everybody else does She deserves to have a full House of members and go down and do the speech and have her family and friends in the balcony That hasn t been scheduled because we haven t had that session Democrats argue Johnson using his power as speaker can swear her in at any time They point out two Florida Republicans Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis were sworn in during a pro forma session on April the day after their special elections There is no formal rule requiring the House to be in session to seat a member of Congress This is a massive White House coverup and now Mike Johnson is involved stated Rep Robert Garcia the ranking Democrat on the Oversight panel Garcia is also demanding Republicans on the committee call in Maxwell to testify She was subpoenaed by the panel but Committee Chairman James Comer allowed her to postpone her testimony until the Supreme Court decided whether to hear her matter Earlier this month the high court declined to add it to their docket Grijalva s episode may be in court soon Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes a Democrat commented she will file suit if Johnson doesn t swear Grijalva in over the next two days Grijalva would be the final signature needed on the procedural measure called a discharge petition Once the petition hits the mark it will force a vote by the full House on a measure by Massie requiring the Department of Justice to release all its unclassified Epstein documents bypassing party leadership which typically decides what statute is voted upon Speaker Johnson is stalling because he knows I will be the th signature on the discharge petition to release the Epstein files Grijalva has reported She and her supporters have enacted a pressure campaign on the speaker including a march through the Capital on Tuesday to Johnson s office demanding a swearing-in ceremony What is he afraid of Epstein the group of Democrats sang during their march Fellow Arizona lawmakers are also piling on holding a rally in front of the Capital on Wednesday morning Speaker Johnson is protecting pedophiles that s what this is about Senator Ruben Gallego Democrat of Arizona revealed The only thing that s been consistent the whole time is that Speaker Johnson is covering up for pedophiles Both political parties however have dug in when it comes to the shutdown each wanting the other to give Democrats are demanding protections for Obamacare subsidies to keep soundness insurance premiums from increasing And Republicans want Democrats to accept their stopgap bill to fund the leadership through Nov The House has already passed the stopgap which is why Johnson is keeping his lawmakers home to increase the pressure on the Senate to approve it President Donald Trump is also weighing in and stated on Tuesday he ll use the opportunity the shutdown brings to close Democrat programs that we want to close up or we never wished to happen The Democrats are getting killed on the shutdown because we re closing up programs that are Democrat programs that we were opposed to So we re being and and they re never going to come back in a large number of cases Trump declared when questioned when he d bring the parties together to negotiate The longest authorities shutdown on record was days It took place in Trump s first administration Miami Herald Visit at miamiherald com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC