A bipartisan effort to force the Justice Department to release all files related to the case against the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein will soon gain momentum after a long delay.
Arizona Democratic Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva is scheduled to be sworn in by House Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday afternoon after a 50-day wait. Grijalva, who won special elections in September to succeed her late father, has vowed to be the final signature on petition for dismissal force a vote to release Epstein's files. (RELATED: Democratic Attorney General Sues House GOP for Failure to Seat Elected Representative During Shutdown)
petition for dismissal — a legislative maneuver that allows members to bypass leadership and force a vote if a petition receives a simple majority of signatures — is sponsored by Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie and California Democrat Ro Khanna. The measure could be introduced in the House as soon as the first week of December.
Johnson repeatedly protected his decision not to fill Grijalva's position during the government shutdown, citing the lengthy recess of his House while the Senate debated a House-passed spending bill, tied his hands. The House had not met until this week since Sept. 19, when it approved a stopgap spending bill to avoid a government shutdown over the objections of nearly all House Democrats.
Democrats, however accused The speaker deliberately delayed Grijalva's swearing-in to delay the vote on the release of Epstein's files.
Grijalva's special election victory also narrowed the Republicans' slim majority in the House of Representatives. Johnson would be able to muster just two GOP votes to pass the legislation along party lines.
WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 5: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Los Angeles) speaks with reporters on the way to his office November 5, 2025 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The record for the longest US government shutdown was broken on Wednesday as it entered its 36th day. (Photo by Tom Brenner/Getty Images)
In addition to Massey, three other GOP lawmakers signed the removal petition: Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Lauren Boebert of Colorado.
President Donald Trump in particular criticized Greene in the Oval Office on Monday. Greene argues that the president spends too much time on foreign policy and does not pay enough attention to domestic policy issues.
“I don't know what happened to Marjorie,” Trump told CNN's Kaitlan Collins. “She's a good woman, but I don't know what happened. I think she got lost.”
Johnson said in October that he would not try to quash the dismissal motion if it reaches 218 signatures, but criticized lawmakers for pushing ahead with a procedural maneuver.
“Unfortunately, some Democrats and unfortunately even a couple of Republicans have tried to turn this into a political issue,” Johnson said during a news conference in October, referring to the resignation request. “They seem more interested in somehow getting their hands on the president than in getting justice for these victims. And I think that's shameful.”
The speaker also said the House Oversight Committee's investigation would reveal more information than the Massey-Hannah Act because it is “broader in scope.”
“The bipartisan House Oversight Committee is already doing what the dismissal motion sought to do, this gambit, and more,” Johnson said.
The Oversight Commission's investigation into Epstein could intensify after the 43-day shutdown ends. The House of Representatives is expected to approve approved by the Senate expenses package reopen the government on Wednesday evening.
The Massey-Hannah bill could face an uncertain outlook in the Senate if it ultimately passes the lower chamber. Republican leaders have not committed to holding a vote on the legislation, and it would need seven GOP votes to pass the Senate's 60-vote threshold.
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