House Dems to force another committee vote on Epstein

Democrats will force another vote on releasing Jeffrey Epstein-related documents during a Rules Committee meeting Monday afternoon, pressing Republicans yet again on the matter before lawmakers leave this week for August recess.

Rules Committee ranking member Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) said in a brief interview Monday that “we’re going to give them one last chance to do the right thing before their August recess break.”

The committee is scheduled to meet at 4 p.m.

“There will be a vote,” McGovern said. He added that said Republicans are "afraid" of Trump and the possibility he's implicated in documents.

Democrats are planning to offer GOP Rep. Thomas Massie’s bipartisan Epstein bill as an amendment during a panel meeting this afternoon, McGovern said — after the same move fueled a GOP crisis last week. They’ve also been discussing additional steps.

Republicans on the Rules Committee voted down the Democratic amendment to advance Massie’s Epstein bill. McGovern called that GOP effort “a glorified press release.” Instead, Rules Committee GOP members backed their own non-binding resolution calling for the release of a limited scope of Epstein-related documents, but Speaker Mike Johnson didn’t immediately put it to a floor vote.

Johnson doesn’t have plans to put the non-binding resolution on the floor this week before the August recess — or possibly ever — that would call for the administration to release Jeffrey Epstein-related documents, as POLITICO reported Monday. Johnson confirmed his plans to reporters later Monday.

Instead, GOP leaders have an understanding with White House officials that the House will wait to address the matter until after the monthlong break. They want to give the administration time to release documents on its own following President Donald Trump’s move to release grand jury information on the case.

Massie is pressuring GOP leaders to simply put his bill on the House floor this week, rather than waiting for him to force a vote by gathering signatures for a discharge petition, a process that won’t be ready until lawmakers return from recess in September. Johnson will not do that either, according to senior Republicans. On Monday, Johnson said “discharge petitions are never a good idea” for the majority party.