The tragedy of Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) has two more final acts before his departure from Congress in January.
Massie, who has been known to rebuke GOP leadership and President Donald Trump on a myriad of issues, could begin a five-week revenge tour when the House returns after the midterm elections for its final sprint before the new session begins in January. The Kentucky Republican has a second bill to release files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, which is nearing a majority of signatures to force a vote, as well as impeachment articles against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth that must be voted on.
The two bills could leave House GOP leadership with a few headaches in the waning weeks of the 119th Congress.
The House left for a seven-week recess a day early after Massie introduced eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth, which would have had to come up for a vote within two legislative days, meaning the effort is expected to be voted on when the House returns on Nov. 9.
“The Epstein recess this year, and now we have the Hegseth holiday,” Massie told the Washington Examiner last week.
While Massie is confident that leadership canceled the last day of session due to concerns about the Hegseth push succeeding, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has rebuked that idea, chalking it up to a “publicity stunt.” The articles home in on the war in Iran, the Trump administration’s arrest of former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, strikes on alleged drug boats, and the war in Yemen. Massie also accused the Pentagon of ignoring laws to minimize civilian casualties and suppressing free speech.
“Politically, it’s bad to leave this thing floating until the election,” Massie said.
Johnson would need a simple majority to block the legislation from coming up for a vote. Last week, 18 Democrats joined all Republicans to table retiring Rep. Al Green’s (D-TX) latest impeachment effort against Trump.
But the Hegseth impeachment effort is not the last trick the Kentucky Republican has up his sleeve.
Massie introduced a discharge petition last month for the Epstein Files Transparency Act II, a follow-up to his previous bill that forced the release of the files last year. The new proposal was prompted after lawmakers have said there are still materials being withheld and would allow state attorneys general, prosecutors, and victims to sue for not releasing certain records, as well as provide unredacted documents to victims who request it.
“The Department of Justice continues to unlawfully withhold over 3 million Epstein files that should be released to the public,” Massie said in a statement. “In addition, the DOJ is unlawfully maintaining heavy redactions on the files it is releasing.”
A discharge petition requires 218 lawmaker signatures, which forces a vote on the House floor once the measure clears that threshold.
His first bill hit the necessary 218 signatures with the help of three other Republicans — Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and Nancy Mace (R-SC), as well as now-former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. His second petition currently sits at 216 signatures, with Mace and Reps. Ralph Norman (R-SC) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) joining Massie.
He needs two more to force a vote on the measure, and he’s hoping for more Democratic support.
“We got to 216 now, Fitzpatrick signed it, so if every Democrat signs it now, it’s a deal,” Massie explained. “We got four Republicans.”
The moves come with just five weeks left in Massie’s congressional career a defeat to Ed Gallrein earlier this year. Trump spent significant political capital defeating Massie, who has been a thorn in the president’s side throughout his presidencies. The primary, which Gallrein won by about 10 points, was the most expensive House primary on record, aided by a $7 million surge from Trump-affiliated organizations and pro-Israel lobbyist funds amounting to $9 million.
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“Massie cannot realistically move anything that does anything in what’s left of remaining session,” GOP strategist Dennis Lennox told the Washington Examiner. “This is half revenge tour and half grift by a lame duck with a flamethrower. He can make plenty of noise and scorch his enemies on the way out, but nobody should confuse that spectacle with something serious.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to Massie and the speaker’s office for comment.