Republican infighting over the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files is causing delays in the House of Representatives, putting key votes at a standstill as the Rules Committee is on track to cancel a meeting meant to set the agenda for the week.
The Rules Committee was expected to meet on Monday evening to vote on procedural measures that would advance a slate of legislation, including the Stop Illegal Entry Act, PERMIT Act, and resolutions rescinding several Biden-era rulings.
However, the committee suspended the meeting indefinitely as it continues to discuss options for Epstein-related measures. Conservatives are calling on the Trump administration to release all information about the disgraced and since-deceased financier.
A source familiar with deliberations told the Washington Examiner that the committee is in “recess subject to the call of the chair,” as several members of the panel told reporters that the committee’s huddle is canceled.
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), who sits on the Rules panel, told reporters he didn’t think the committee would report out a rule governing consideration of legislation on the House floor at all this week. Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), ranking member of the committee, told multiple outlets that “we’re done.”
“Not reporting out a rule, we’re done for the night, we’re done for the week … There’s some issues going on within the Republican conference, I think around the Epstein stuff, that they can’t seem to get under control,” McGovern told The Hill. He added that the House would probably instead vote only on legislation that would not be subject to a rule, which would mean only bills with overwhelming support.
Norman blamed Democrats for the holdup, stating he anticipated they would do the same thing they did last week and offer up amendments to bring an Epstein-related resolution sponsored by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) to the floor.
“They want to make Epstein — We’re all for transparency,” Norman said. “We’re going to do that. But what they want to do is grandstand. They said they will. They’ll be there all night. We’ll be there all night.”
Norman added that he thinks the right course of action is to wait until the discharge petition for Massie and Khanna’s bill “ripens,’ after the August recess, and the resolution can come to the floor.
“I think it will give the administration, I think it will give [Attorney General Pam] Bondi the time to get everything together and put it out there,” Norman said when asked what will happen over the next month, where lawmakers won’t be in town and will be back home in their districts.
“They’re going to have to put it out. It’s not going away, nor should it,” Norman added.
This is the second week in a row that House Republicans have felt the ramifications of the Epstein files, after the Department of Justice released a memo that stated there was no “client list” nor any more information to provide, despite the president and his Cabinet members previously stating the opposite.
This angered Trump’s “Make America Great Again,” or MAGA base, particularly among conservative influencers who credited their support for the president’s victory in the 2024 election.
Democrats took advantage of this opportunity, calling up votes in the Rules Committee last week and messaging that they were putting Republicans on record for voting against the files’ release. This delayed a vote on a bill to codify cuts identified by the Department of Government Efficiency, known as a rescissions package, that cut billions in funding to public broadcasting and foreign aid.
Only one Republican, Norman, voted in favor of an amendment from Khanna that would release the files.
The remaining GOP lawmakers on the panel expressed anger with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) that leadership wasn’t coming up with a solution to the Epstein files debacle, upset that it made them take potentially politically damaging votes at a time when the Republican majority is precarious at best.
The GOP eventually came up with a non-binding resolution calling for the release of more files, which advanced out of the Rules Committee last Thursday. However, there is no set date for bringing the resolution to the floor.
Johnson told reporters earlier on Monday that the House would not vote on the non-binding resolution until after the August recess, which begins after votes conclude this Thursday. Instead, he said, he thinks the administration should have space to decide how to proceed.
“Here’s what I would say about the Epstein files: There is no daylight between the House Republicans, the House, and the president on maximum transparency,” Johnson said. “He has said that he wants all the credible files related to Epstein to be released. He’s asked the attorney general to request the grand jury files of the court. All of that is in process right now.”
“My belief is we need the administration to have the space to do what it is doing, and if further congressional action is necessary or appropriate, then we’ll look at that,” he added. “But I don’t think we’re at that point right now because we agree with the president.”
Massie told reporters after the Rules Committee was suspended indefinitely that he thinks the speaker is “scared” and “torn.”
“I think he’s terrified,” Massie said. “I think, well, I mean, 80% of MAGA want these files released. They were promised this, they expected this, and it’s not happening. But at the same time, [Johnson] feels an allegiance to President Trump, who’s gone against the MAGA base on this.”
“I think the right thing to do would be just leave it up to the people’s House, let us vote on whether to release these files or not,” Massie added. “And I hope he does not try to use some kind of parliamentary procedure to subvert or hide the release of these files.”
Massie carried a binder on Monday called “The Epstein Files: Phase 2” with his and Khanna’s names on it, noting that he expects his discharge petition to ripen after August recess. The binder was in reference to the “Phase 1” binders Attorney General Pam Bondi gave MAGA influencers earlier this year.
Norman said he won’t sign on to the discharge petition, but as of now, he’d consider voting for the Massie-Khanna bill.
“Unless something else comes up, I will — the Massie resolution is a good solution,” Norman said. “I hate [that] the Democrats are using it because, again, they waited four years [on the files] and didn’t do anything.”
Massie and Khanna need 218 signatures on the discharge petition to force a floor vote on their bill. If all Democrats sign on to it and all of the GOP co-sponsors add their names, it would put leadership in a tight spot. Republican leaders are hoping the fervor surrounding the files will die down by then, but Massie thinks it’s only going to increase from here.
“There are a lot of people here in the swamp who think that, ‘Oh, well, if we spend five weeks on vacation, the pressure for this will dissipate.’ I don’t think it’s going to dissipate,” Massie said. “I think it’s going to build. Because the American people are still getting up, going to work, paying taxes, and wondering where these files are.”
If Republicans aren’t careful, it could carry into the 2026 midterm elections, where Republicans are defending a two-seat majority as of now, after former Rep. Mark Green’s retirement.
JOHNSON SAYS NO HOUSE VOTE ON EPSTEIN FILE RELEASE BEFORE AUGUST RECESS
Massie said he thinks it will follow “each individual Republican” next November if nothing is done about the files.
“Did you support transparency and justice, or did you come up here, get elected, and fall into the swamp? Did you decide that getting reelected was more important than exposing a pedophilia ring and a blackmail ring? If you did, then maybe you shouldn’t be coming back, and that’ll be a referendum in every primary, in every general election in the United States in 2026,” the Kentucky Republican said.