The Scoop
WURTLAND, Ky. — Thomas Massie is declaring victory on his move to force a vote on releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files after the election to fill a vacant Arizona House seat.
And he says House Speaker Mike Johnson and “some of the powers that be in DC are in full panic right now” about it.
The Kentucky congressman has drawn the combined ire of President Donald Trump and Republican leaders for opposing much of the president’s agenda and leading the charge on the Epstein files. And he said his three GOP partners are coming under duress for signing onto his effort to force a vote on releasing them, against the wishes of party leaders.
“They came back and tried to get the four of us to take our names off of the petition,” Massie told Semafor after an event in his Northern Kentucky district. “They asked some of my colleagues who are co-signers. And they actually threatened them politically, not physically.”
GOP Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Lauren Boebert of Colorado have also signed the petition along with every House Democrat.
Democrat Adelita Grijalva, who won the Arizona special election on Tuesday to fill her late father’s seat, is expected to put the discharge petition over the top when she is sworn in next week.
Massie said if Johnson uses parliamentary tactics to evade a vote that “there’s enough notoriety on this issue that people will know that he’s sweeping this under the rug.” He also said if there is language included in a bill to sideline the petition, those who vote for that bill are “part of the cover up.”
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Massie announced he will have 218 supporters at an event in his Northern Kentucky district as he answered questions from constituents. He argued ads running on Kentucky media from opponents attempting to oust him are backfiring by increasing his name ID.
Massie’s fight for releasing the Epstein files has even further isolated him in the GOP. But he had backup on Wednesday from Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., one of two GOP senators to support a similar vote earlier this month.
Paul said any effort to avoid a vote could cause further disarray in the House Republican Conference due to angst over changing the House rules. And he predicted it might backfire. “You actually might get even more of a groundswell if he tries to turn off the discharge petition,” Paul said.
Massie said once Republican leaders come to grips with the math on the Epstein files, he’ll end up with well more than 218 votes.
“They’re going to have a vote. I think they’re coming to terms with that,” Massie said. “I’m going to bet the speaker is probably going to hand out hall passes to some congressmen, because this is an 80/20 issue.”